Annoying Sound When Idling Or Stopped

[Grandmaster80]

OK, another gripe about my 54 Reg IS 200 Auto. My odometer reading is only about 45,500 miles now. I have noticed since last few days that when the car is idling (i.e., when the gear is engaged in Drive, or foot on the brake or hand park is on, and the car is not moving, such as when it is stopped at the traffic lights), there is a annoying sound like some low power motor is running or old cassette recorder with old head making funny noises. It looks like coming from the middle of dashboard where CD player and heater vents are located but I turned off both CD and heater but still the same annoying sound.

It is not very loud, but definitely noticeable, well at least to me. I find it to be rather distracting and embarrassing when I have passengers in the car. When the car is cruising on the highway, this sound disappears or get mixed up with other noises , I guess because now the engine is revving at a higher speed, thus causing the engine sound to be more uniform and evenly smoothed out. So yes, when the car is moving, it feels luxurious, smooth, and "quiet"--like what you would expect. But when the car is stopped, with gear engaged in Drive or even in parking position, it is rather disappointing.

I am worried that it could be start of a bigger problem. Please advise me what to do. Thanks for your help in advance.

PS- I copied the above details from someone in US who had a very similar problem. I just changed few details ;)

[kenfoxy]

Don't know but could it be the A/C?

[Yalnif]

plucking at straws but the motor that changes the flow of the air based on the setting you choose (windscreen, face, feet), could the flap it adjusts be jammed maybe or not stopping when it should?

[iceman67]

its sounds to me like the recycleing fan on the a/c to me put it on air in and try that :winky: neil

[Grandmaster80]

Don't know but could it be the A/C?

Thanks all for reply. I am not sure if this is AC or not. I put the AC knob on off but still the same sound. I was thinking to do AC service anyway because my central AC vents were blowing cold air in the winter when heater was on. Could that be related to this issue?

I checked again it defintely stop when car is running (checked at very low speed).

[fjcfarrar]

Don't know but could it be the A/C?

Thanks all for reply. I am not sure if this is AC or not. I put the AC knob on off but still the same sound. I was thinking to do AC service anyway because my central AC vents were blowing cold air in the winter when heater was on. Could that be related to this issue?

I checked again it defintely stop when car is running (checked at very low speed).

The air-conditioner will blow cold if turned on even in the winter. This is deliberate and can be useful in reducing/clearing the steaming up of the windows.

If the noise changes when you manually change the heater speed, it is almost certainly a dried leaf or similar rubbing against the blower impellor "blades". This can sometimes be cleared by running the blower at max speed and blowing an airline down the outside inlet vents near the wiper shafts.

[IHgs300]

look under bonnet where the brake servo is, if you look to the right there are 2 pipes secured to bulkhead,check these where clamps are..

I had a similar noise and it was one of those pipes vibrating.Only heard it with engine running and in drive with foot on brake.

[Grandmaster80]

look under bonnet where the brake servo is, if you look to the right there are 2 pipes secured to bulkhead,check these where clamps are..

I had a similar noise and it was one of those pipes vibrating.Only heard it with engine running and in drive with foot on brake.

Cheers IanS200 and all for reply. I found the problem!!

It was loose plastic cover on the righ hand side covering cables connected with bettry. That plastic cover was vibrating when engine was running at the parked position.

Thanks again for your help.

PS- Does anybody know a cheap and good AC service centre in Manchester. And how costly is this? Mine works OK but just the central vents are not working properly. I think it need some cleaning but I dont know how to do myself. so better to be checked by a professional.

[IHgs300]

Glad you found it, nothing more annoying than squeaks and rattles.

[DaveyCH]

iv got an annoying sound coming from around the centre of my dash but its more like a crackle, or like little bits of somthing getting knocked about, only started other day and hasnt went away, it seems to happen when im parked up when i first start up and the revs are coming back down from about 2000 rpm? my mate seems to think it could be rust that has broke off from the inside of my exhaust manifold because of the area the sound is coming from, its really worrying me as iv only had the car three weeks! any ideas?