i noticed that my auto tensioner makes a chattering sound when my engine is either just started, or during a cold start in the morning.

when its during a cold start, it will chatter when i idle in Drive.

after about 30 seconds, the chatter is will only happen at 1900rpm, which is annoying because when im cruising down a quiet neighborhood street its like EEEEEEEEE.

After about a min or two, the chatter gradually goes away and no problems.

If I were to start the engine in the middle of the day after its already been driven earlier, then it wont chatter at idle, but only at 1900rpm for about a min.

The chatter sounds like 2 pieces of metal contacting each other really quickly, like shaking a ball with a piece of metal in there.

The chatter is from the auto tensioner and I can see it wobble back and forth as the chatter happens.

keep in mind I already bought a brand new auto tensioner from acura because of this issue and the problem is still there. help please!

 

1yr warranty. did they install? or just buy another

 

OP, are you sure the sound isn't coming from the timing belt? Read TSB 08-031...

You said you replaced the AT, so I assume that means both pulleys are brand new?

Also, did you use a torque wrench to tighten the AT bolts to spec?

 

i bought it from acura myself and did the installation myself.

i also previously put on a brand new belt on it myself too, also oem acura, not aftermarket.

yea both the pulleys are brand new.

no i didnt use a torque wrench but i used the german torque spec of gutentight

 

Well, that could be the problem. Gutentight is way to tight for that bolt.

The torque spec is only 33 ft/lbs for the big bolt. I suspect you may have crushed the pulley channel by over torqueing the bolt.

There was another member who had the AT pulley go bad mysteriously after Acura did the 105K service (replaced timing belt). I suspect their tech over torqued the AT when they put it back on.

 

Any doubts as to the location of the noise, remove the serpentine belt and start the car for a short period to see if the noise is gone.

 

then what about the first auto tensioner i had? that was the original one and it made the same noise too.

 

can the car be driven WITHOUT the serpentine belt? that would be a good way to confirm the problem is from the auto tensioner.

 

Well then, it probably wasn't the AT and is the TB as described in the TSB.

 

Did the noise ever go away even for a
short time when you replaced the tensioner? Definitely pull the belt off and start it to see if it's still there.

 

no, the noise was there even right after i replaced it. i was a little saddened the moment i heard the noise after installing the new tensioner...i'll try running the car without the belt this weekend. just want to make sure though, nothing will go wrong running the car without the belt? afaik, it only controls the ac, power steering, and alternator. im not worried about the ac or the power steering but i hope not running the alternator is fine.

 

Yeah, it's fine. The battery won't be charging, so be sure the radio and lights are off.


And the fact that you still had the noise after replacing the AT is a good sign it's the TB, not the AT.

 

when you say TB are you referring to the timing belt? the one thats done inside the engine at 105k miles? or are you referring to the accessory/serpentine belt that goes around the outside pulleys?

 

Timing belt, not the drive (serpentine) belt. Go to the TSB page and read that TSB....

 

the tsb might be it, the symptoms described match mine pretty well....however my VIN isnt part of the range of affected vehicles....perhaps im just one of those special cases? lol

i guess i'll worry about this when i get my timing belt changed. im alrdy at 79k so i got some big maintenance coming up. i might need to bring a copy of the tsb to the shop where i take it for service because they probably wont know what im talking about. and i dont wanna go to dealer cuz they'll charge me an arm and a leg.

 

Be very careful here. I can't read the tsb right now but if its the belt rubbing or if a bearing freezes up, you're looking at a $3000 repair bill.

 

May be a special case, but I doubt it since your VIN doesn't match the TSB. You really need to get that drive belt off and then start the engine to see if the noise is gone. If the noise is still there, then you could have a failed TB auto tensioner, which demands immediate attention. Read this thread, especially the first and last posts:

https://acurazine.com/forums/3g-tl-problems-fixes-114/noisy-engine-809646/

 

im starting to think it might be something else now. i started my car this morning and tried to listen for it in the time period that it happens(about 30 seconds), and it might be from somewhere towards the back of the engine....its tough because it doesnt last very long and i have to listen for it through the sound of the engine so its hard to tell...gonna try again tomorrow

 

Well, if it's the TB auto tensioner, you're living on borrowed time.....

 

time is something i dont have. i have school all weekdays and barely have a little time on weekends. i cant just leave my car at a shop for a couple days because i need to get to school

 

By "borrowed time", I mean that if a leaking AT is causing slack in the TB, then your TB could slip or break at any time and then you'll most likely have a damaged engine.

 

o yea i know what you meant, i was just saying i dont have the time to take my car for repairs right now :/

 

I think I have same problem. It's a chatter sound on passenger side of engine.
Took it to two dealers who claim they can't hear it ( most likely cuz they are in a noisy environment ). I thought it could it be timing belt issue but that was addressed. It's driving me nuts. I will try dealer again as the car is still under warranty.

