Did what again?

 

i doubt its your alternator...just let it sit there and when it you hear it, jump out and check under the hood. haha. if its a grinding, your dizzy might be going out.mine did that.

 

Well, I found out my alternator is doing this whirring noise and I listened real close and the tapping is coming from my engine. Maybe I need a valve adjustment?

BTW, my dizzy went out a long time ago

 

oh okay....you can get engine cleaner stuff so your valves to stick and stuff. check out your local auto parts store to see if thatll fix it.

 

My '94 del Sol VTEC had a sound much as you described. Hollow rattle at
startup (sounds like excessive valve lash) then quiets down. Pulling away
in 1st gear produces this noise up to about 3000rpm then gets quiet.
I noticed my water pump was leaking so I assumed the pump was failing.
I ordered the pump and a new timing belt for good measure. The day
_before_ I was to begin work on the car THE TIMING BELT BROKE!!!
I don't know whether coolant from the water pump had gotten on the
timeing belt or whether the sound was from the water pump to begin
with. This sound slowly got louder over a couple of weeks time. I thought
maybe valves needed setting or the water pump's bearing was going out
(due to loss of coolant there). I was set to do all of the above but was
ONE DAY TOO LATE!. I'm almost done pulling everything off (valve cover,
belts, timing belt housing, etc. but don't know yet the extent of the
damage.
Don't hesitate! At least pull your valve cover off and pull your spark plugs
then rotate the engine by hand and inspect your timing belt.

 

what about when it's in gear and you engage the clutch? It might be throwout or mainshaft bearing.

 

In my case the noise (again, sounded like _really_ loose valve lifters) was
particularly loud on start-up at which time the clutch is depressed. It
would continue for a moment or two even on releasing the clutch then
deminish somewhat... almost like having no oil pressure. In first gear
(second, third...) the noise would continue during slow acceleration up
to about 3000rpm (consistently) then abruptly disappear as the engine
passed ~3000rpm. Same thing in the next gear and so on.
Since I was losing coolant at the water pump flange I thought the noise
was due to a failed water pump bearing. That could still be the case. I
haven't pulled the water pump off yet. I definitely have a broken timing belt.
Whether the belt was the source of the noise or the belt failure a result of
being frequently awash in leaking coolant I can't say. Honda manuals
say "don't get oil on the belt as it will swell and fail prematurely".

 

Wow, who started this thread?

I found out that my alternator was bad. It was the bearing inside that was making all that racket. I also changed my timing belt a few weeks ago cause it was about due. It does make noise at startup for a brief moment though.

 

:closed: ?