Freelander 1 FL1 weird noise

Hello all,

I have a noise while driving that has got me stumped. It's a pretty constant upper-medium pitch sort of noise and doesn't in itself sound mechanical - not a whirr or a grating or knock.It doesn't start as I pull away but makes an appearance after about 10-15MPH and carries on until I stop. It does kick in a bit faster if I try to hoof it a bit though. It doesn't change pitch or volume with speed.

My first though was clutch but it doesn't go away if I press the pedal down or take it out of gear. My second thought was maybe the PAS pump as it has always been a leaky duffer (at least the oil thrown out keeps the one set of ARB bolts free from rust).

It's almost certainly coming from the front as the noise sounds ahead of the dashboard and with the window down I'm fairly certain you would hear it if I drove past.

Anyway, it's a 2001 FL1 1.8 kettle. Had it years and till now it's been a pretty dependable workhorse.

Kettle! ha ha brilliant! made me chuckle!

Could it be belt related?

I am certain the more knowledgeable ones on here will advise

No idea, I'm as stumped as a lad faced with his first ever attempt at unsnapping a bra.

A friend last night suggested whipping the PAS belt off to see if it's the pump, so I'll do that at some point.

Before then I need to fix and then refit the battery tray. What started out as a simple job to free up the siezed captive bolt has turned into a right faff.

Broken exhaust clamp, the one that bolts to the rear of ird,

I'll have a look in the morning.