 

anyone here on the forum around 626/951 area willing to help me out? I'm willing to pay for the parts/labor but I just really don't have the time to leave it at a shop or dealer. I can show you the sound in person.

 

im gonna try to do my timing belt service this summer. i just hit 80k miles today so by the time summer comes it should be close to ~84k miles which is close enough to 105k to justify the service. hopefully when they do this, they can find out why i have a chattering sound when my engine is cold.

 

update: i got a better listen as to where the noise is really coming from. it seems like its coming from near the catalytic converter. and remember its always gone after it warms up so maybe the chirp has to do with the way the emissions system works? since it misfires purposely to warm up the engine quicker.

 

a loose heat shield is common source of these noises

 

i had a chirpy bird/crickets coming from the passenger side of th engine compartment for 3 days a few weeks ago only on cold starts. the chirping would go away after about 3-5 min of idle and driving. the chirping has since ceased since the initial time i noticed it. so .

i have read about the chirping on a number of threads. the likely sources are typically with the TB issues per the TSB or a loose heat shield which is also a TSB.

of course without consistency of the noise, my dealer can't do anything about it. i have also read that people who insisted the TSB is performed when the car as not producing the noise (the end of warranty time)...those people came back with the TB shredded. just what i read. so if you take the time and do a bit of hunting you can learn a lot of stuff.

if you took it to the dealer, at least you'd get a loaner to get your butt to class (though i understand, being a student with limited funds...ugh..dont' miss those days). good luck.

 

Whoa! That's news to me. Do you have any links for where you read this?

 

hmmm...i think it may have been one of those acura service bulletins i was skimming through a few weeks ago ( i can't recall it was an actual thread...so i wanna say it was in a service bulletin-the newsletter)...let me add, those people that insisted on the TSB did have symptoms, but the car was not symptomatic at the time those customers had brought their car in. so the dealer never confirmed that it was the chirping noise in the TSB. i would say look through the 2008 acura service bulletins...that's when the TSB came out (?).

so far...jimminie has been sleeping since he first made his presence known in my car. hope he stays that way too.

 

No, I mean where did you read of shredded TBs after having the TSB done?

 

ok i brain farted...its not in the acura service bulletin newletters...

https://acurazine.com/forums/1-2g-mdx-2001-2013-166/im-getting-annoying-clicking-noise-when-idle-807956/

it was in an MDX thread (they have the same problem, same TSB). see post #7 in the thread. i'm gonna assume the guy is a honda tech....

 

mine is also making this noise... when the car is at normal temp it goes away. wth? is this covered under AcuraCare?

TSB 08-031 says "A chirp is coming from the lower timing belt area. The noise is most prominent at idle, usually after the engine has warmed up. "

 

mine is doin it at idle after engine gets warmed up , what is this? i just had tenion and idle pulleys replaced because tenion pulley was clicking, then i got this noise/chatter/like a pebble or rock bouncing/vibrating on metal ! cant hear it from inside engine , only can hear it under wheel well above both front tires. so... i took to dealership, just got back from the dealership, they said they could not identify the problem, for me to monitor it and bring back when/if it gets worse. i mentioned a heatshield tsb and they said there was no such thing. where are yall findin these TSBs? and is there a TSB for this ?

 

In for more information.

My issue:
I have a 07 TL-s that sat for about a month until yesterday. At idle there was no noticeable squeaking, however once I got on highway and then exited for my stop I noticed that something was squealing anytime I would press the gas- if I let off then the noise went away. It didn't sound like your typical loose belt you hear on cars in the winter, more like a pulley that just needed a shot of lube. After I finished my errand and headed home I noticed the noise was gone.
Is this on par with what everyone is talking about in here? The only slightly different factor is that I only notice the squealing when I press the gas. Also this is not a regularly occurring event. Any blatant ideas I haven't thought of?

 

mine is no high pitch noise, there was a chattering in the tenion pully, but got that fixed and it went away, now chattering like rock againts metal or metal againts metal when i change buttons on ac control from ac to defrost and back and forth like paperboy describes here ---"The chatter sounds like 2 pieces of metal contacting each other really quickly, like shaking a ball with a piece of metal in there."

 

for TSBs...go to the garage link, click on TSBs. then follow the instructions exactly in order to access the actual TSBs. leave those windows open and then surf the TSB list in the garage...click on the desired TSB...PDF should open.

also there is a TSB for the loose heat shield...i'vce already saved a copy of that one too along with the chirping TSB. your dealer just doesn't want to figure it out for you b/c there either wasn't a noise or they were just being lazy.

 

What is the TSB number for the heat shield?

 

i cant find any tsb link under garage link, can someone please post the tsb up for the heat shield?

 

tsb 07-026