Date:         Mon, 5 Dec 1994 07:12:35 -0600 (CST)
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         Gerald Skerbitz <gsker@lenti>
Subject:      Re: Strange sounds from my engine

On Mon, 5 Dec 1994, Stuart Hutton wrote:
> Now, I am beginning to hear a strange sound which I think is coming from
> my engine.  It seems to be quite pronounced above 58 mph or so.  I do not
> think this is road noise or tire noise ... it is a recent sound.
> It sounds sort-of like a medium-high pitched sound that one would expect
> to hear from a rod turning inside something round, but fitting loosely.

Ok, we need to hear words like, "whistle", "grinding", "clanking", 
"pouding","rapping","rattling" etc.  

> My ideas so far:  Wheel bearings (the thing did not seem to pull at
> all to one side) ... water pump ( there was not any problem with overheating).

Bad water pump bearing surface will not cause overheating problem 
necessarily. When you were messing around with draining your coolant, did 
you grab hold of the water pump  pulley and try to move it?  Loosening 
the alternator will help in this operation.  Also, if it's the water 
pump, you should hear it when the car is not moving -- try revving it and 
putting the butt end of a long screwdriver against your ear (or find a 
stethoscope if you are or are married to an M.D. or buy a mechanics 
stethoscope) and put the other end against the engine to hear different 
things from different places.

> Oh, one more thing: it is not too loud, but the loudness did seem to grow
> once it was heard and speed increased.  Once the speed drops below 58, the
> sound went away.  However, it always did return once the speed went above
> 58.    

Never happens when you just rev it? We need more description here.

--
Gerry
Gerald Skerbitz <gsker@med.umn.edu> U of MN Med School Admin 6-5379