The squeak is louder again. As promised, here's a video of a hot idle, around 750 RPM.

 

Perfect. Great Video and that motor looks nice. So it won't go a way with the belt off? or when you push in the Clutch? If so "Thats a Tough one" I haven't real all the posts but will it increase with rpm or does it go a way with rpm?

 

Thanks!
Nope, still squeaks with the belt off unfortunately. Clutch in, clutch out, still squeaks. It sure is a tough one. I'm hoping it'll go away when I rebuild.
It gets more frequent if the engine speed increases a little, but then it either goes away or the frequency becomes too high to hear at maybe 2000-2500+. I did notice a high-pitched constant tone, almost a whistle, at highway speeds which seemed to be approximately the same pitch. I thought that could either be the squeak repeating extremely rapidly.

 

I will write it again. If your car where in my shop I would be having my stethoscope going all over that car to find the source of this squeak.

I would pull out the oil fill cap and listen...then the PCV and listen in the valve cover...listen to the timing chain cover because I have had some timing chains rub on the cover on the inside....basically go all around the car.

DUB

 

I'll make sure to do that.
Currently I'm coming up to the deadline to get my car smogged, so I've been spending most of my spare time fixing smog-related issues.
Once I get it smogged I'll use a screwdriver as a make-shift stethoscope to find it.
I just wanted to get a head start on this by getting an idea of what the possibilities were.

 

I hear 64 squeaks in 10 seconds = 384 per minute. Its camshaft / valve event speed.

384 x 2 = 768 rpm your idle speed.

Stick a hose in your ear, listen in the oil fill & pcv holes.

Listen around the intake & exhaust gaskets + the air pump & fittings on the exhaust manifolds.

Spray WD40 on the intake to head gaskets. If the noise changes or the idle speed changes it needs manifold gaskets.

Good luck.

 

Wow, you sure can count faster than I can.
That's clever analysis. It sure narrows down the options, too.
I'll check all that stuff once I get it smogged this week. Thanks for the tips!

 

You Adjust the valves yet? You might not be getting a good flow through the push rods and in turn, might not be lubing the rocker tips and they maybe be running dry at Idle and slightly above causing ur squeaking noise, while they are actually Scraping. Maybe.

When you have some time. Adjust the valves with the motor running. Stuff a pair of old jeans just below where the lower lip of the valve cover seals with the cover off to catch any running oil and do it while the motor is hot.
Loosen to get them rattling and then tighten slowly until they stop, then go 1/2 turn in. I'm thinking the noise/squeak is in the rocker arm tips. Before you do this, I think it would be a good thing to pull all the pushrods, one by one and spray some carb cleaner thru each one and then blast them with compressed air. Then put them all back in and before you do this, run it just a little bit to look and make sure you have oil coming out the top of the push rods oiling the rocker tips. Also when you pull the push rods. Inspect the tips and make sure they are not all real shinny.

Also have you ever pulled your dist? Was it real tight going back in the block or was it loose?

The distributor housing 'block' has two areas in the 'lifter oiling area' in the block. Most dist. have two round 'machined areas' that not only stabilize the dist but also block off oil flow back to the pan and force the oil to go to the lifters. If the Dist is worn and or loose, this effect will not be as good.

Have fun tracing this one and for your exhaust government sniff tests. Throw a big spring on that throttle body so as to keep ur Idle speed low to keep HC's down. Also there is a trick for the pipe sniff test to force it to run real lean that involved resisters and the O2, that and retarding the timing a few. It pushed it into like 16 or 18 to 1 for the test making it run super lean

 

Did you try loosening the dist. and see if the squeak goes away?

 

I have not tried that yet. I'll add that to the list of things to try once I get it to pass smog. Thanks!

 

AS written above...using a rubber hose to your ear is a fast way to find a vacuum leak and noise.

DUB

 

my 87 had a squeak and it was the dist cap, but it was pretty easy to pinpoint, w/out a screwdriver or scope, that it was coming from there. so might not be your issue but its worth checking out.