Engine knock & rattle: accessory belt pulleys or engine internals? 

More on the belt & pulleys ~ * Replacing the belt & idler/tensioner: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ItND7vPozv8.html * More on the belt tensioner: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-mOm42H0J3iY.html * Water pump: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-cj8JBMJxibQ.html * Over-running alternator pulley (OAP): ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-XYi_w3ieGUo.html Amazon links for the Duratec HE (check your part no.s): * Serpentine belts & pulleys ~ US: amzn.to/2Gugnmh | UK: amzn.to/2GLgt8o * 6PK2225 as featured ~ US: amzn.to/2TNQpNC | UK: amzn.to/2tpyl0v * Idler as featured ~ US: amzn.to/2BCt0aW | UK: amzn.to/2IgAQg6 * Tensioner featured (Continental # 49405): amzn.to/2VFScG2 * More tensioners ~ US: amzn.to/2S6gW6R | UK: amzn.to/2SFdgy6 * Water pump ~ amzn.to/2XLTdfC * Or, for generic pumps the Ford part # is 1142427 ~ US: amzn.to/2ZCqbAS | UK: amzn.to/2W5qSAE * Alternator over-run pulley, try searching ~ US: amzn.to/2lvN0H6 | UK: amzn.to/2lvSVfr

Oh man, found this video after looking at like 40 other ones. So friggin smooth. So many trash videos on youtube regarding cars and repairs. Keep up the good work.

This is exactly what my Ford Duratec is doing , thanks for sharing👍

Finally found the same symptoms of my car, thanks for the video!

Great video. This is what I needed for further confirmation on my tensioner

Had a knocking sound at around 2500 or 3000 rpm and sometimes at idle. Did some checks on the engine and couldn’t really find anything out of the ordinary apart from my worn out pas pump (but I already knew about that one) one morning I was letting my car warm up and I was standing outside listening and the sound seemed to be coming from under the car so because it was only warm not hot I held my exhaust tip and the noise disappeared, let go again and I heard the noise. Turned out that it was just my exhaust rattling cause my exhaust hangers I’m guessing are about as old as the car and have never been changed. Stuck some new ones on and haven’t heard the sound since so keep in mind that the noises you hear aren’t always directly related to your engine

Disconnecting the belt? Genius!! Going to try that today I am losing my mind.. Great video tyvm

Omg finally know what that fing noise was. Thank you.

you can also use a wooden dowel metal vibrates too much so you can use a wooden dowel put it on the part you think the noise is coming from make sure not to put it on parts that are rotating this works really good because metal vibrates too much and the wood does not vibrate very much and will give you a true or sound to find out engine noise also the man in the video is correct about taking the belt off to see if your getting engine noise somewhere else like in the motor itself sometimes it is necessary when working on a car trying to figure out what engine noise is coming from sometimes it is a good idea to cut the car on jack stands to eliminate road noise I hope this information that I gave you about the wooden dowel will help you locating noises Within the motor or exterior parts of your vehicle including transmission differentials Drive axles bearing noises in the lower part of the motor and upper part of the motor and valve covers additional accessories you're able to check with the wooden dowel like the alternator the water pump air conditioning power steering pump and pulleys Honda motor garters and other types of motors the Peace of wood dowel rod works very well

Put a new belt and tensioner on made the water pump noise for sure. Sometimes noises aren't so obvious until you fix something. I hate when that happens, makes you think you screwed up.

Excellent video! Clear, concise, to the point. I never considered running the engine without a belt attached to isolate a noise.

Well, this sounds pretty similar to my noise on m9r renault. Its the original belt, never changed. First i thought its the timing chain which is under a cover at the same location. My mechanic said yesterday it doesnt sound like the chain. I should try getting of the belt as you did. So i will try this 👌 Thanks buddy

Fantastic idea taking off the belt to locate the problem. Never would have thought about that

This is why you ALWAYS check all pulleys for wobbliness, loosening and bearing noise and replace if need before you reinstall the new tension belt and idle pulley so that way you don't work twice!

your videos are clean af

Hi thanks for the great idea removing the belt for the troubleshooting purpose. This is good to eliminate the issue between belt mechanical and engine internal.

