Help: Belt and/or Pulley Squeak

[Marrk]

Originally Posted by samuel123disuza

i think the problem is with your belt...it is damaged from somewhere otherwise the noise that is coming from it wouldnt have come...just have a look at it.

How do you figure that? When I step on the clutch pedal, the noise stops.

I examined as much of the belt as one can see without taking the engine apart. Seems okay.

[explosivpotato]

I couldn't tell you exactly why it would fail. Do you rest your foot on the clutch at lights? Any pressure on the pedal loads that bearing, it's the part that the clutch fork presses on to pull the clutch plate off of the flywheel.

[Marrk]

Originally Posted by explosivpotato

I couldn't tell you exactly why it would fail. Do you rest your foot on the clutch at lights? Any pressure on the pedal loads that bearing, it's the part that the clutch fork presses on to pull the clutch plate off of the flywheel.

No, I don't rest my foot on the clutch pedal. In fact, I don't do anything that would cause a clutch to fail in 27k miles, and I have never had to replace a clutch on any of my cars. I'm a little baffled. Is it possible that the problem is with the clutch and not with the driver?

[Marrk]

Potato,

When you fix your clutch, will you use OEM bearings and parts, or will you upgrade to stronger/better parts?

Marrk

[explosivpotato]

It's entirely possible you just have a bad bearing. That's what warranties are for! When I replace my clutch, it will definitely be a stage 1 or maybe even 2 unit. With the torque I'm making it would be a huge waste of time to put another stock unit in. I'm frankly astonished that it's lasted well over 66,000 miles, with over 20,000 of those boosted.

I don't baby my car once it's warmed up, though I'm very easy on it while it's cold. Clutch plates only wear while you are at the friction point, while throwout bearings wear whenever there is a load on the clutch pedal. Guess I must be really good at driving stick.

One last thought, my fit has made a transmission "whir" when in neutral with the clutch engaged ever since I bought it. The whirring is the normal spinning of the gears and bearings in the transmission. The throwout bearing is in addition to this. It's possible that the noise you're hearing is just the input shaft spinning. The fit's engine is relatively quiet in stock trim, and there's very little sound deadening, so you hear mechanical noises like bearings and valves much more clearly than in some other cars.

[Marrk]

It's entirely possible you just have a bad bearing. That's what warranties are for! When I replace my clutch, it will definitely be a stage 1 or maybe even 2 unit. With the torque I'm making it would be a huge waste of time to put another stock unit in. I'm frankly astonished that it's lasted well over 66,000 miles, with over 20,000 of those boosted.

A Stage 1 or a Stage 2 is a clutch kit with all stronger/upgraded parts, including the bearings? Is that correct? If I wanted to, could I just upgrade the bearing, or would upgrading the whole clutch make more sense? I'm not modding the car or racing it. I just want to avoid having the same thing happen again. On the other hand, I don't want to upgrade the bearing, then have it be incompatible with the OEM parts.

I don't baby my car once it's warmed up, though I'm very easy on it while it's cold. Clutch plates only wear while you are at the friction point, while throwout bearings wear whenever there is a load on the clutch pedal. Guess I must be really good at driving stick.

I let it warm up, too. If my shifts are clumsy, I think it would wear on the plates, not the bearings.

One last thought, my fit has made a transmission "whir" when in neutral with the clutch engaged ever since I bought it. The whirring is the normal spinning of the gears and bearings in the transmission. The throwout bearing is in addition to this. It's possible that the noise you're hearing is just the input shaft spinning. The fit's engine is relatively quiet in stock trim, and there's very little sound deadening, so you hear mechanical noises like bearings and valves much more clearly than in some other cars.[/quote]

No, it's not that. I know those noises. This bearing noise is a new noise and wasn't there for the first 26k miles

[explosivpotato]

The throwout bearing is probably stronger on a stage 1/2 clutch to handle the heavier clutch spring. I know clutches generally come with them.

I wouldn't worry about upgrading the bearing unless you upgrade the pressure plate as well. The Honda unit is designed to last the life of a stock clutch and then some. Yes, yours seems tone failing, but working in production engineering has taught me that there will always be defects. Always.

I say let the dealer fix it, and don't worry about it. Do please report back on what they say about it, though. I'm curious what they say, and what they'll replace.

[mahout]

Originally Posted by kylerwho

spray some lubricating oil on the belt to see if this kills the noise.

its not a lasting solution but it should do the job for now.

DO NOT USE LUBE OIL, such as WD40). There are sprays that address squeaking specifically at your local autoparts stores but they are usually only short-term solutions.
I go with the first poster having the steps right. More often than not we found the problem solved by a new belt.
When you get the belt off inspect the pulleys to make sure they are OK surface-wise.

[Marrk]

Symptom: Drivetrain noise, like a rotational rattle, that goes away when I step on the clutch pedal.

Cause: Bad pilot bearing.

Cure: They replaced the pilot bearing and, to be on the safe side, the throwout bearing.

Length of Time of Repair: 2 days (1 day to get the parts and 4 hrs. to do the job).

What about the Warranty?: They warrantied the entire job without batting an eye. There was no charge to me.


I don't mind naming names, so if you want all the gory details, let me know.

[jchang8692]

Hi. i am new to the forum. 2009 honda fit 5 speed manual. bought it new
right now i have 1200. i have same rotational rattle as Marrk does. i hear the noise at idle it goes away when clutch is depressed. it is intermitten. when the trans is cold i do not hear any noise. after driving around about 15 to 20 minuetes, noise comes back. but still even with the trans hot i do not hear the noise all the time. i took my car to dealer 3 times already. i was on test drive twice with the trans mechanic and twice with the service manager, unfortunately the noise could not be duplicated. however the mechanic thinks it is the throwout bearing, but does not want to take the trans apart uless he is 100% sure. the service manager even called honda factory tech support trying to find out if there were any issue with 09 fit manual trans, but nothing is reported at this point. i was told to bring my car back when the condition is persistant. it is really annoying. any help would be greatly appreciated. especially Marrk, if you could tell me which dealer you took your car to. i live in Maryland(Eastcoast). thanx

[Marrk]

J.:

I had mine done at Honda of Hollywood. I took it in twice before they finally could hear it, and even so I had to get the Service Manager involved before anyone could hear what I was hearing. They claim they "have never seen this problem on a Fit," but I am getting the idea that that story is bull.

It's the pilot bearing, not the throwout bearing, but they replaced both on mine, just to be sure.

You're best bet it is to have your visits to the dealer, and your complaints, documented, even if they won't service it yet. Then, you are covered. But don't worry, your noise will get louder soon. Who knows, maybe my new bearing will go bad also.

[jchang8692]

thanks again Marrk for the info. i guess i just have to wait until the condition becomes really noticeable.