Ok, i got a 350 TBI and i am getting a whinning from one of the accessories, what i have is a AC unit, water pump, alternator, smog pump delete pulley, and power steering. Now the whinning is only audible (to me) while idling, once i give it gas and start going, it goes away. The smog pump delete pulley was put on about 400 miles ago, and the tensioner pully i just put on last weekend, the alternator and water pump where new at engine build 7 years ago, but it has only been 3-4000 miles ago (yes, thats all i have driven it in the past 7 years). So does anyone have any ideas on how to isolate the problem, and what does a water pump sound like if it s going bad inside? Does it whine?

 

Recently had a similar issue. Could have swore it was a water pump. Finally, I thought to remove the belt and start the engine. Still had the whine. Turns out it was a vacuum leak in the gasket under my tbi adapter. Something you might want to check for.

 

ac condessors whine when they are about to poop themselves. some will start whining on friday and die on saturday and some will whine for over a year before they kick the bucket. try checking the pressure and maybe puttng in some ac lube.

also-check to make sure your idle tensioner is where it needs to be. the pointer needs to be in the middle of the two marks
good luck--i hate chasing noises

 

Also wanted to add that about the same time that the whinning started, when i got on it i could smell a little burning rubber (not coming from the tires) from under the hood, like something was locking up and letting the belt slip over it instead of running it.

 

i bet it is the AC condensor-had one start going south and it did the same thing although it was in my diesel....

 

Is there any way i can check for sure, could i get a small belt and a drill with a pully on it and try to run the pulley and see if it makes the sound, any other ideas?

 

take the belt off and check all the accessories by hand.
make sure the alternator pulley isnt wobbly then check the ac compressor-it should spill easily with the ac clutch disingaged.

and water pumps do whine-i also just remembered that the seals in the pumps go bad even if they arent driven<---could possibly be the problem
ohhh-heres an idea
make sure the car is cold then get in and scream up the road and back-then get out and see which pulley is hot-that will be the one that is letting the belt slip.<-------------dont know if it a work but it makes sense

 

take belt off and turn each pulley...

 

ok, i had to use a big battery charger/starter to get the car to start because it has sat all winter long, and i noticed as long as the battery charger was on and connected to the battery the car didnt whine, but when i turned it off it would whine, so i found my receipt from the parts store that i bought my alternator from in 1998 and saw that it had a lifetime warranty so i took it back and they flipped me another one and i put it on and the whine is all gone, so it ended up being my alternator, thanks guys!