Absolute fuckin cowboy leaving the belt near everything spinning 😂😂 good man

Same parts and issue I replaced on my 96 k1500 with a 350 Chevy. Thinking it’s either my harmonic balancer or the crank going out smh. Issue started shortly after replacing pulleys. Harmonic is ordered and here guess we will see in due time 😅

Lovely video from my guy who sounds like a university professor where I work. But he knows his stuff😊

Having the same issue with my acura tl and I can hear the knock more inside the cabin, specifically accelerating slowly. Because cause when I accelerate fast, I can't hear the knock. And I figured it was the serpentine belt tensioner pully. This video helped me more too. So thank you.

When my car is in neutral I don't hear any squeaks but when I have it in drive or reverse I can hear the squeak when accelerating.

I kept having problems with harmonic balancer pulley. Cheaply made. The noise was shocking but I agree with taking the belt off. I ran it with it off and was so much worse cos it wasn't under tension so was vibrating more. It's a quick east check for the harmonic wheel aka crank shaft wheel too. Also never buy cheap and try and get a genuine part. I've been through 3 so far.

Im praying that this is my issue on my 2013 Impala 😢

Great staright to the point video. SUBSCRIBED

Did you find out what caused the knocking sound? I went through your other videos but couldn't find it. I'm hearing the exact same sound on my Mondeo. To me, it seems to be coming from the alternator but I'm not completely sure.

Thanks for the advice... This might help me in more ways than you can imagine. I will do what you did, again thank you.

Similar issue..replaced a lot of parts..some needed others not so much..tonight I ran car with belt off..same vibration and rattle noise...looked at harmonic balancer ,seemed to have a slight wobble,actually not even sure,but I ordered one off Amazon and are keeping fingers crossed this is the problem..

Fantastic idea. And he speaks perfect English

I have that exact loud knock when starting for a little bit more time but it completely goes away after 2 seconds on a cold start. I plan on changing my water pump, both belts and water pump and tensioner hopefully this helps!

Thanks for this. I’m getting a weird engine noise and I suspect either a pulley or alternator bearings as the noise only occurs under load (adding extra electrical load makes it worse). The noise is most noticeable when the car is driven so should it be okay to drive it for a few yards?

I was getting this noise for sometime.. thinking it was cam chain, valves, taps, fuel pump pressure, top end knock, oil pressure. Got the belt changed after 137k miles! (It lasted but was on the way out) now have a bigger nosie when bonnet up. I guess it's a pulley, on it way out. As reving the engine sounds perfect! Does the aux belt, always go at one speed or go fast when underload? As I have a noise and would like to think it's a pulley, gearbox on its way out. Drives fine and pulls great. Just noise's at 140k on a 2L duratec ST150

This is what my car sounds like. I hope its this and not a timing chain or rod knock.

It always seems to happen like that! You fix one problem and uncover another one. Good video and diagnostic, though !

disconect the battery n run it like that

This video answered all my questions! How long will the mechanic take to fix the belt issues?

2nd comment after my rant, but can you imagine people paying for a engine rebuild and its just a $30 pully if that

how long can i let the engine running if i removed the belt?

Hello i have this exact sound on a new Renault Captur 1.0 GPL since the second month of ownersip with 2500km on the clock. The specific motor is 3cyl. When visited the local dealer he concluded that was the top right engine mount. When replaced the sound disappeared for 40 days or approximately 2800km and then appeared again. Visited again the local dealer who then blamed the DMF but advised me not to replace it. Since then i have replaced two more time the specific engine mount but the problems keeps recurring after some time and km. Another dealer proposed to do what you describe in order to isolate the three pulleys crankshaft, water pump and alternator. Not to forget the motor has no belt tensioner. He replaced the waterpump but nothing changed. Do you think that it can be the crankshaft or the alternator pulley? Or can it be something else that comes up to your mind. The sound is heard clearly when car decelerates from 1500 rpm exactly at 1000 rpm, when due to the 3 cyl the car vibrates more as a trrrrrrrr (the sound heard on your video after 0'39") but also on idle with a different frequency. It is heard clearly in the cars interior and no so clearly when out of the car.

