2002 Other Saturn Models Very high pitched whining

2002 SATURN
90,000 MILES • 4 CYL • FWD • MANUAL
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WACKY CANUCK
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2002 Saturn SL. While coming back into the city today I noticed a whining sound that quickly became very very loud almost drowning out my radio. Could this be my transmission? It sounded almost as if it were coming from either he front end or right under the gear shifter or perhaps the front passenger's side of the car. It was incredibly difficult to isolate in any way because it was so loud and high pitched that it pretty much seemed as though it was all around me.

This sound does not come up when I am travelling in city but when I take it out on the highway and hit about 90 Kilometres per hour, the sound will come and go getting progressively worse and more constant. I have stopped driving it since this issue came up today.

Any idea what this could be?
Dec 15, 2007 at 5:21 PM
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WACKY CANUCK
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It just occurred to me that perhaps this could be the alternator? The battery in this car has been fairly abused and I'm thinking this high pitched whine could be coming from the alternator as it struggles to fight for its last bit of life.

Would this be something that is more likely to come up as the car reaches higher speeds?

Thanks in advance

Cheers
Dec 15, 2007 at 10:56 PM
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JUSTIN FREED
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Anything is possible, I suppose but, I don't think it's the alternator. This sounds more like either a throw out bearing or a wheel bearing.
Dec 16, 2007 at 9:31 AM
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WACKY CANUCK
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Well alternator tested and came back as ok. Battery was bad so I decided to replace that...It's been bad for a while though, I was just avoiding it.

If it was a bearing, would the sound go away when decelerating? I mean, if it were a bearing, I would think the car would probably be standing still once it was parked.

The only other things I can think of are perhaps a belt (the serpentine belt perhaps) or maybe the transmission is acting up...but who knows.

Thanks anyway.
Dec 16, 2007 at 10:56 PM
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JUSTIN FREED
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Certainly the noise from a bad bearing can increase as you speed up and decrease as you slow down since the wheel is speeding up and slowing down....not quite sure what you mean by "the car would be standing still once it is parked."

It could be the belt although, it doesn't sound like it. You could ensure that the belt is tight (there is a belt tensioner) or get a can of belt lubricant....

It could be a transmission - let's hope not. A wheel bearing is much easier AND cheaper to fix.
Dec 17, 2007 at 9:49 AM