Whining drive / gearbox

[Ant S]

Hi, Can any one help diagnose this problem - its a 1.8 LS petrol 2002 on 67k miles
I have a whining noise whenever i drive the car, in any gear and when free rolling out of gear - i thought it was my new tyres but i changed them to a spare set and still get the noise so assume its from bearings or gearbox. It gets very loud. Im hoping the gearbox oil just needs refilling but not being technical i cant find the fill cap for that!
ANT

[Gsi3.2]

even free rolling out of gear it can still be the gearbox.... the shafts inside are still turning even whe they aren't transmitting power and the Differential and it's bearings are also turning.. there's also another support bearing on the back of the engine that it could be also..

The tyres.. are they wearing 'funny'.. like a stepping of the inside edges blocks?..that causes them to howl..

wheel bearings 'humm' the faster you go but you can normally detect which one it is as they very very rarely go as pairs, so one corner will be louder than the other.. the best way to disprove which bearing it is is , when you have found the noiseiest corner of the car, remove the discs and pads from it and feel the rotation of the hub with your hand.. a slight gravelling feeling means it's shot..

Without dumping on him.. if you need expert help, Gary3306 is up your part of the world and MAY be able to take a listen for you...Send him a PM and tell him i dropped him into it..

[Ant S]

Thanks for the quick reply. The tyres are new and seem to be wearing OK
Im guessing its a Gbox problem as its sounds similar to a knackered Land rover Gbox I had a few years ago. Would a box go after just 67k miles though, seems a bit lightweight? either way its begining to sound expensive, ive seen other threads on GBox costing £300 just for parts.
I will send Gary a PM see if he can help - cheers enjoy the bank holiday
Ant

[Gsi3.2]

TBH, if it is proven to be the box i wouldn't even bother trying to repair it.. i'd just whack a salvage/2nd hand box into it.. they are quite a common box so they won't be a great deal of dosh..

hopefully it'll just be something daft and cheap..

[Ant S]

Hopefully it is daft and cheap. I noticed there was an oil leak at the bottom left of the engine which i think is the housing for one of the pulleys on either the timing belt or the fan belt - it maybe that the whining comes from there in which case it may be the bearings - couldnt get a good look yesterday as it was snowing heavily.
thanks for your help
ant s

[Gsi3.2]

well bottom left is far away from the gearbox....

if there is any noise coming from behind those covers get it looked at now.. there is a nasty habit on the 1.8's of the timing belt idler and tensioner rollers braking up their bearings and the belt jumping..

also, drop off the alternator belt and feel the tensioner pulley by hand for roughness.. if the bearings in that are worn it's whine as well..

[Ant S]

Yep it is, which may be good news in terms of costs,
I need to get it to a garage tomorrow or friday and take it from there as there are a number of possibilities. The Timing belt was done last year and new tensioners put in so hopefully not that - that could be expensive if it snapped on the way to the garage!!
Ant

[Ant S]

Hi
The dealer says its the wheel bearing on the nearside and this is £200+ I can only assume its a lengthy job? They offered to do the front brake discs and pads also for under £400 not sure if this is a good deal or not. Anyway i'm at that point where i have had the ar 3 years and am thinking of selling and getting a newer model or maybe try and Astra or squeeze into a Corsa at a push so not sure i will go for the expensive job just get the bearing done and try and sell up.
Thanks for the help on this one - at least it wasnt the Gbox!
Cheers
Ant S

[diesel dog]

Front pads and discs are only £66 + vat (VX) for most if not all Veccie C's,so do the sums.

[Gsi3.2]

yep, and a wheel bearing is £130+V from VX or £60 from ebay and it takes about an hour to change one ( on a show feild at billing)..

avoid the dealers... take it to an independant..