Great video, it was super helpful! I spent hours looking at other videos and this one was the one that made the difference! Thanks for investing your time to help out

Excellent

this video is very old so i dont expect any replies but i own a 1989 Cadillac sedan deville and just recently i got off the freeway and my car started smoking (i figured out i had a coolant leak and this has happened before so i knew what the smoke was luckily i was a minute away from home) but then after that happened my gas pedal started making a rattling noise everytime i pressed it and also the coolant leak seemed to have sprayed because there was coolant all over the left side of my engine i guess my question is does anybody know specifically what this issue is? im trying to avoid going to the mechanic but if it sounds bad then i might as well ill gladly do my best to answer any questions also!

I had a weird one which took a while to isolate. It was a loud rattle at idle which turned out to be the spring inside the tensioner. I’ve subsequently heard it on another car so could be fairly common on the duratec. Tricky as all the bearings were fine and had me thinking it might be the cam chain at one point.

Straight to the point, nice.

Hi! Nice video. I have a v70 2.0f with the same engine as your car. After i changed tensioner and belt since it flapped a loud noise started to creep in becoming louder and more frequent for every week. It sounds like it’s coming from the alternator.. It can’t be a bad tensioner since I replaced it just a few months ago. Will check it out today.

The symptoms are very similiar to a bad alternator one-way clutch.

Dude. Thank you. Same shit here. ‘91 Rivera. Same issues. Saved me a heart attack.

Had this kind of thing with a brand new Lexus timing belt idler pulley. The type of engine with three accessory drive belts. What a game, especially after changing the timing belt and putting it all back together already!

Hello Craig. I recently replaced a rattling belt tensioner in my 2002 mbz c320........As well as a new belt for good measure. the rattling went away. but now it is back ????? anyone got any ideas ????? I can clearly see that the spring in the tensioner is not keeping two surfaces apart and that is what I see is making contact and causing the rattle. BUT, I thought a new tensioner with better spring and a new Belt would solve the rattle......as I said, it did, though only for a moth or so.......

This is exactly what I’ve been dealing with my car, just started doordashing and a new job 30 minutes away from home. My water pump is new so I knew it wasn’t that but this pulley has shaken my engine so much the cover cracked.

you are a life saver

Can someone please help me 😭😭 I have a dodge neon srt4 and for whatever reason ,only at 2k rpm’s + will the car make a rattle noise and it increases with rpm. Temperature of motor doesn’t matter. It also only seems to happen while accelerating , if I’m decelerating I can’t seem to hear it . If you have any ideas I’d greatly appreciate it 🙏🏾

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED TO RUN THE ENGINE WITHOUT THE BELT IN THE MORNINGS WHEN ITS STONE COLD AND THE OIL TEMPERATURE HAS NOT REACHED ABOVE 200* F

Would squealing in damp weather be another symptom along with a ticking noise to indicate checking pulleys etc, car has almost 160k kms and hasn't had any timing adjustment yet.

Good advice for tensioners and pulleys about to fail.

Got issue ford fiesta 03... rumble sound like pulleys wear ? Also cars misfiring ? No engine light on ...

Dose these share the same components as the ford 2.0 St150

My 06 dodge charger sounds just like this but has a slight knocking noise form the crankshaft pulley but I think it does need new rod bearings too got too be that

How do you take out out the bolts next to the Harmonic Balancer to take out the Belts ? I had a 2001 Toyota Camry 2.2 Liter . I tried taking them bolts out to loosen the bolts but it looks like I have to take more bolts more than two ? I loosen one bolts already .But how many bolts should take out to loosen the belts .?.

