I have a ticking sound, RPM related, from the passenger side engine area on my 78 308 GTS. After the car warms a bit, it goes away a bit. I thought it could be the A/C or water pump, but I wouldn't expect it to go away. Car is in the air and the tire and fender liner is out, any suggestions before I start removing belts one at a time?
There has been other threads about this problem. Most likely it's your aux. belts for the waterpump, alternator, & a/c. When they get old and stiff they make that noise as they flex around the pullys until the engine and belts warm up. I would try and adjusting the tension on the belts first, if they are to loose they could also make that noise. If that doesn't work, time to change them. Good luck.
It can go away with a little running because as the V-belt heats up it gets a little softer/sticker so it doesn't stick/slip on the idler pulley flanks (which is a weak design with too low a wrap angle). That's the hard way -- the easy way is to spray a little belt dressing on the V-belts (one at a time) which will increase their cold stickyness.
at dinner this evening my aunt was saying how her buick was making a noise that she thought might be a belt and i told her about this phennomenon. it is something indigineous to most of our cars. try cleaning the groove of the ac/water pump pulley with some emery paper. what's happening is the belt is stiff and the corrosion on the pulley grabs the belt and makes that disconcerting sound.
It is the most alarming noise and sounds like static arcing across a gap. It seems to be worse when the humidity is very low but does go away once the belts have warmed up bit. Although its likely to be mechanical noise from the AC belt, as described, there should be a short wire joining the AC pump to the front cam cover to stop static build up from the belts. It might be worth checking that its still there as they can get misplaced at cam belt change time. I replaced mine but it didn't make any difference. A bit of silicon spray on the water pump and AC belts seems to help but its not long lasting and has to be repeated regularly.
Can't say what might be causing it, though you have a few suggestions. If you don't own a mechanics stethescope, an easy, cheap way to isolate and located engine noises with with a length of garden hose or 3/8 to 5/8" heater hose. Take a piece of hose about 3' long, put one end to your ear with a cupped hand, and use the other end to identify the source of the noise. Just be careful with fingers and the hose around moving parts like pulleys and belts. Very quickly, you'll narrow down the source of the noise.
sounding like the heater/A/C motor internally or one of the baffle 'flapper' thingies.....IF it is a low, ticking in the dash-like area....but, then again, might be something else. rik
I thought it might be the belts, too; I was just going to disconnect them one at a time to see what happened. But it's a pain to do that, so I am going to try the belt dressing and see. It is most certainly warm-up related, as once the engine (and belts) are warm it goes away. Also, the A/C best seems to have a little more play than necessary so I'll lube and tighten before I panic. it isn't electrical (I ran the engine in the dark garage looking for a arc) as far as I can tell so this sounds tight. Harbor frieght has the mechanics steth for $2. Been dying to get one, now I have an excuse! Thanks all I will report back.
