2001 GMC Yukon Whinning noise from transmission?

Tiny
RUNDAWG
  • MEMBER
  • 2001 GMC YUKON
  • V8
  • 4WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 95,000 MILES
I get a whinning noise that I think is coming from my transmission. The whine changes pitch with every gear change and can be heard in all gears including reverse, neutral, and park. The whine is hardly noticable in Idle, but gets louder as you accelerate. The whine is more noticable inside the vehicle than out. The fluid and filter have been changed( fluid looked good, no bad smell and nothing in the pan). The transmission works great, other than the whinning noise. The alternator and idler pulley have been chanced and I don't think its the fuel pump. Any suggestions or comments would be appreciated.
Monday, November 10th, 2008 AT 10:08 AM

9 Replies

Tiny
MASTERTECHTIM
  • MECHANIC
  • 4,750 POSTS
Did it make the noise before the trans filter was replaced? I would first eliminate all the drive pulleys by removing serp belt and run truck and see if the noise is gone. If the noise is gone then carefully inspect all moving pulleys including ac compressor, tensioner pulley and idler pulleys. This may have 2 serp belts, one for alt, ps and water pump and a seperate belt for the ac compressor depending on engine size.
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Monday, November 10th, 2008 AT 11:24 AM
Tiny
RUNDAWG
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Yes, the noise was there before the transmission filter and fluid was changed. How long can you run the vehicle without the serpintine belt or ac belt on the vehicle to see if the noise is still there without any pumps turning? If the torque converter was making noise, would it do it in all gears, including neutral and park? I will agree I should check all pulleys before condeming a transmission. Have you ever heard of the a transmission making this type of noise and If so, what would be the possible cause?
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Monday, November 10th, 2008 AT 1:14 PM
Tiny
MASTERTECHTIM
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You can run the engine for a few minutes without any problems at all. I have heard of transmissions making whining noises in this truck from plugged filters. I had one whining that was caused from a dented transmission pan that was restricting the filter. If the filter is resting on bottom of pan the trans pump will whine from lack of fluid flow.
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Monday, November 10th, 2008 AT 1:57 PM
Tiny
RUNDAWG
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Thanks for the info. I'll check all the pulleys next. My service manual says that the noise might be coming from the pump also. Is changing a transmission fluid pump something that can be accessed from the pan area, without removing the transmission from the vehicle? Both the old an new filters were well up off the bottom of the pan, so I don't think it is having a problem drawing fluid because of that.
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Monday, November 10th, 2008 AT 4:30 PM
Tiny
MASTERTECHTIM
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The pump is located in the front of transmission. The transmission has to be removed and you need special pullersw to remove and install.
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Monday, November 10th, 2008 AT 6:36 PM
Tiny
RUNDAWG
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  • 7 POSTS
Still searching the problem of a whine/whistle noise. I took it to a transmission place an they said the noise is too high pitched for a tranny problem. I have isolated it to something on the serpentine belt. But I have also replaced the alternator, idler pulley, tensioner pulley, new serpentine belt, a/c tensioner and a/c belt. The noise stops when the serpintine belt is removed from the engine. With a stethoscope the power steering pump and water pump are real quiet. The new alternator is real noisy. The is a very distinct whine/whistle from the back side of the alternator. Could this new alternator be making the same noise as the old one, or is there some electrical issue here.
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Saturday, November 15th, 2008 AT 10:07 AM
Tiny
MASTERTECHTIM
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You could have a bad alternator. Usually its either a drive pulley or the alternator. Another thing to check is to make sur eyou have the correct belt and the right belt routing. It might be on wrong. Also is the belt tensioner fully extended? There is a little arrow on the tensioner and 2 hash marks on it, the arrow should be in the middle of the hash marks if the belt is the right length.
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Saturday, November 15th, 2008 AT 11:26 AM
Tiny
RUNDAWG
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Everything now is pointing to another bad alternator. When I disconnect the hot lead(red- positive cable) going to the alternator, the noise (whine/whistle) STOPS. So it's not the tensioner. The bearings in the alternator are O.K, nice and quiet, but something with the electronics is bad. What in the back electronic part of the alternator would cause this? Could something from the positive side of the electrical system be causing this, Or did I just get another alternator with the same problem? I did notice the new rebuilt alternator was rebuilt in China. I have a Brand New Alternator on order to see if that will cure the problem. If not, something in the electrical system is causing this issue.
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Saturday, November 15th, 2008 AT 12:49 PM
Tiny
MASTERTECHTIM
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Check your battery connections, if you have 2 positive cables to the battery then check the lead spacer between them to make sure its not squished, if it is then replace it. If thats ok I would suspect bad alternator because the red wire at the back of alternator is hot all the time and if there was a electrical problem then it would likely kill your battery overnight.
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Saturday, November 15th, 2008 AT 7:21 PM

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