Higher-pitched whining while driving

jipsie · #1 (**permalink**) 10-28-2009, 12:42 AM

I have a 95 Wrangler with 255,500+ miles. I drive it about 70 miles daily to & from work and a few here and there running errands, etc. I drove it a couple of weeks ago for around 200 miles with only a few stops here and there so it heated up pretty good. It smelt like something was hot, not really a burning smell, and began making a higher-pitched whining noise. It doesn't make the noise while idleing so I don't know if its engine or transmission. It's not driving badly, just whining louder. I've had the jeep for 11 years and haven't had any major problems with it, just regular maintenance. I do regular oil changes myself. I've never changed the transmission fluid and I'm wondering if that's why it's whining or if anyone has any better ideas...any guesses?

SteelHeadz · #2 (**permalink**) 10-28-2009, 07:40 AM

Welcome to Jeepz. Where exactly is the whinning coming from?. Isolating the area of where it's coming from would be my first diagnostic verification. There are a multitude of bearings all the way around a vehicle that can cause that symptom. It's possible that it could also be an axle ring gear and pinion also.. Have you checked your brakes?, particularly the front brake pads. In some cases, the brake pads will give you a clue if the wheel bearings are failing. U-joints generally creates a groaning noise along with a clunk but in rare occasions that the needle bearings are dry and seized will also create a high pitch noise. My best advice is to isolate what area this noise is coming from so we can formulate a better plan of attack with what the possible culprits are.

JeepMonkey · #3 (**permalink**) 10-28-2009, 10:01 PM

I was thinking power steering pump. I know they sound pretty whiny on GM, but I'm not sure how they sound on Jeeps when they're goin bad.

Sine Deviance · #4 (**permalink**) 10-28-2009, 10:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JeepMonkey

I was thinking power steering pump. I know they sound pretty whiny on GM, but I'm not sure how they sound on Jeeps when they're goin bad.

They whine if they're low on fluid, I know that. Dunno about if they're going bad. Most power steering pumps do so I would assume Jeep pumps are no different.