1st and 2nd gear whine
#1
Registered User
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: Foster City, CA
Posts: 92
Car Info: sonic yellow 03 WRX sedan
1st and 2nd gear whine
Is it normal for the transmission to whine whenever I let go of gas in the 1st or 2nd gear, at 10mph and 25 mph respectively? The whine doesn't seem to be present whenever the car is accelerating, or holding its speed constant with the right amount of gas.
The whine doesn't sound very nice.
elhaym
The whine doesn't sound very nice.
elhaym
#5
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Posts: n/a
My car does that too and if you look in the May issue of Turbo magazine they have an article about the noise in the differential. It is caused by inconsistent factory backlash in the ring and pinion gear and is not harmful to the differential. The dealership can "fix" the problem by putting a heavier flywheel in to keep the gears loaded during deceleration, but that will rob some power. Since the noise is not harmful then I wouldnt worry about it.
#8
fwiw, i thought 1st and 2nd in WRX's are cut almost straight (ie. not helical) which makes the gear whine more pronounced. I always heard the whine in my WRX when decelerating in 1st & 2nd but never paid too much attention. I'm used to hearing that from my other cars, more so in RWDs (tranny location vs FWD..?)
#12
Every '04 WRX I test drove (three of them), and the one I currently own, all have the same first and second gear transmission whine. The whine doesn't bother me in the least. The fact that the clutch springs can be heard rattling in second gear bothers me though.
#14
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: Foster City, CA
Posts: 92
Car Info: sonic yellow 03 WRX sedan
The straight cut gears probably contribute to the noise, but I think also the differentials (mentioned by turbo022) have their share of the whine too. The more carefully I listen to it, the more I think it orignates from the (front) diff.
#15
Registered User
Join Date: Nov 2002
Location: Bay Area
Posts: 1,402
Car Info: 02 WRX wagon=dead; rollin' in a Craptastic Camry!
Originally posted by elhaym
The more carefully I listen to it, the more I think it orignates from the (front) diff.
The more carefully I listen to it, the more I think it orignates from the (front) diff.