Hey all. Haven't been on here in a while, had a lot of things going on. Holidays and all. I'm in TN, and the weather here is getting much colder. For some reason, when the temps are quite low (30's or so, and less) when I start my car in the morning to go to work, it turns over fine, starts right up. But a couple seconds after starting, under the hood is a terrible and loud sort of "grinding" or "whining" noise. Very loud. It usually lasts a few seconds, and fades out. From that point on, all is perfectly fine, no more strange noises.

It's 25° right now, with a wind chill of around 7°. I've been at work since about 8am, and I'll be leaving in less than an hour, around 3:30pm. So I'll see if it happens then, but it's never happened when leaving work before on slightly warmer days.

Any ideas what could be going on? I need to order the power steering o-ring because none of the local parts stores carry it. I've checked with all of them. I wonder if the known bad o-ring (if it's bad) can cause this?

 

Okay, update. Started the car after work. Made the same terribly loud sound after starting up. Shortly after the noise subsided I put the car in reverse and began backing out of the parking spot. When doing so, the steering was initially very stiff, but since I left the parking spot the steering feels normal.

What in the world is possibly going on? :-/

 

It's real common for the ps pump to make noise on a lot of honda cars because of a small air leak at the ps pump inlet o-ring. It's an easy diy repair. Get the updated seal from any acura or honda dealer. Unless they've updated them again, the #is 91345-RDA-A01. Less than a buck last time I bought some. It's common for them to show up in cold weather or if any work has been done in the vicinity of the ps pump or belt.

 

I'll definitely be replacing that o-ring as soon as I'm able to. I've seen many of the posts about it. I've just never found anyone with the sound I'm having. It's extremely loud, usually people describe it as a decent whine/moan. But if it's still the first thing i should check, I definitely don't mind giving it a try!

 

It's definitely not that. I think I'm having the same noise you are actually and mine just started this year. It sounds more transmission related than anything actually. Doesn't affect anything that I can tell. Still wondering what it is though. I had the power steering noise a year or 2 ago and it was completely different from this. Any other ideas anyone?

 

I changed the common inlet seal on mine only to find out the noise got worse.
Took a chance and ended up changing all internal seals, Got the reseal kit from Advance auto for less than $15, a month now its still nice and quiet.

Heres what I found on mine, The seals flattened and hardened letting air in.
The seal was broken when I took it apart, thats how brittle they become.

 

Thanks for the info! Not sure how to do that though. Is there a DIY for it? I don't think I've ever seen one. And being so terribly cold I'll have to ask around to see if any of my friends have a garage at home that I can use.

How long did it take for you to do that, and did you do it alone? I'm definitely willing to take a look at that as well.

 

Mine sounds like it's coming from the P/S area in the engine bay. I may be wrong, but I doubt that'd be anything with the trans.

 

heres the perfect video for it. Although the outcome was not successful for him it did work for me.

 

Thanks for the info! Would it be worth changing the o-ring first to try it out, or would I be better off buying the seal kit? The kit is at my local parts stores.

 

Try the o-ring first, if it doesn't work then you'll know what you need to do next.

 

I'll post a video in a little bit with the noise. I'll leave the hood open and record it while it starts. Just so I can post the exact noise, since it's hard to describe.

 

when are you going to buy a mechanics stethoscope??
under 10 dollars at any parts store- even less at harbor freight tools
finds noises fast! a long pointed tip probe connected to an ear part just like a Doctor!
Wearing of white lab coat is optional

 

Is erick secretly eric the car guy? sure has a lot of pics diagrams and tube links

 

As prominent as this noise is, I don't think a stethoscope is necessary... :-/

 

For a long time I believed my ps pump was the culprit of the loud noise at startup especially in very cold weather. I finally used a stethoscope to figure out where it was really coming from. My steering rack was bad. Tons of labor and a good used rack later, noise is no more! Always be sure where the noise is coming from before you tear into something. You can cause a headache ruining a good unit that did not need rebuilt.

 

http://youtu.be/D6c0dkBfuqk

Here's a quick video with the noise. It's 21°F this morning and this is what happens.

 

Sounds like the ps pump to me...The o ring is under a dollar at the dealer. You want to replace the one on the bottom of the pump.

 

Yeah, I need to pick one up. May call today and see if I can get a hold of one.

 

Just called a local dealership. If I have time to get there tonight I'll get the o-ring, otherwise I'll pick it up tomorrow. $0.82 with tax.

 

Awesome! Hopefully it is successful!

 

I sure hope so! I'll post an update once I get it done.

 

were you on the way to get the part when `the incident` occurred?

 

No. I was on my way home from running to the grocery store. And I was going to go pick the o-ring up after I dropped groceries at home. -_-

 

another video from a different perspective and some good tricks:

 

Agreed! My 03' TLS had this same issue, ended up changing out the entire inlet tube, after about 4 trys just changing the O ring. My gf's 05 TL had the same noise but had a recall for it so Acura fixed it. But that's def the sound of air in the PS pump, make sure fluid level is at the MAX line too! I live in Bama and the weather here changes every hour, was 70 today and now it's 29 tonight, I hate it!

 

Fluid level is good. I may look into replacing the inlet hose as a whole if the o-ring doesn't fix it. Simple job right? I haven't looked at where the hose runs but I imagine it's pretty straightforward.

 

Its actually not the hose itself unless you see cracks in it, its called the inlet tube, its what the hose attaches to on the pump and what the o ring goes on, one 8mm bolt. Hose & tube are both easy.

 

Ah, I see. That makes sense. I'll inspect it this afternoon if I have time, otherwise I'll do it tomorrow. Thanks for the info. Once this is resolved I'll post an update, but it may be a week or two.