Chevy Diesel Truck Noise - Chirping

chasdvorak

Well-known member
I have a 2004 Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD Diesel with a funny noise. At low speed/rpm's I have a sound from the engine compartment that sounds like chirping or a bunch of crickets. The sound is most noticeable around 25-35 mph. I can replicate the sound by lightly pressing the accelerator pedal.

I tried using some fan belt dressing, but it didn't help. Any ideas?

Thanks,
Chuck Dvorak
 

DntDctr

Active Member
I had that going on with a toyota tundra. I replaced the belt and the noise went with it. The belt looked like it was in great condition but obviously it wasn't
 

jnbhobe

Well-known member
You might also look for an idler pully or alternator bearing going bad, they will chirp at times before they go south.
 

Bob&Patty

Founders of SoCal Chapter
Chuck, 1st of all, belt dressing on a sepentine belt is not a good idea. But did it change the noise?? I had the same issue with my 05 D/A. It turned out to be the water pump bearing/seal. I did it worse when the engine was cold and not all the time. Bob
 

chasdvorak

Well-known member
No change in the noise after I tried the belt dressing. The belt looks good, but I'm at the 60,000 mile mark so I'm sure it couldn't hurt to change it. It seems pretty constant regardless of temperature. I'll have to keep an eye on it, no doubt it will break loose when I'm hooked up and headed somewhere. Thanks for the suggestions.

Chuck
 

ihsolutions

Well-known member
I have the same truck but an 03 with 36k miles. I have been having the chirp for 3 years now. It used to go away when the vehicle warmed up. Lately, it hasn't. Very recently, it got very bad. I thought it was the tensioner pulley so I replaced it. It was not. I replaced the belt, and the noise is completely gone. Never been quieter. The old (original) belt looks to be in pristine condition. So I saved it and stashed it under the seat for an emergency roadside repair. Only going to cost you $40 or so to find out, and it's cheap insurance.
 

Ray LeTourneau

Senior Member - Past Moderator
I have essentially the same truck and I have a chirp but it's a very consistent one and it seems to be related to miles traveled. No matter what speed, it chirps every half mile give or take a tenth. It's done it since I bought it used 3 years ago. Other that that chirp, it runs like a top.
 

Delaine and Lindy

Well-known member
I would replace the sepentine belt, IMO belt dressing is a waste. Every GM Duramax I have owned the chirp was from the sepentine belt. GBY...
 

Bob&Patty

Founders of SoCal Chapter
I forgot to add this to my previous post. Before you replace the belt....clean it with a small wire brush. Run the engine at idle and VERY CAREFULLY put the wire brush on the grooved side of the belt. WARNING "FINGERS". Most of the time unless they have lots of miles on them, its dirt (road grime) build up. I have cleaned a lot of them in my years as a GM tech. Spraying anything on them just makes it worse. Bob
 
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Ray LeTourneau

Senior Member - Past Moderator
I forgot to add this to my previous post. Before you replace the belt....clean it with a small wire brush. Run the engine at idle and VERY CAREFULLY put the wire brush on the grooved side of the belt. WARNING "FINGERS". Most of the time unless they have lots of miles on them, its dirt (road grime) build up. I have cleaned a lot of them in my years as a GM tech. Spraying anything on them just makes it worse. Bob
Bob, I've done exactly as you have described to almost every vehicle I've owned. I also agree on your feelings regarding belt dressing. The wire brush technique works quite well but didn't remove my chirp in the Duramax.
Not to go off topic, but what engine do you have in the 58 Belair? 348 perhaps?
 

Bob&Patty

Founders of SoCal Chapter
Ray, when I got the car it did have a 348 and turboglide. But, I wanted newer power. I installed a TBI 350 and 4L80E trans. I also installed the ECM and the OEM wire harness in the car. It has O2 sensors and the correct serpetine belt system just like it came out of the truck. I also installed an "oh crap" lite in the instrument cluster and the OEM connector for the scan tool. When I fired it the 1st time I had one code set. #43...I had been playing with the distributor while it was running. It has lots and lots of modern stuff in it. Would take me an hour to type it all. Its basiclly a new car with old sheet metal. The car thinks its a 1994 suburban. LOL Bob BTW, it doesnt have any belt noise yet:p
 
I have the 2003 that had the similar problem. After researching quite a bit, I decided to change the belt with a Gatorback along with a new tensioner AND BOTH idler pulleys. Before trying this, I too used the belt dressing without any change in the noise. The reason was because of the idler pulleys, one had a bad bearing. The Gatorback belt was highly recommended for it's design being tried and true on the Duramax's. Never had a problem since, going on 30k miles since the job was done.
 

ct0218

Well-known member
I went thru 2 OEM belts with the chirp, getting 25K to 30K before it get really loud, and finally switched to a Gatorback after the second OEM belt. I now have 160K on the truck, so that is right at 100K on the Gatorback now--and not a chirp. I bought a spare a couple of years ago and it is still in my toolbox.
 
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