1997 Ford Mustang GT - "Whistling noise"

Moosetang69

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Hi all,

Recently my 97 manual GT has been making this "whistling" noise when I accelerate / rev the engine at 2k RPM or higher; as if I have a supercharger installed... I bought the car used recently and it has approximately 34.5k miles. In terms of modifications, the car is mostly stock, but with an aftermarket exhaust setup and a Ford aluminum driveshaft (not sure if this changes anything).

Since getting the car, I changed out the transmission fluid, differential fluid, water pump, belt tensioner, serpentine belt, and idler pulley.

Would anyone be able to chime in on what might be causing this sound? I'm hoping it's not the transmission, but I'm not too sure..

Link to video:

Many thanks in advance!
 

cobrajeff96

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Power steering pump can sometimes whistle, although it's usually more of a screaming/whining sound, like a scalded cat. An idler pulley will make an identical noise if it's lost all its grease as well. How many idlers does the timing cover have? Only one? Could even be an alternator pulley bearing. Hell, any of them up front.

I doubt it's a transmission though.
 
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Moosetang69

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Most times an aftermarket throttle body will cause a slight whistle. Be sure their are no vacuum leaks.
Thanks for the insight, the throttle body is stock, but nonetheless, I'll check for any vacuum leaks
 
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Moosetang69

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Power steering pump can sometimes whistle, although it's usually more of a screaming/whining sound, like a scalded cat. An idler pulley will make an identical noise if it's lost all its grease as well. How many idlers does the timing cover have? Only one? Could even be an alternator pulley bearing. Hell, any of them up front.

I doubt it's a transmission though.

Thanks for chiming in!

I'm thinking it might be the alternator pulley bearing. Might be a stupid question, but if that's the source of my noise, would I have to replace the entire alternator?

I'm quite glad that you're doubting it's the transmission. If the transmission was going bad are there any noises I should look out for?

Thank you
 

cobrajeff96

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Chattering/grinding/clunking. But transmission already can make these noises under normal conditions, but if they get hella loud and do it all the time... then you've got an issue.

Unless you know of a place that can get you an alternator bearing, probably just replace the whole alternator. Often times you can do a one-for-one swap and pay a bit less money than just throwing away your old one and buying a new one. Because with an alternator, the bearing is not part of the pulley, like an idler. It's a part of the alt's internal structure.
 
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Moosetang69

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Turns out my neighbor's dad is a mechanic and after checking it out, he's pretty certain it's the fuel pump, especially since the noise is coming from the rear of the car.
 

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