Had a fairly new water pump installed two years ago, and now it is making a very odd noise when I sit and idle. I remember hearing this noise a few years back and I recall a previous mechanic back then, upon hearing that sound, that my water pump was on its way out.

It is is not a squeal like a belt, it is more of a... dog whining at idle...

Is there anything that can be greased or oiled?

 

Greased or oiled? Eggs and me getting a message.

No there isn't anything that will accept lube in the water pump, it's sealed. Does the pump shaft move when you lift up on the fan? If it does the impeller might be rubbing things that don't require polishing.......

 

With that new of a pump it's more likely one of your other accessory or idler pulley bearings. To check their condition you can remove belt and rotate each by hand. Should be able to feel/hear the offending one(s).

Water pump
Alternator
A/C clutch
Tensioner
Idlers
......

 

A pump installed 2 years ago isn't exactly what I'd call new unless you've only driven like 50 miles on it.

Remove the fan shroud, and remove the serpentine belt. Give the fan blade a good spin and look for any wobbling and listen for anything odd. If it doesn't wobble or make any weird noises start checking the belt tensioner, and idler pulley.

 

In the water pump neck are bearings (probably an inner and an outer bearing), and if/when the shaft seal leaks, which it can ...because it's under pressure when the engine is warm (<15lbs usually), coolant can mix with the bearing grease, dilutes it and then cause the bearings to fail. They can fail on their own from defective craftsmanship, but usually it's due to coolant seeping past the seal. That's why water pumps tend to make a "Whirling" sound before they go, because the bearing grease has been washed way. Now, 15# of pressure isn't that much when you look at the pressures in industrial pumping applications, but eventually the car's water pump seal will fail given enough time. There is a weep hole underneath the the water pump neck (where the bearings are), so if any coolant is leaking past, you should see moisture, crusty stuff, or even coolant drips at the hole. I would look "upwards" from the bottom of your engine at the seep hole and see if you can see any moisture at the seep hole, or white crusty deposits. Sometimes it's hard to tell if your engine has shiny grease under there, so also look at the lower hose for any traces of drizzling coolant. Like the others said, rock the fan and feel for excessive 'play' in the bearings, listen for a dry whirling sound, then that's probably it. If the weep hole is dry and all else feels good, it's probably something else like:

Idler or tensioner pully - These often fail. Give it a spin and if it makes a whirling sound, that might be the issue. I've lubed up a lot of 'dry' idler pulleys and extended their lives significantly and haven't had one fail. To do it, remove the pulley and insert a pick from the inner part of the seal and pick the cover off and re-lube -- the inner part because the grease will be 'slung' to the outer edge of the bearing during operation moreso than the inner part. Be careful to try to clean out an/or ID the grease and use a similar kind of grease when re-packing ...because different greases use different soap compounds and can be incompatible (turning the grease watery) if you only re-grease. Anyway, then done, just put a dab of silicone sealer to repair the seal if you boogered part of it up, which is hard *not* to do.

Squeaking belt - See belt routing (below)

Belt routing - Quadruple - check that you put the new belt on (when whoever last did the job), that the belt is routed correctly. It'll fit 2 different ways and a lot of guys ...and shops, including myself one time, can route it incorrectly and all kinds of bad things can happen. seriously, don't overlook this. It might be your alternator pulley slipping and making that noise, which could be attributed to the 'new' belt they put on during the water pump install, now is slipping because it's become glazed and wearing out your alternator pump pulley. When I got my Disco, the alternator pulley was worn to the point where the ribs were sharp (from previous belt mis-installation) and a new belt would grip, but after a year would slip slightly. So, after a couple rapid belt replacements, I discovered it and replacing the alternator pulley with a new one with 'squared-off' ribs, like it should be, allowed a new belt to fit properly and it's been good ever since. It took an experienced guy at an alternator rebuilding shop to identify that problem (course I already had the alternator rebuilt by another shop who didn't see it).

Power steering - Could be that it was run 'dry' in the past and sounding funny ...or wearing out. The P/S are notorious for leaking on these so it's a possiblilty.

Fan Clutch - With the engine cold and belt on, remove the fan shroud and rotate the fan blade. It should have resistance. Let the engine warm put and test again, and it should move (spin) almost freely. The fan clutches DO fail on these and it could be your problem. Usually they won't spin freely when warm. Don't hesitate to replace it if that's the case because last thing you want it a failed fan clutch going through the hood or radiator. Very unlikely to happen, but it's been known to.

Oh, and BTW, I once had on my Chevy P/U about 3x Napa water pumps crap out in pretty short succession. The seals were failing. I quit buying Napa water pumps. My buddy there told me they had quite a problem with a bunch ...but that was like 10 years ago, so I don't mean to imply don't buy NAPA in general. In addition, I had another vehicle that had a ton of miles on and I bought a new water pump for it because I was "right there" working on the timing cover ...why not put a new water pump on it before the original crapped out, right?? So, I paid top dollar for a brand new Carter because clearance was tight and figured the Carter was a good name brand. Well, guess what, it leaked and crapped out in about 3 months. The 'free' replacement they gave me, however, lasted the rest of the car's life, so it just goes to show you ..ya never know, even on so-called 'new' water pumps.

Well, good luck!!

 

Appreciate the detailed info

Had the viscous fan clutch replaced with a heavy duty one two years ago as well top end of engine rebuilt, head gasket replaced, as well as a new clutch, and radiator hoses

I will check things out though regarding the bearings as well as look for any new leaks. It's just a PITA with the noise.

Yep, greases and oils aren't created equal... I used to represent ConocoPhillips and clients were always amazed when something broke because one of their employees put the wrong fluid in the wrong equipment for the wrong application... had one client attempt to tear me a new one as a client's temporary mechanic on the docks used ATF in an axle for a $750,000 dollar loader and within hours the axle blew apart and shut down their facility for a week... manuals and charts are there for a reason... follow the guidelines and the applications for the specific packages

Cheers

 

My coffee hadn't kicked in, so my proof reading skills were non-existent

I will be checking today as I have a friend showing up to help me add a new brush bar and rear bumper.

Thank you.

 

Appreciate the quick and simple information. As I mentioned in a previous reply. I have a friend arriving today, so I will be definitely able to check those. Thank you very much!