Deep water whine.

Could anyone reassure me please? Yesterday I went through some of the crazy flooding we have in Oxfordshire at the moment and there was a high pitched whining sound emitted from under the bonnet. It only lasted for a few seconds at a time ad didnt seem to be a problem. Was it just the fan belt slipping due to the water and is it anything to worry about. Thankfully the doors stayed on and the water put the flames out!

Many thanks,

Roodle.

how deep was water ( 4 inches )

robint said:

how deep was water ( 4 inches )

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Don't be silly there'd be no doors left if it was that deep

Roodle said:

Could anyone reassure me please? Yesterday I went through some of the crazy flooding we have in Oxfordshire at the moment and there was a high pitched whining sound emitted from under the bonnet. It only lasted for a few seconds at a time ad didnt seem to be a problem. Was it just the fan belt slipping due to the water and is it anything to worry about. Thankfully the doors stayed on and the water put the flames out!

Many thanks,

Roodle.

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Yup, belts. Check tensioners are doing ther job.

DD3 said:

Yup, belts. Check tensioners are doing ther job.

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Is that belts plural? I'm a bit of a novice. Is it straightforward to check and adjust them? I assume it wouldn't do any damage?

Thanks,

Roodle

Roodle said:

Is that belts plural? I'm a bit of a novice. Is it straightforward to check and adjust them? I assume it wouldn't do any damage?

Thanks,

Roodle

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Well there are 2 drive belts for alternator, power Steering and AC.

Air conditioning is the variable, as is option according to spec of vehicle. From memory the alternator and AC share a belt and tensioner and steering has its own belt and tensioner. Anyhoo, check that the belts are not damaged perished frayed on a visual and pull them up and down at longest run - assuming the tensioners (which are non adjustable) are working properly, they should be tight and not easy to deflect. If one or other is clearly loose, then belt and maybe tensioner is worn oot. Easy replace!

I had that high pitch whine that happened occasionally when starting off on a damp moring,. Had intened checking the belts but before I could...one damp morning came out turned on the FL1 and tried to turn the steering wheel! No chance, looked under the bonnet and the belt had snapped no power steering. E25 for a replacement belt and am trying to figure out how to adjust the tension on the alternator to get the dam thing over the last pulley! Don't ya just love it?

You usually just get a socket and bar or a spanner onto the nut on the tensioner idle wheel. It's spring loaded and should move enough to allow you enough slack to route the new belt wherever it needs to go. Also, I'll not upset you by mentioning that I got a Gates belt for less than £13 on eBay. I know that when you are in a hurry to get something locally, it tends to cost extra.

Answering a eight year old problem won’t be of much help to the original poster, but good luck

Europa486 said:

Answering a eight year old problem won’t be of much help to the original poster, but good luck

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Might help some other silly sod who never looks under his bonnet for weeks but just turns the volume up on the radio ...

Not that I just turn up the volume but I do most of my own servicing. Putting something off for too long usually results in having to do it when you least expect or need to have another job to do. Having just spent a glorious couple of hours swearing underneath in the cold doing the rear trans mounts. It may not help someone with a problem eight years ago but then again not all problems happen at the same time so I for one am glad and thankful for the response from Paul99. Thanks it will take some time out of doing the job.
Cheers

I find turning up the radio has been a legitimate fix for a lot of problems on mine