S70 - Whining Noise, Pully or??

omega329 · Post by **omega329** » 04 May 2013, 15:12

Intro - Skip if you want
Hi, long time lurker here, I'm 19 years old with a 2000 Volvo S70 SE Auto (Picked it up for free in poor mechanical condition, but most was related to suspension and steering rack problems). Unfortunately, I am in my 3rd year studying mechanical engineering and make little money working 30 hours a week retail. Due to these circumstances, and my passion for pretty much learning anything, I prefer to do everything DIY.

The problem:
A few days ago I was on my way to work and had to drive through a 2 feet of water (South Florida's Rainy Season), I knew it was probably dumb but I didn't have much of a choice. As a POSSIBLE result, I started my car today and heard a whining noise ( NOT HIGH PITCHED AT ALL) coming from my engine. The origination is on the left side of the engine, additionally, when I turn the AC on, it appears to make the noise much louder, however, this could definitely be attributed to the noisiness of the Ac system, in which I don't care if that makes noise.

Possible Diagnostic?
Which pulley is the culprit? or could a bad belt make the noise alone?
Current Odometer: 175,000mi, Last timing belt change, 2007 with 105,000.
I removed my timing covers, and I can VISIBLE see some wiggle on the front cam gear while running, is this normal? There is a little residual oil surrounding the timing belt, a cam seal is most likely leaky but there is very little oil, and after every oil change this car burns zero oil.

Is there any way to diagnose pulleys? Does an experienced mechanic have the ability to diagnose it without replacing stuff one by one?

Post by **mikealder** » 04 May 2013, 15:25

Pop the Aux belt off and try running the engine to see if the noise is still there or not:

If the noise is still present it is the cam belt/ related pulley system.

If the noise goes away then it could be any of the devices driven by the Aux belt, alternator, A/C compressor, Power steering pump or Aux belt tensioner.

I know what you mean about deep water as I was heading back to Orlando airport to fly home Thursday PM and it "fun" to say the least, worst conditions I have driven in for a very long time - Mike

omega329 · Post by **omega329** » 04 May 2013, 15:44

mikealder wrote:Pop the Aux belt off and try running the engine to see if the noise is still there or not:

If the noise is still present it is the cam belt/ related pulley system.

If the noise goes away then it could be any of the devices driven by the Aux belt, alternator, A/C compressor, Power steering pump or Aux belt tensioner.

I know what you mean about deep water as I was heading back to Orlando airport to fly home Thursday PM and it "fun" to say the least, worst conditions I have driven in for a very long time - Mike

Thanks for the quick reply, but is it safe to run the car without it? Will it just use the battery for the power? It doesn't the the alternator to regulate it or anything?

Edit - I believe I answered my own question, I know how the system works, I just never thought about trying, I will try that now, thank you Mike. However, if my 5 year old battery (yikes i know) fails, ill be walking quit a bit to the nearest auto zone for a recharge.
Additionally, I uploaded a video of the noise to the original post.

Post by **mikealder** » 04 May 2013, 15:57

I would only pop the Aux belt and then run the engine for a minute or two to see if the noise has gone away.
You are correct with the Aux belt off the alternator won't work, neither will the air con or the power steering, the water pump is fine though as that is driven by the cam belt - Mike

omega329 · Post by **omega329** » 06 May 2013, 15:54

I removed the serpentine, started car, no noise, I spun all the pulleys they all felt horrible, but I wasn't about to replace them all. With the help from a local mechanic that my family goes to often , he stethoscoped the pulleys and concluded there was noise coming from the idler and ALOT from the alternator.
Not sure what route I will go, but the rest of this is for anyone else who ever has this problem.

A new alternator is 200$, I may try and source one from a local junkyard though, but the procedure is kinda lengthy to extract it; the environment of the junkyards out here in 90F weather really sucks.
http://www.fcpeuro.com/products/volvo-a ... 0805x-120a
On the other hand, the pulley can be replaced for 70$ + a 15$ tool.
http://www.fcpeuro.com/products/volvo-a ... a-30667878
https://www.amazon.com/CTA-Tools-8088-Al ... ulley+tool

Post by **JRL** » 06 May 2013, 15:57

You can run it at least 10-15 minutes, maybe more without a serp belt with no issues
(as long as your battery is in good shape)

Post by **precopster** » 07 May 2013, 07:51

Your alternator pops out in around 15 minutes; just remove serp belt and swing power steering pump out of the way (just undo the hard line) Then remove the top 2 bolts which pass through the a/c compressor while loosening the bottom 2. Then find the 12mm bolt at the front near the tensioner that holds the alternator steady.

You can then squeeze it up past the radiator hose.