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High Pitch Whine?

Ivan

I Jeep, therefore, I am..
Location
Greensboro, Ga
I recently developed a high pitch noise which seems to be coming from the power steering pump area. I've listened around the engine bay, playing with the throttle, trying to track the whine down. The whine pretty much follows the rpm curve as you accelerate and let it idle down.

Could this be the power steering pump going out? Maybe the idler pully? Just fishing for suggestions from those with past experiences of this nature.

Thanks for any input...

Ivan
 
Probably the idler pulley. Mine self-destructed a while back. If you leave it long enough, it starts chugging like a diesel, then chews your belt in half. Replace it if the bearing looks bad at all or if it is loose. $15 for a new pulley is better than $65 for a new pulley, a new serpentine belt and a tow home. I know from experience.
 
I do the idler about every 3 years or so. Got a gift from a friend of mine, about a 3 ft long flat ended ratchet. Makes life much easier, don't have to pull the electric fan anymore to get a socket down there to loosen the darn thing...
My PS kind of sings when it first starts up and on cold days. Been doing it since new.
 
Ivan said:
I recently developed a high pitch noise which seems to be coming from the power steering pump area. I've listened around the engine bay, playing with the throttle, trying to track the whine down. The whine pretty much follows the rpm curve as you accelerate and let it idle down.
Could this be the power steering pump going out?

Quite possibly. The whine from the PS pump will be more obvious when you turn the steering in either direction. Check the PS fluid level and its condition. New PS fluid is clear so if it looks dark, change it.
 
Thanks for the feedback.

The power steering pump doesn't really make any noise while turning the wheel, except at extreme full lock. Then it's more of a "groan" then a high pitch whine. But then I figure most PS pumps do that when pushed that far.

Since I've got about 75,000 on the stock one, I'll change out the idler pulley and go from there..... thanks again.

Ivan
 
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