Weird noise coming from under engine like a growling noise,when driving all the time,

1998 galant 2.4 with 194000 miles. i just went to check my alternator at orielys today thinking it was the problem and I took it off and got them to check it and they said it failed all three test so they changed it out for me since i had a warranty on it. Saved me 140.00 bucks. Its still making a growling sound ,when i drive it on the driver side the guy said he took a screw driver and used it as a stephoscope and checked everytrhing and heard the water pump making as wierd growling sound. what could it be my car is not leaking contaiminate out the weep hole on the water pump. coolant i meanand it is not overheating . I use it as a daily driver and i DONT KNOW HOW TO FIX IT OR have the money as of now to fix it? Any suggestions guys? im scared to drive it and it will fuck my other brand new alternator up or cauyse more problems.I have a new water pump but im not familar with the timing belt components if that is the case. I had the timing belt replaced last year along with the balnace belt. im running outof ideas of waht it could be . plus the ac runs on a different belt so why would that be making it more noise when the a/c is turned on as well. what could it be?

It sounds like it could either be your water pump or it could even be your power steering pump..... the bearings could be going bad.... you could also have the same problem as i did. The guys that did my timing/balance belt didnt put the balance shaft belt back on properly and it cause it to rub... thats more of a wizzing noise though

Is it still safe to drive like that my powersteering pump is fine.

if the guy says the sound is comming from around the water pump, then most likely the bearing is on its way out. really the only way to check that out is to remove the belts (not the timing belt) but the a/c belt, alternater/water pump belt and the power stearing pump belt and start the engine to see if it makes the noise still (dont run the engine more that a minute or 2) and add one belt back start it again, and repeat till the noise comes back, then you found your problem. there is also a tensionor pully on the timing belt that could be groaning. but if your not mechanically inclined, i wouldnt try the job your self. as replacing the water pump requires removing the timing belt aswell.

can i still drive it around. it gets worst when i have the a/c on.

thats because there is more of a load on the belt... i could also be your ac compressor the clutches might be going bad.... yes you can still drive but not for long... you dont want what happened to me to happen to you. My waterpump was going and i drove for maybe 3-4 wks with it making noise then the pully completly sheered off.... you have to be carful because a jolt like that to your motor could break your timing belt or skip timing.. becasue it will grind the engine to a hault.... get it figured out its no joke

well i took the a/c belt off and i dont hear the noise any more im still scared it is gonna fuck up on me. i dont know what to do guys. i also am hearing a noise on my passenger rear when i press on my breaks like a grinding sound. only whn i press the breaks. its always something having a used car you fix one thing and another appears.

if your hearing a grinding its time to change your brakes...

break shoes were fine i just changed the drums out.

either the water pump, harmonic balancer or maybe one of your pulleys is going out on you.

how can i tell i took the ac belt off and now i dont hear the noise just a little noise from the water pump. no a/c now sucks cause its 100 degrees. i cant take my car to shop till next moth i have no funds i do have a new water pump but i dont know how to take the timing off and i dont want to fuck my car up worst. how can i diagnose it or should i just wait and let a mechanic do it?

I think it may be the a/c compressor any suggestions

was it like a grinding squeeling noise? if so its prolly the a/c compressor.. mine did this to me before i removed it.. and i agree that no a/c suck as my car is all black and attracts way too much heat

yes like a growling knocking. i took the ac belt off and now when i drive i dont hear the noise i dont know if it is the bearing or what it is. I have 5 grand in this car already and still giving me problem. i love this car to death . any suggestion on what to do and how to do it.

do you know how old the a/c compressor is/mileage. if you took the belt off and the noise you noticed is gone, then it must be the compressor. for the time being, if the compressor is the problem. your fine to drive the car with out it. as far as replacing it, you will want a shop to remove the R 134a refridgerent from the system and put it under a vacuum to make sure the system is empty, then you are good to replace it. if you go back to the same shop they should refill what they recycled from you for free and add what may be needed at a small cost. but as a side note, make sure your water pump is ok since the guy said he noticed the sound comming from there.

How much would a shop charge to replace the compressor or bearing estimate?

I got the car with 171000 miles on it and it now has 194200 miles on it. so im sure the compressor is the same one.

i dont hear the sound from the water pupm at all maybe just a little bit but im sure its normaly engine noise.Not near as bad as it was with the belt on the compressor/when a/cwas on. I nevere changed an ac compressor out nor know how orif i can buy one auto zone just sells the bearings for them. I wan to make sure it is the compressor before i spend more money on something that im not 110% sure about you know. Its my only daily driver ca I have. I'm royaly screwed without it,Know where I'm coming from man. Thanks for the great information.

hey, i understand the tight spot your in at the moment. i mean im trying to diagnose a problem by what im told, rather then hearing it in person is very different. as far as a bearing, if there is one, it really isnt servicable, and would need a full replacement. but the compressor itself as a unit isnt that hard to replace. you would need a shop to evacuate (remove/vacuum) the refrigerant/system. after that, you are safe to disconnect the lines at the compressor. then just remove and replace. and have the same shop recharge the system for you. as far as cost to have a shop do it for you, just off the top of my head, flate rate for a compressor is like 1.5 on average, then there is the evac and recharge times to add in. so it could be an easy 3 or 400 dollars with out parts

EDIT - wow, auto zone doesnt sell full compressors. i myself have never replaced a bearing for a clutch before, its usually the whole deal. but maybe a shop near you can do the bearing for you. that i cant see being expensive.

There is alot of rotating parts on the front of the motor and finding a noise is going to be hard. If its a really bad bearing then it would be alot easier since it will make a substantial louder noise.

Now you said that the noise is very noticable when you turn on the a/c and it has almost disappeard after you removed the a/c belt. Its safe to assume that your grinding noise was from the a/c compressor.

Question is were you having any a/c issues prior to the grinding noise like the a/c not being that cool, clutch not engaging at times, etc etc?

There is another thing that could be causing your grinding noise and this has happened to me. The a/c tensioner pulley can make the grinding slight grinding noise when the a/c is not engaged and become super loud when it is since there is load on the a/c belt. The nut that holds the pulley to the bracket may of gotten loose and the pulley isn't sitting straight and its tilted and possible rubbing on the timing cover.

A bad water pump bearing could cause cooling issues like slight overheating and would eventually leak coolant in the weep hole soon after.

If you P/S pump was bad you would feel some resistance when turning the wheel and would be noticably loud when you are actually turning the wheel.