Scraping noise at idle
Thread Starter
5th Gear
Joined: Dec 2020
Posts: 5
Likes: 0
Scraping noise at idle
Hi all. I have a 2005 manual with around 80k miles and I recently noticed there is a noise happening that sounds like a snow shovel scraping pavement. It sounds rotational and happens about every 1-2 seconds at idle. I think the noise is present while driving but my exhaust covers the noise. It does not change with clutch engagement. Any ideas where I should start looking to address the problem?
Melting Slicks
Joined: Apr 2019
Posts: 2,518
Likes: 1,168
From: Northern Wisconsin
Could be the harmonic balancer scraping against the front cover. If the elastic element in the harmonic balancer has failed, it could allow the outer ring of the balancer to walk toward the front cover. Does the harmonic balancer appear to wobble when looking at it during idle? If so, it needs to be changed now.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 5,493
Likes: 809
From: West coast CA
Hi all. I have a 2005 manual with around 80k miles and I recently noticed there is a noise happening that sounds like a snow shovel scraping pavement. It sounds rotational and happens about every 1-2 seconds at idle. I think the noise is present while driving but my exhaust covers the noise. It does not change with clutch engagement. Any ideas where I should start looking to address the problem?
I'm assuming the noise happens when the car is running but not moving.
The A/C clutch can drag a bit making a metallic ringing/scraping noise. Press the snowflake button on the climate control and see if it makes a difference.
I'd also look close at the harmonic balancer as was suggested, regardless of its age.
You can run the engine for a short time with the serpentine belt removed. If the noise goes away it was one of the accessories.
