"Wooo" noise coming from my 996

[craig3887]

I have a noise that sounds like "wooooooooooo" when I drive my 2000 carrera 2. The sound is definately coming from the passenger side and I think its coming from the front. The sound started about a year ago as a minor inconvenience but has really got on my nerves as of late. Here is what I know:

-The sound only occurs when my car is rolling and the gas pedal is pressed.
-It does not happen all the time but is most noticeable at slow speeds in a parking lot
-It used to only make this sound at slow speeds and making right hand turns but now it does it no matter if i go straight or left/right. I don't think it does it in reverse but I don't drive the car around in reverse.
-The sound does not get louder the faster I go or decrease when I go slow, its always at the same decibel level.
-When the car is making this noise and i take my foot off the gas it goes away immediately and when i step on the gas it will wait a second or 2 and make the noise again.


I have removed the heat shields for the brakes and I had a new wheel bearing put in the front. I also had new tires put on and an alignment done. Those were apparently not the problem. There has been no effect on driveability of the car but it is getting annoying. Any suggestions would help me out.

[Brando]

Dump the passenger!

[teenerted1]

get the passenger some seatbelts?

install a passenger side door?

stop letting a barn owl navigate?

[Wayne 962]

If you're driving down the road, and you turn off the ignition (be aware that you will lose power steering and power brakes), does the noise continue?

-Wayne

[JFairman]

maybe trunkmonkey really needs a rest stop.

[onlycafe]

Originally Posted by Brando

Dump the passenger!

is it this guy?

[zipinitaly]

Thanks Onlycafe...not only did I wake up the wife, I had to get some tissues for the tears.

[crustychief]

To me it sounds like a vacuum line collapsing and turning into a kazoo.

[crustychief]

Or Bubb Rubb
Bubb Rubb Explains Whistle Tips | SPIKE

[docrodg]

Tire noise?

Your car is possessed by a ghost. It isn't Casper, and it will eat your soul, causing you to spend massive amounts of money putting stupid mods on the body making it look like a ricer. Kill yourself now.

[JerryL]

My wife learned years ago do not try to describe what is going on with the car by trying to mimic the noise, and that was with being able to hear her, spelling it is even less helpfull.
You might rethink the diagnostic tools, but it was good for a laugh.

Regards

[twistoffat]

I think Ricardo Patrese has a similar problem with noise on the passenger side

YouTube - Watch the Official THE OTHER GUYS Trailer in HD

[ths911]

I had a similar sound in my 964 when the power steering fluid was low. I only heard it on slow turns.

Took me a while to figure it out. Good Luck.

[wilsonlaidlaw]

Sounds like the idler pulley bearing on the drive belt. I had the same when I had a 996TT and it was quite an alarming noise. Not a big job at the local dealer, as long as they don't tell you at the end "oh we put in a new set of spark plugs when we were at it" - arghhhhh!

Wilson

[craig3887]

So I have found out how to consistently duplicate the sound. The sound 99% of the time starts when the gas pedal is held in the same place for a period of time. Usually driving around town about 30-40 mph. If i give the car gas or take off pressure on the gas pedal it goes away but will come back when I hold the gas pedal at any place for an extended period. The sound is coming from the front passenger side.

The car was at the dealership and they only had a few minutes to look at it but they think the sound is a resonating noise coming from something that is shifting/vibrating around. They think its not high pitched enough to be the brake heat shield and its not a bad bearing noise. I'm going to bring it in next week and they are going to hook up some type of microphone system to pinpoint it.

All fluids, including the power steering fluid level is where it should be.

Thanks for your help, and the good laughs.

[Wayne 962]

Here would be my method for trying to figure this out:

- Drive around the car where there aren't too many other cars around.

- Duplicate the noise if you can, and then remember / write down what gear you're in, what the RPM of the engine is and how fast you're going.

- Turn the wheels left and right slightly at that speed to see if that changes anything

- Apply the brakes slightly while still stepping on the gas slightly to maintain speed and see if that changes anything

- Turn the engine off at that speed (while still stepping on the gas pedal), and see if the sound goes away. Beware, you will lose power steering and power brakes, so turn the car back on again quickly.

- Try driving the same speed in a different gear at a different RPM.

Depending upon what changes, you can narrow it down to:

- Engine noise
- Electrical component (like a fan)
- Wind noise on something flapping in the breeze
- Speed-dependent suspension/brake noise

The fact that it goes away with the gas pedal, seems to me to be somewhat related to some type of engine function, but these things can be tricky to diagnose over the Internet.

-Wayne

[craig3887]

Thanks for the feedback Wayne.

I will try and find a parking lot to try some of these out. I checked components last night to see if anything was binding or rubbing on something but found nothing. I even removed the front brake heat shield to no avail. I was thinking maybe something with the fuel system since it happens at any speed and with the accelerated being kept at a constant speed?

My brother works at the local porsche dealership and I can have one of the mechanics help me with diagnosing this after work.

If I find out whats going on I'll post it.

[Christien]

I think it's the sound of money leaving your wallet as the car depreciates like a rock

just kidding - you've got some answers from Wayne, which is good, because he knows 996s, but in truth most of us here are driving vintage Porsches. You might try rennlist - there are lots of 996/997 guys over there.

[craig3887]

Alright the noise is narrowed down to the fuel system, either the gas cap or a breather filter of some sort is leaking and making a whistling noise.
I've been tracking down this annoyance for so long I'm glad its been finally pinpointed. Luckily I haven't invested any money except for a wheel bearing.
Thanks for help Wayne at where to start.

[kodioneill]

Originally Posted by onlycafe

is it this guy?

Man that's funny!