2002 ford truck question- can anyone help?

[iLoveMyExploder]

ok so its not a ranger or explorer..... but maybe someone here could recognize the noise this 2002 escape is making. i posted about it on a ford escape forum- lots of people read it, but i never got any answers. those people are useless.

this 2002 escape is my father in law's truck.

when pressing the gas and taking off, there is a noise coming out from the front of the truck....

the best way i can describe this noise is... it sounds a lot like a midget under the hood blowing on a kazoo, only during acceleration.

once it gets up to speed, say maybe 2nd or 3rd gear, it seems the noise stops.

the truck has oversize fancy wheels on it, and the tires have a lot of tread, which creates a lot of road noise. when up to speed, i dont hear the noise. i dont know if it goes away or if the kazoo sound is masked by the road noise the tires make.

he says the noise has been going on for as long as he has had the truck, about 9 months. it could have been making the noise before he bought it, i dont know.

does anyone know what is causing this noise, and hopefully how to fix it?

 

[mbrando1994]

The noise may be getting masked by the road noise, but either way a whining kazoo sounding noise I would attribute to either the torque converter, pump, or transfer case if it has one. What exactly would be wrong with them I wouldn't be able to tell you, lots of parts in those things, and even more in a transmission. Does it go away once he let's off the gas in 1-2nd? Tell him to coast at speeds that you can still hear the noise, and even put it in neutral. This will rule out drivetrain and point towards suspension more if it does go away once in neutral, but you can never rule it out 100%.

 

[iLoveMyExploder]

The noise may be getting masked by the road noise, but either way a whining kazoo sounding noise I would attribute to either the torque converter, pump, or transfer case if it has one. What exactly would be wrong with them I wouldn't be able to tell you, lots of parts in those things, and even more in a transmission. Does it go away once he let's off the gas in 1-2nd? Tell him to coast at speeds that you can still hear the noise, and even put it in neutral. This will rule out drivetrain and point towards suspension more if it does go away once in neutral, but you can never rule it out 100%.

thanks for the reply!

its not a whining sound by no means... it really sounds a lot like gently blowing into a kazoo or a harmonica.... i have never heard any vehicle make this sound before

i just asked him.... he said the more gas you give it (taking off from a full stop) the louder it gets, let off the gas and let it coast- and the noise stops completely. he says when it gets up to 15-20 mph, he cant hear the kazoo sound anymore. im not sure if this is also when the road noise becomes audible, i dont drive it, its not my car...... maybe i should go drive it, and do the tests you suggested.... and also see if when the road noise begins coincides with when the kazoo stops.

it has an automatic transmission.

 

[imp]

@mbrando1994
Been running 9 months, noise is the same, no serious issues growing worse.......torque converter making noise will not likely last 9 months, ditto, pump, etc.

I'd go for some part vibrating in the air intake system, possibly the air filter, if loose, or cracked. imp

 

[96firephoenix]

my winter tires were pretty loud if you were accelerating, but not yet up to 20 mph. It might be the tires. If you've got a spare set of wheels/tires, toss them on and see what it does.

 

[johnbyler]

Does it happen under constant load? Or between a specific rpm?

 

[iLoveMyExploder]

its not the tires making the kazoo sound.... i know for sure. the other day, i was standing near the truck as he was moving it up the driveway, which is steep. i imagine he had the engine at 2000-3000 rpm to crawl up the driveway. i could hear the noise loud and clear as he was acellerating up the driveway. its definately not the tires making the sound.

 

[iLoveMyExploder]

Does it happen under constant load?

what exactly does that mean?

 

[explorerjosh]

when pressing the gas and taking off, there is a noise coming out from the front of the truck....

Please don't ever call a Ford Escape a truck again. Thanks.

 

[iLoveMyExploder]

if the escape is not a truck, neither is the explorer. not much difference between the two, SUV is an SUV

 

[imp]

Christ, dissecting opinions of definitions.......solves nothing. imp

 

[johnbyler]

what exactly does that mean?

