First time poster, looked through all the threads in this board containing similar issues many times and could not find a definitive answer as to what a noise like this could be.
I bought a 2005 Liberty 3.0R-B about a month ago with roughly 151,000km on it and a somewhat unknown service history for the past 30,000 or so km. Everything checked out alright when I and some others had a look at it other than it needing a service. It made no noises and was virtually silent when idling - coming from a loud Skyline, I actually couldn't tell if the car was on or not. It was like this on the test drive, the long drive home and then for a couple of weeks after.
In the past couple of weeks, however, there's been a constant whining noise that's slowly built up to be louder and louder, and is quite audible from inside the cabin, even just idling in neutral. Depressing the clutch makes no difference, and the noise increases in volume and pitch with RPM which makes me think it's something driven by the belt and not anything in the gearbox, etc. It seems to be more noticeable on cold mornings, however that could just be because it's idling higher when it's cold and is thus louder. It is present from the very start and does not go away even after a good half hour of driving. Turning the steering wheel on the spot generally makes it shift in pitch, though it doesn't seem to get louder and the noise is certainly present when the wheels aren't being turned. The steering seems to be occasionally stiff/numb at low speeds. It has that sort of supercharger whine while driving that others have likened it to, however it's very loud and getting to the point where something just seems wrong, especially since the noise wasn't there when I bought it. I know the timing chain is known for naturally making a slight whine, however again it was practically silent just a few weeks ago.
It seems to be coming from somewhere around the power steering pump, which, in my limited mechanical knowledge, seems likely to be the culprit. The power steering fluid as I just checked it seems to be slightly above the cold max (it's been a very cold day and it has not been driven in 7 hours), though it is parked on a slight inward lean so it's probably fine. It's definitely not low. I've done the whole screwdriver test to listen for where it was loudest, and the power steering pump and the hose connected to it seemed to be where a majority of the noise came from (the alternator also made a lesser, slightly different whining noise). There's a bit of fluid under the power steering pump by the looks of it (as seen in the photo) though I cannot be certain where it's come from.
I've already been to a mechanic specialising in Subarus and specifically asked about the whining noise, which they listened to with a stethoscope and put it down to a belt tension adjuster, noting that the power steering pump was also making a very slight, barely noticeable noise. The belt tensioner was replaced by them, and I also had a minor service carried out to replace the engine oil, some filters and stuff like that. The whining noise is the same now as it was before I visited the mechanics. In the report I got back, they said the power steering pump was starting to leak, though it was nothing to be concerned about and did not require any attention any time soon. I'll be heading to another mechanic some time this week when I have time to get a second opinion, thought I'd see if anyone with experience here had any ideas though.
TL;DR
- No whining noise when I bought car
- 2 weeks later, whining noise relative to RPM
- Happens at idle, does not really worsen with turned wheels, does not go away when warm
- *Seems* to be coming from power steering pump area
- Power steering fluid level seems fine
- Subaru mechanic mentioned slight pump leak, though nothing to worry about
- Very loud, worried
Wet patch possibly under pump:
Whine from engine bay (pretty loud video):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SsmkAYi-WAY
Whine from interior (a lot quieter so turn your speakers up):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KoYfnvLmkAs
My main concern is that the noise has suddenly appeared and gotten much worse.
Any thoughts?
