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Whirring-whistle At High Speed


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95 Legacy Wagon:

 

 

The past week or so I have experienced a high pitched whirring-whistle sound while on the interstate. It is not constant, and while on my 25 mile commute on the big road, it may come and go two or three times. Starts off very soft and gets to a pretty loud, high pitched tone before dying down and disappearing again.

 

I have only noticed this at speeds between 70-75mph. It doesn't seem to make the noise when I stay below 70mph. Sounds more like it is coming from the driver's side of the front of the car, but I'm not for sure. Does not seem like it would be any type of wind noise, as it doesn't sound like a whistle of wind resistance from a stationary part of the car (and wouldn't come and go, would it), but the whirring is a sound of motion/spinning I believe.

 

Any ideas? I do not think it is RPM related, as I have revved past the 3,100 RPM point of 75mph at slower speeds and heard nothing.

 

Thanks.

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The most common wind noise is from the gussets on the doors. These are the triangular shaped pieces where the mirrors attach to the doors. Try folding the mirror in when it occurs and see if the noise goes away. Alternatively you can try taping over the interface where the rubber gaskets meet the glass at the gusset area. The fix has been posted here before and I'll try and find it if you need.

Is your car auto or manual?

Whiring, whining noise in my car was from the transmission which, unrelated the revs of the engine, would stay fairly consistent at various speeds. My transmission was replaed under warranty as it subsequently developed a ticking sound and now the ticking and the whiring have gone. The techs ascribed the whirring noise to the planetary gears.

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JT95

 

You might try treating the weather stripping around the windows and doors with spray silacone. I read a post on this site a while ago about treating the black rubber on a regular basis. It has reduced the wind noise on my cars.

 

Another thing to consider might be the front wheel bearing. The front wheel bearing on the drivers side fails more often then any other wheel bearing. Think about your on and off ramps, the majority of weight transfers to the drivers side when going around the "cloverleaf". Of that weight transfer the brunt is on the front wheel.

 

If it isn't that, it might be the nest of chipmunks living in the inner fender!!

 

Good luck,

Greg

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I don't think it is wind noise, because it is not a constant noise and it doesn't sound like any wind noise I have heard before. Plus, when it does occur, it starts off as a very mild, soft sound and gradually gets louder and louder before quieting down and then disappearing for another 5-10 minutes.

 

 

Shouldn't be the wheel bearings either. I had them replaced two months ago and this sound sounds nothing like what those worn bearings did.

 

My only guess was something transmission/fwd related. No warranty here--a 95--and I'd like to prevent a bigger bill that might be avoided.

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I don't think it is wind noise, because it is not a constant noise and it doesn't sound like any wind noise I have heard before. Plus, when it does occur, it starts off as a very mild, soft sound and gradually gets louder and louder before quieting down and then disappearing for another 5-10 minutes.

 

 

Shouldn't be the wheel bearings either. I had them replaced two months ago and this sound sounds nothing like what those worn bearings did.

 

My only guess was something transmission/fwd related. No warranty here--a 95--and I'd like to prevent a bigger bill that might be avoided.

Ok, with that piece of info and the absence of chipmunks :-) let me bounce this off of you; what about the fan on the radiator? Next time it makes the noise turn off the defroster and see if it goes away at the same time. It could be the fan motor is giving up the ghost. Why at highway speeds and not in town I don't know? How many miles? Could be a CV joint or something as simple as a brake pad retainer. At 75 there might be a frequency the pad will vibrate at but not at 45.

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Thanks for those leads. I probably need to have the brakes checked out anyway. I thought of CV joints--I'm sure they might need replaced at 154,000 miles, but I'd always just heard popping from previous experience.

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Thanks for those leads. I probably need to have the brakes checked out anyway. I thought of CV joints--I'm sure they might need replaced at 154,000 miles, but I'd always just heard popping from previous experience.
Next time the noise starts apply very light pressure to the brake pedal and see if it goes away. If it does, then it is brakes and although it might be irratating it is fairly cheap to fix.
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Mine make a high pitched sound kinda like the noise you get in your ears after listening to music too loud,I tap the brake and it goes away,but heres the thing,its not the pads as they have been replaced and it did it befopre and after.Its like an alarm of some sort or similar,its not wind or driveline noise definatly as it does it while idling occasionally,mainly when i have a passenger though???

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My car has the wind noise on the passenger side - how do you treat it with silicone spray? Please give details.

Andy

 

JT95

 

You might try treating the weather stripping around the windows and doors with spray silacone. I read a post on this site a while ago about treating the black rubber on a regular basis. It has reduced the wind noise on my cars.

 

Another thing to consider might be the front wheel bearing. The front wheel bearing on the drivers side fails more often then any other wheel bearing. Think about your on and off ramps, the majority of weight transfers to the drivers side when going around the "cloverleaf". Of that weight transfer the brunt is on the front wheel.

 

If it isn't that, it might be the nest of chipmunks living in the inner fender!!

 

Good luck,

Greg

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My car has the wind noise on the passenger side - how do you treat it with silicone spray? Please give details.

Andy

Take a clean rag and spray it with silacone spray. Wipe the seals on the body that the windows seal against and then wipe the weather stripping aound the bottom of the door. Work it in and get it in the folded over portion of the weather stripping. If you haven't done this before or it has been "many moons" go around each window/door twice. You can do the trunk/hatch seal too.

 

Silacone spray, not Liquid Wrench or WD-40.

 

If you live in a winter wonderland, this will help the window from freezing to the weather stripping.

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Well, I was on the interstate this morning and hit the brakes when the high pitched whirr started up--nothing happened, so I'll assume it is not brake related. I'm going to my somewhat but not really local Subaru dealership next week to test drive a Baja, so I will probably have one of their mechanics look at it.

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