In my 03, whenever the rpm went past 2500 rpm regardless of the gear it was in, it would make a high pitched whistling noise. It may not be the same issue, but for me it was my fan clutch.

 

[iLoveMyExploder]

Christ, dissecting opinions of definitions.......solves nothing. imp

thank you

 

[iLoveMyExploder]

In my 03, whenever the rpm went past 2500 rpm regardless of the gear it was in, it would make a high pitched whistling noise. It may not be the same issue, but for me it was my fan clutch.

is there a way to test the fan clutch? is your '03 an explorer or escape?

 

[imp]

thank you

@iLoveMyExploder
Sorry if I offended you. Just seems to me that in trying to solve problems, irrelevant facts such as what is a truck or not is a waste of talent.

Now about the fan clutch. Whole slew of facts apply. If a fan clutch bearing seizes, locks up, the fan is driven at max speed all the time, making a sound like an airplane propeller. Not like I understand the sound talked about here. OTOH, if the "juice" leaks out of the clutch, the fan sound will never happen, and the engine will overheat. Between those two extremes lies the fan clutch with failing bearings, or leaking seal, which will eventually require remedy. Worst case, fan clutch bearing fails completely, allowing separation of fan from clutch structure, and the spinning blade screws itself through the radiator. ALL fans operate in such a way that, given contact with the radiator core, the blades "dig in", rather than flap against. One can allow his fingertip to rumble over the back of the idling fan blades without harm. Tried at the FRONT, off goes some fingertips. Such display (the back!) freezes and horrifies most folks, who are unknowing and clueless to the fact that blades have "pitch". imp

 

[TechGuru]

Please don't ever call a Ford Escape a truck again. Thanks.

Ha, exactly. The Escape is a transverse engine front wheel drive POS much like the new 2011+ explorers, OP prob should be in the 2011+ section of the forum.

 

[TechGuru]

if the escape is not a truck, neither is the explorer. not much difference between the two, SUV is an SUV

The Ford Escape is a crossover NOT a SUV, it is NOT legally classified as a "truck" like pre 2011 explorers are.

 

[iLoveMyExploder]

@iLoveMyExploder
Sorry if I offended you. Just seems to me that in trying to solve problems, irrelevant facts such as what is a truck or not is a waste of talent.

that does not offend me.... about the escape- its not my ride and i dont care for it. i wouldnt want one for myself. it feels like a car to drive it. thanks for info about the fan clutch seems like i learn something new everytime i get on here- which is why i come here LOL

 

[iLoveMyExploder]

Ha, exactly. The Escape is a transverse engine front wheel drive POS much like the new 2011+ explorers, OP prob should be in the 2011+ section of the forum.

thanks for the advise, i will do that! maybe someone there has heard that noise before and would know what it is.

 

[TechGuru]

@iLoveMyExploder
Sorry if I offended you. Just seems to me that in trying to solve problems, irrelevant facts such as what is a truck or not is a waste of talent.

Now about the fan clutch. Whole slew of facts apply. If a fan clutch bearing seizes, locks up, the fan is driven at max speed all the time, making a sound like an airplane propeller. Not like I understand the sound talked about here. OTOH, if the "juice" leaks out of the clutch, the fan sound will never happen, and the engine will overheat. Between those two extremes lies the fan clutch with failing bearings, or leaking seal, which will eventually require remedy. Worst case, fan clutch bearing fails completely, allowing separation of fan from clutch structure, and the spinning blade screws itself through the radiator. ALL fans operate in such a way that, given contact with the radiator core, the blades "dig in", rather than flap against. One can allow his fingertip to rumble over the back of the idling fan blades without harm. Tried at the FRONT, off goes some fingertips. Such display (the back!) freezes and horrifies most folks, who are unknowing and clueless to the fact that blades have "pitch". imp

I've never seen a transverse engine vehicle with a fan clutch. All had electric.