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Very Loud Whistle Sound On Start Up In Cold Weather Anyone Else?

50K views 29 replies 23 participants last post by  ChryslerCares 
#1 ·
I have a very loud whistle squeal sound on cold morning start ups when the temps are below 20F. Is this normal? It lasts for a minute or so but its so loud it could wake the dead.
 
#2 ·
Whistle? What tune is it playing? :)

Seriously though, a little more info would be helpful. Front or rear of the car? Engine or otherwise? Moving or idling?

My first though is to look at your air intake housing and see if it all clamped down so you don't have air whistling in a gap.
 
#4 ·
My former work van was a Freestar. It did that too on start up. It turned out to be an oil pump drive issue with that engine. I would get your van in to get it looked at ASAP. I am not saying this is the issue with your engine, but I wouldn't "live with it" until the next normal service either.
 
#7 ·
I agree. My 2009 Caravan has always made a high pitched squeal at first start-up when the temperature drops below a certain point. I don't know what the cutoff temperature is, but it occurred this morning at -8°F (-22°C). It sounds exactly like my 2001 Caravan did when the power steering reservoir screen was clogged.

There is an old post HERE discussing the effects of extreme cold on the power steering system in 5th gen vans.

George
 
#8 ·
Does the Grand Caravan even have a power steering pump? They might be electric on the newer vans.

If its not the power steering, its the alternator or some other belt slipping.

My guess is the low temps have put a strain on your battery. Your van is having enough trouble finding the courage to muster up an idle... and then has to deal with increased load from the alternator. Just rev your engine a little bit while in park, to help it along... but consider taking it in to have the belts checked / tightened / replaced.
 
#10 ·
Loud Whistle Squeal on code morning startups



I had the same problem several times when the temperature was down to 5-8 degrees.
when starting my 2012 Grand Caravan. It only lasted for less than a minute and disappeared. I have no idea what caused it, and by the way, I did not recognize the tune.

Concorde
 
#13 ·
this is by far the loudest motor I have ever heard at start-up.....the groan, slight whistle, etc. has been prominent since new, but have been reassured by the dealer that it is normal, evidenced by them having new vehicles on the lot exhibiting the same moans and groans.....pretty sure you can rest easy.....
 
#14 ·
The 3.6L Pentastar engine will have some noise upon start up (especially when cold) until oil gets pumped through the engine. Its completely normal and will not cause any long term problems.
 
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#16 ·
2013 GC Same Noise Problem - Here's What i've done

Just acquired 2013 GC SXT with 32K...any temp. below 20 degrees (f) it makes the squeal. Took it in dodge dealership. Mechanic said it was the h2o pump. (I'd had recorded noise on cell phone). Was going to replace it..then the Svc Mgr. got involved and said no. Said they had replaced h2o pumps on a couple of other GC's...didn't make a difference he said. He said Dodge had No TSB's on this problem.
It does make a difference it the Fan Motor is off before starting. I'm going to bring it back to dealership leave it over night and let them start it in the morning.
I'll keep this tread updated.:angry:
 
#17 ·
Whistle on Startup. My experience...

Over the summer we picked up a 2013 Grand Caravan with 15K miles on it.(2.6l) As the weather started getting colder, I noticed that during startup the noises have gotten worse. Surprisingly, the engine is very quiet once warmed up. Once weather goes below 50 or so, the car has kind of a roaring sound when first running. Notice a slight valve lifter click as well. Going below 15, it gets worse... The whistling occurs below 10 degrees. It is really bad if the temp is below 0. I scheduled service for this complaint and the airbag software recall.... When I talked to the service manager, he said he gets a lot of complaints when the temp is below 0. His explanation was that the alternator has to work harder and the belt slips. They fixed the recall problem, but not the noise issue. I was told to bring the car back when it got warmer if it continues to occur????!!!?? Come on.. Should a car with 20K miles make this kind of noise even @ 10 degrees? So I will take it back... I don't think the Dealerships tend to take this complaint seriously. If the car had a 100k drivetrain warranty, I would be less concerned. BTW... I see the comment stating this is normal. My wife's response to this would be that her sister's Toyota doesn't make these noises. Point being that Chrysler stands to scare away customers with a "perceived" quality issue. Anyway.. If I had the time I would pull the serpentine belt before starting to see if the issue was internal on the engine or an accessory. REALLY interested to see if someone finds an answer on this! If I have any luck or answers on my 2nd round to the service Dept, I will post!! Best of Luck!
 
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#21 ·
If the alternator is causing the belt to slip, then there is something wrong with one of the following things that I can surmise:

-Belt needs to be replaced.
-Belt needs to be tightened.
-Alternator is bad, causing resistance to cause belt to slip.
-Something in electrical system is overdrawing, causing resistance, which causes the belt to slip.
-Idler or one of the pulleys is going bad.

The same thing happens on my 98 Dodge Neon when it is cold out, all my accessories are turned on, the car isn't warmed up.. and the belt isn't as tight as it could be. Typically though, you also have to ALSO be turning the wheel, as the power steering is also run off of the same pulley on the Neon. Then you get a tiny squeal. To happen on a brand newish car, that is serviced by a dealer though? That's not acceptable.

My mom had a 91 Mitsubishi Colt that used to do it too, but that was purely a loose belt.
 
#22 ·
2012 t&c

My T&C had a very loud whistle. Took it to the dealership with several video recordings of incident. Dealership could not duplicate the problem right away and there were no codes that registered. They kept it over night and it made the same noise in the morning. They couldn't pin point where the noise was coming from so they sent it to the Chrysler "Star" team. They decided that the PCV valve should be replaced. That did work for some time, but I just heard the noise again yesterday just not quite as loud.
 
#24 ·
My T&C had a very loud whistle. Took it to the dealership with several video recordings of incident. Dealership could not duplicate the problem right away and there were no codes that registered. They kept it over night and it made the same noise in the morning. They couldn't pin point where the noise was coming from so they sent it to the Chrysler "Star" team. They decided that the PCV valve should be replaced. That did work for some time, but I just heard the noise again yesterday just not quite as loud.
PVC Valve lmfao..............:nut:
 
#27 ·
Most 3.6 liter either whine very loud or whistle when cold , unfortunetly it is normal most of the time . I have never heard another
V6 that sounds as bad as the Pentastar does when cold . It does not portray that sign of quality when it does that .
 
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