I would be terrified to remove any part out of my block, having the mechanical skills of a dodo. However I am learning since the noises in my car give me a lot of stress lately. I am stuck between replacing my car on the one hand, and calculating (guessing) how long my current engine will run without completely falling apart. I am not even sure it is safe to drive anymore.

Everything you did wrong in this video is just what i did wrong so now i got similar symptoms

I hear the same knock when I’m on stop and in gear or when in park. Do you think it’s the tensioner?

No point changing singular Parts do the whole thing

I was getting this noise for sometime.. thinking it was cam chain, valves, taps, fuel pump pressure, top end knock, oil pressure. Got the belt changed after 137k miles! (It lasted but was on the way out) now have a bigger nosie when bonnet up. I guess it's a pulley, on it way out. As reving the engine sounds perfect! Does the aux belt, always go at one speed or go fast when underload? As I have a noise and would like to think it's a pulley, gearbox on its way out. Drives fine and pulls great. Just noise's at 140k on a 2L duratec ST150

I like what you did but what if the noise coming from the serpentine belt because it's vibrating a lot I change it the pulley tensioner and the serpentine belt and it still making vibrating in the belt causing rattling noise mine is Altima 2012 thank you

I bought a wrx which I think had rid knock. Planning to rebuild and seen no AC belt

Good video for rookie wrenchers👍

PLEASE HELP I have a silverado and on cold start it tics for only 1 second but does not sound quite like a lifter tic, looked at so many vids and cant find the culprit

Could also be the alternator when it is un attached to the belt how do you know it is not one of the reasons?

That crankshaft pulley it's modified ( welded ) ?

Great vid. girlfriends ford laser has the exact same noise

Great video really helped

Man, you have all the answers.

Great vid. I drove my car for about 3 mins with no belt to get it home. The power steering also stops working :)

I haven't had time to check my noise bit I think it's bearings from a pully. I just chopped the aircon pully belt cos it's quick and easy and can buy new one. And I don't really use it, But it's not that. Took it too local tuner paid him for his time to tell me what he thinks it is.he said small end bearing... He told me to go to his "friend" that's a engine builder /fixer that so happens to have the same engine in storage that I have, he said it's internal... so quoted me $4500 and mentioned he had the same engine I can have for $5500 (he got for free because someone gave him the engine to put new cams in and 5 years later never asked for it back).... I really do hope its just a pully so I can fix it myself and say to myself, fuck you! Haha The engine is a rb25det neo and I put it in a 1998 gu patrol

Water pump is on the other side? Or what duratec is this?

Did you ever find out what was causing the ticking/rattling sound?? As I have the exact same thing on mine, any help would really be appreciated

THANK YOU 🙏🏻

hello graig's I also have a strange sound like a noise of pebbles I would say even as a really very weak chain noise between 1000 and 2000 rpm only rolling window open closed window we hear nothing beyond 2000 turns the noise disappears when I am stopped engine ignited I accelerate in a vacuum the noise is not present the noise and the only rolling between 1000 and 2000 rpm can you help me do you perhaps you also the same on your car maybe all engines duratec the bottom maybe The echoes of the engine bje am a French in France not a lot of duratec like I've been on RU-vid for a long time I need your opinion can you look on all vehicles if you have the same noise thank you very much

Question: I have a 466 Ducky workaround pedal star with a 300 MGH stroke pusher, and every time I flush what they used to call the fortune head, the rack assembly next to the over chassis runs too hot to allow the trans conductor room to rake the field jack (casing on or off). Does anyone have any idea how to get the hard stand to quit pushing the belt connections past 16?

The pump will not cause that knock, it's the hormonic balancer (crank pulley wheel) if you run the engine and look underneath of the pulley wheel you will see it wobbling about.... 10 quid I bet you he changed the pump and the noise was still there.

Did you investigate that 1 second rattle at start up? I have the same noise on a 2002 Mondeo which only happens on a warm start, never on a cold start.

