GoeHaarden
Full Member
- Joined
- Jan 9, 2019
- Messages
- 10
Long time lurker, first time poster here...Thanks in advance!
So, I will attempt to describe this noise the best I can...
2002 Chevy Avalanche Z71 with ~180k miles. Stock.
It started about a month ago and it kind of sounds like popcorn (honestly), very irregular in pattern and loudness. It's seems like it's directly in front of the driver seat/steering wheel in the engine bay, and maybe slightly mid-line. It's really intermittent and kind of chaotic after 25 mph, but once I hit about 45 mph it gets more regular but less intense and almost seems to disappear after 70mph. Hard to tell with wind/traffic noise though. At higher speeds, the pitch kind of changes from a popping to a ?sputtering? almost. It used to go away when the drivetrain was warm. Like if I drove for a while, parked, and then drove again it wouldn't do it. Now it doesn't matter
When it happens:
- After ~25mph, gets more regular and less intense as speed increases
- Turning and driving straight
- Accelerating and decelerating
It does not happen when stopped, and revving the engine. So, I've eliminated the motor as a possible cause. I don't think it's the exhaust either since the vehicle has to be in motion. At first, I thought it could be a shock sticking as it was pretty irregular, but I don't think that's it anymore as it has gotten more regular. I do have a little side-to-side play in my front wheels when the Ave' is jacked up, so I know I need new tie-rods but I don't think this would be the cause of this noise. No up-and-down play in the wheels though. It does not effect vehicle performance, but it's just really annoying and I don't want something worse to be looming.
I'm not sure if it matters, but I had an antifreeze leak for about a year until I recently found the source (heater core disconnect) and fixed it. Also, I was changing my oil last week and I noticed that the area around the front differential oil drain plug looked moist. So, I changed the front diff oil as well and there was almost no torque on the plug when I drained the old oil. Kind of scary. I was hoping it may have been low diff oil, but that was not the case.
I did search the forum and the threads I found that may sound similar are very old and don't come to a resolution...
I'm not a mechanic so please correct me if my assumptions could be wrong. Thanks again!
So, I will attempt to describe this noise the best I can...
2002 Chevy Avalanche Z71 with ~180k miles. Stock.
It started about a month ago and it kind of sounds like popcorn (honestly), very irregular in pattern and loudness. It's seems like it's directly in front of the driver seat/steering wheel in the engine bay, and maybe slightly mid-line. It's really intermittent and kind of chaotic after 25 mph, but once I hit about 45 mph it gets more regular but less intense and almost seems to disappear after 70mph. Hard to tell with wind/traffic noise though. At higher speeds, the pitch kind of changes from a popping to a ?sputtering? almost. It used to go away when the drivetrain was warm. Like if I drove for a while, parked, and then drove again it wouldn't do it. Now it doesn't matter
When it happens:
- After ~25mph, gets more regular and less intense as speed increases
- Turning and driving straight
- Accelerating and decelerating
It does not happen when stopped, and revving the engine. So, I've eliminated the motor as a possible cause. I don't think it's the exhaust either since the vehicle has to be in motion. At first, I thought it could be a shock sticking as it was pretty irregular, but I don't think that's it anymore as it has gotten more regular. I do have a little side-to-side play in my front wheels when the Ave' is jacked up, so I know I need new tie-rods but I don't think this would be the cause of this noise. No up-and-down play in the wheels though. It does not effect vehicle performance, but it's just really annoying and I don't want something worse to be looming.
I'm not sure if it matters, but I had an antifreeze leak for about a year until I recently found the source (heater core disconnect) and fixed it. Also, I was changing my oil last week and I noticed that the area around the front differential oil drain plug looked moist. So, I changed the front diff oil as well and there was almost no torque on the plug when I drained the old oil. Kind of scary. I was hoping it may have been low diff oil, but that was not the case.
I did search the forum and the threads I found that may sound similar are very old and don't come to a resolution...
I'm not a mechanic so please correct me if my assumptions could be wrong. Thanks again!