While going offroading in Centrailia this past weekend, I hit some part of the front drivers side setup on a large rock. This produced a nice bang, and I'm not sure what else. I haven't had the time, nor daylight to check out the area where I heard the bang, however I am now experiencing a weird noise. This noise sounds very high pitched like squeaking breakes. I have noticed that it can only be heard between 2500 - 2750 rpms in 1st through 3rd gears. Any idea of what this can be? I can't drive with my window open cause the sound kills my ears even if for a split second.

EDIT 11/30/05

Experimented today to find that it has nothing to do with my brakes. I put the truck in neutral and brought up the rpms to 2500. It made the noise then, so that rules out brakes...
Now for the past month or so I had an odd noise coming from the front of the engine, sounded like a loose belt when I started up the truck, but only lasted for a few seconds. Now that noise is gone, and I think that this noise has replaced it. John told me that initially that that noise could be either a loose belt, or a tensioner. Now that this new noise is coming in at a certain rpm range, I'm thinking maybe its a tensioner. Does that sound like something a tensioner might do? I've never heard this sound before, and its got me and my wallet worried.

 

you have 15" wheels on the 2003+ larger rotors you might have done something that your brake calaper is digging into your wheel. John go outside on your brake and get underneathe the front and check to see if the wheels are rubbing on your calaper...

 

No access to my truck until I get home. Guess I'll try and look with a flashlight tonight. I'm guessing I'd see wear marks around the inside of the rim?

 

yea...

 

Edited, check first post

 

i was gonna suggest the tensioner

 

The tensioners are the pulleys that the belt rides on, right? Are they expensive? hard to replace? I am thinking of having the dealer take a look, maybe they'll be under waranty.

 

bump

 

could be the idler pully or the tensoner pully OR you could have gotten mud in the alternator...check those

 

You can take a piece of rod like threaded stock or something and touch it to the alternator and them put it either near your ear or on the bones just behind it. You can then pinpoint the location of the noise. Obviously be very cautious doing this with the engine turning (someone bringing up the RPMS).

Although you may have hit something, that doesn't mean it did it. I could have just been water/mud/dirt/gravel getting on stuff and it may still be your belt. Do you have a spare belt to try?

Also, you can remove your belt and spin some things by hand to check the feel and for looseness or whatever. You may not feel anything though.

My alternator that I saturated in mud never made noise -- it just stopped working, lol.

 

yes the long screw driver thing works so well. thats how i check mine every few months or so. just found out agian my idler pulley is bad agian and so is my alt bearings...

 

The sound is now coming in at 3000 rpms, and I can't pinpoint it, being that its so loud. This doesn't sound like the typical belt problem to me. I am taking it to the dealership on wednesday for them to hopefully fix it.

 

Dealer says its the fan clutch, which I've recently noticed is loud as hell at startup now. I dunno if that's whats causing the noise at 2500 rpm, guess we'll see.

They also told me that the belt is glazed, so I am going to change that with a gatorback belt when I have the time.