Nice. Liked that. I'm looking for help with this problem. Writeup below I've used on Nissan forums. I'm thinking my issue may be a failed hydraulic timing belt tensioner. Any ideas or experience you have is greatly appreciated! Hello all! This is my first Nissan Pathfinder. I have always wanted one since the late 1990s. It's a 1998 SE 3.3L, automatic transmission, 167,000 miles on it. I got it at an estate sale for $2,000. It has a loud knock or tap that happens part-time and so far it's not been resolved. I'd really appreciate it if anyone could point me to anything to check next, or describe if you had similar problems with yours. I've run the motor minimally...only to troubleshoot. Here's what it does and what I've done: 1. When it's first started, it knocks for less than 1 second and then gets entirely quiet. I hear maybe 2 knocks when it first starts. Then, when the motor is accelerated to 2000 RPMs it begins to knock and it keeps knocking until 3000ish RPMs. It increases in speed as the RPMs increase. If I let off the accelerator it stops knocking. When it's higher than 3,000 RPM it goes away. So it's in this midrange RPM the knock is present. It does this sitting still, or driving it. The rig was very sheltered it's whole life from what I can tell. It was driven lightly by an elderly lady. It's in immaculate condition, inside and out. Garaged. Paint and interior is perfect. Motor starts, idles and runs great other than the knock. Oil is full. I dropped the oil pan and checked the main and rod bearings. There was not any play. I changed them anyways. Noise persisted. There was some material in the pan's bottom, about 1/3 tablespoon (1 teaspoon) of what seemed to be fine wear material. Which I would think is normal for 167,000 miles. 2. It has a P1400 error code, for the EGR solenoid. I have not chased that yet. I don't find where this would cause a knock though. 3. The transmission fluid is 1 to 2 quarts low (based on my guess from stick reading), but the noise does not seem to be coming from the transmission, and the vehicle moves and drives fine. No slippage. What could be causing this part-time knock? Hydraulic lifters? Timing belt slap? Harmonic balancer? Cracked flexplate? The noise seems too loud to be the lifters, and doesn't do it at low RPMs like lifters usually do. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

10/10

Would a pulley cause the engine to vibrate at intervals? I noticed if I put it in park the rattle is gone but if I put it in drive it rattles and then goes away... pls help 🙏 😢

Can we do this on a 2007 crown Vic ?

Can i drive the car wthout the brlt connected?

Belt tentioner

Explain very well thanx great video

It depends on the car, some cars use just an electric water pump to cool the engine, some cars use the timing chain or toothed belt to drive the water pump

Thanks for this. Good advice. I am not sure whether my auxiliary belt rattle is water pump, AC clutch or alternator clutch. Waiting for it to get worse !

My w212 is making this sound and I can move and hear a small clunk just by hand with the idle tensioner so I’m hoping it that. Because I don’t think I have Knock but more of timing chain slap in my head haha. But hopefully this helps.

You are a bright lad

wOAHHHHHHHHH

When i rev the engine on my 72 jaguar the noise sounds like a loud knocking or grinding i hope the engine isnt going bad :(

If it’s gone vibration will appears

Thanks

Sounds like the same as my car. Changed tensioner and belt, suddenly the tensioner vibrates like mad.

My car has been starting to sound something like this i guess and my brother said it might be rod knock but the other day when i went to go clean the interior i turned it on to see if it did but its not to loud and when i pressed the pedal i only went up maybe 100rpms and then the noise went away and it sounded normal and later when i finished cleaning my car i turned it back on and went up to 2000rpms and i could hear it a little more but going to higher rpms it sounds like it goes away, also the engine feels like it shakes a little bit, could it be rod knock? Or can the timing belt tensioner cause the shake too?

Hi Quick question..have you ever had a warm start issue with the mondeo

Nice! You're going through the same stuff i have before. Can't wait for the next vid :) and since you already changed the power steering pump, the idler pulley and the tensioner pulley, there is only one bearing left that MIGHT give off funny noises. The alternator pulley, that has a one way bearing on it, but i hope all gets fixed with the waterpump. Cheers