cparker688

Hi all,

I have recently noticed a terrible squeaking sound coming from the engine bay. It happens at all points when the Jeep is on. It gets worse/louder at higher speeds at first I thought it might be a wheel issue but the noise seems to be right behind the fan. I just replaced the tensioner assembly that included the tensioner and idler pulley because that's what I thought it was by listening to them (they needed to be replaced anyway). I listened to the PS pump and it sounds fine as does the alternator. I would have to guess either the water pump pulley or PS pump pulley. I haven't checked the weep hole on the water pump but haven't seen a drop of coolant anywhere. I have however seen large amounts of actual water where it would be if the A/C was on and condensing but it's winter and all I have on is the heat.

I've got about 145k and never really touched anything except the radiator, front axel and tensioner assembly. I also have no codes. The A/C did seem to go out this past summer and I have had water in the passenger side floor but I originally thought it was the condensor box but I had that replaced about 2 years ago. I tried to recharge the A/C but it was already full. It would get cold then hot and muggy and then cold again.....

I've got no payments so I'm looking to keep her on the road as long as possible so as long as the 4.7 works I'll fix the rest. Sorry for the long post but I wanted to be as detailed as possible.

Any help would be appreciated.

00jeepXJ

quick way to check what it is... get a squirt bottle fill it with water and set it to stream. spray a stream on the pulleys... that will help you narrow it down.

That said I would check the water pump. A quick way to do that is to grab the fan blade ( ENGINE OFF! ) and wiggle it back and forth. If it moves a lot then you more then likely have a bad pump... this doesn't always work and is not full proof but a good way to check.

This is assuming that you have check the tension on the belt and that the belt is in good shape. Hope this helps.

cparker688

I don't understand what spraying water will do. Will it make the sound worse?

kjc

I'd suspect the water pump too.. Try to wiggle it as suggested, but with the belt in place, you'll have to really put some force on it. You said you also suspect the power steering pulley, but that really wouldn't make a noise, as it's solid with the pump (there's no bearing in it like the idler has) any noise from that would be the pump itself.
Water pumps can and do go bad w/o ever leaking at the weephole.. they only leak there if the seal on the shaft is bad.
It could even be the belt just needs to be tighter.

00jeepXJ

nope ... the water will lubricate things and make the noise disappear. Thus allowing you to narrow down where the noise is.

cparker688

As an update I think I had two problems going on at once and fixed the one where it squeaks at idle (replacing the tensioner pulley and idler pulley). It now no longer squeaks at idle or sitting still. I can't replicate the noise by revving the engine. It only happens when I'm driving down the road and the frequency of the noise doesn't change with speed. I'm thinking brakes or some suspension component but the noise only comes from the front sounds like drivers side but it could be both sides.

I tested it out at lunch today and same thing, only a noise when driving. This is not my vid but this is the exact noise it makes:

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j...8cvPIQbsnowKKg

00jeepXJ

hmmm.... it kinda sounds like suspension or interior plastic moving around to me... but that vid is a little hard to hear on the speakers I am using... will try it at home to hopefully get a better sound.