Horrible squweeling noise, water pump side of 308 engine

If the bearing is spinning inside the pump housing like you say, You'll need a new pump.

 

After I changed my belts and rebuilt my H2O pump I ran across a similar thing. I'd get a squwealing right after start up and it would go away in a few miles. It turned out to be a misaligned water pump belt. I had had the altern looked at too and failed to but back the right number of wahser to align the altern with the pump & crank. It was so misaligned that it eventualy burned up the belt.
If you have changed anything on that side of the engine check with a straight edge to see that all the pulleys are in alignment, crank, atler, water pump.
Thats a place to start. It could also be your water pump belt is simply getting loose, or it could also be a failing bearing of some sort.
Good luck

 

new pump time

 

Park it until it is known what the source of the noise is.

 

Peter - I'm experiencing the same condition. Just finished a complete service - all belts, hoses, fluids, etc. and have the same noise issue. Please let me know what you find....I'm hoping that mine is simply a mis-alignment as noted by Meister, or that I've set the tension on the wp - alt belt wrong.

 

I would want to know where the metal particles came from first, and what type of metal they are. A magnet would help with this. Anything leaking out of the weeps on the bottom of the waterpump?

Maybe run the car for a few seconds without the pump belt and see if the noise is gone.

Or, I would idle the car (with belt attached) and listen with a mechanics stethescope to the water pump, timing cover, oil pump, and everywhere else to try and isolate the noise.

I'm interested to hear where the noise comes from, and the source of the metal pieces.

FWIW- I'm just a shadetree.

 

I had the same problem at start up. It would also occur once in a while when driving.
I used a short chunk of garden hose as a stethescope to isolate the area it was coming from. It ended up coming from the area of the alternator so I pulled the belt and spun it. The bearings were smooth and noiseless.

The noise was coming from the alternator pulley grinding it's way into the aluminum cooling tube that runs between the alternator and the L/H fuel tank. A quick R & R of the tube for repairs and additional clamping solved the problem.

 

I'm sorry to hijack this thread, but I want to make one comment. When I took my Lotus to my mechanic, I would always be in fear he'd screw up something on the car while fixing whatever it was in for. And every time, he would! I'd have to take the car back once or even twice each time I had him do something. I eventually fired him and now do all my own work. Granted, I've not needed to take the head off yet, but I can screw up my car for a lot less money than my mechanic, although it takes me twice as long. But I always get it fixed, and I learn something.

To all you mechanics out there: PLEASE test drive the cars before returning them! Please assure the owner to bring it back if anything is amiss and if it's related to the service then they'll fix it for free. Belts are supposed to be the corrct tension and in alignment!!! I know Ferraris are sometimes difficult to adjust but that's what you get paid for.

I recognize that the guys who post a lot here really know their stuff and I wish I had you guys to help with my car. I'm speaking to the unwashed masses of so called mechanics who take people's money and are lazy about their work.

Okay...I'll take a breath. Whew!

Ken

 

Ok. I've isolated the "squealing belt" noise...it was just that, a squealing belt. However, I seem to have been dealing with two issues - I've still got an infuriating "chirping" noise which I am assuming is from the exhaust system... I set the car at idle and rasied the lift to get a better shot at it and I swear the noise is coming from the muffler, I just can't see where exactly. I guess my next move is to drop the muffler and inspect it...??? Thoughts??

 

Also, while I'm at it, if I do end up replacing the silencer, would it be advisable to go to something like the unit used on the euro version 308 GT4 - 73 model - sans the "nuclear reactor"?? My car is a US version '75 and is now smog exempt.....

 

The water/alt belt on a 308 is a bit finicky. Too loose and it will squeal. Too tight and it will destroy the water pump bearings. You need to adjust it tight enough to work, but not too tight. There is a measurement in the owners manual I think.

As for the chirping exhaust, some 308 exhausts use a perforated insert in the tailpipes. This causes a chirping, like an old VW bug, at higher RPMs. It sounds a LOT like a squealing belt from inside the car. Look at your exahust and see if there are holes in the "liner" inside the tailpipes (I have no idea what to call this). There is a company advertising in the FerrariAds section of this website that sells an insert to fix this. I haven't tried them, and I don't know if they work, or in any way restrict the exhaust system, but I have been meaning to give it a whirl because our Mondial does it. Thankfully the Ansa on my 308 doesn't do it. It's VERY annoying to have a Ferrari sound like a VW!

Birdman

 

Birdman - yes, EXTREMELY annoying!! I did get the belt issue taken care of...thanks!! About the exhaust, I held a rag over each of the exhaust tips, which did not do anything to minimize the chirp, which is taking place at idle and gets to be more of a continuous sound as the r's go up...eventually seemingly going away. I wonder if the same effect as the inserts would be had by "hogging" out the perforations - which I do have, btw.

 

RWDOMKR,
You have the exhaust chirp syndrome. Buy some inserts on Ebay or make them yourself by rolling stainless steel sheet stock into a tube shape and stuff it in the tailpipes. 3 inches by 7 inches rectangle rolled into a 3 inch long tube should do the trick. Overlap the seam and compress it somewhat to slide it into the pipe. Once in place it will open up and stay in place on its own. That will likely cure your embarassing VW Beetle chirping noise.

John

 

If the belt is making noise something is wrong. One of the ancillaries it is driving is bad, the belt is bad or loose. Belt dressing is a bandaid that only disquises the problem.

 

John - thanks for the advice....I'll give it a try!!

Randy

 

Gotta love those easy ones. I cherih them though because they seem to be few and far between!!

 

so where did the metal particles come from??