Howling/whistle sound coming from Sprinter

[Interstate1]

I have been an Airstream Interstate owner now for over 4 weeks. I keep noticing that when I'm driving the Mercedes Sprinter I keep hearing a howling/whistle sound when I'm accelerating at low speeds. Is this normal? I'm not sure if it's wind blowing through a loose exterior trim panel or just the diesel turbo working?

[Lily&Me]

Doug says "the radiator fan is controlled by a thermostat, and when the engine gets above a certain temperature the fan will kick on....and it makes noise".

He says this may be what you are hearing.


Maggie

[richinny]

use the google search here. there is a thread that sounds a lot like your noise.

[Interstate1]

So I just curious...Does anyone else hear the same noise with their Mercedes Sprinter?
It's a pretty obvious sound to hear if you have the radio and AC/Heater (HVAC) turned off.

I did have my tires balanced a week ago so I'm not sure if it's coming from the wheels, turbo or just the wind passing through some exterior trim panel... Anyways just wanted to follow up on my first question I asked.

[DanB]

Allow the pet cat to ride inside.

[73shark]

Originally Posted by Interstate1

So I just curious...Does anyone else hear the same noise with their Mercedes Sprinter?
It's a pretty obvious sound to hear if you have the radio and AC/Heater (HVAC) turned off.

I did have my tires balanced a week ago so I'm not sure if it's coming from the wheels, turbo or just the wind passing through some exterior trim panel... Anyways just wanted to follow up on my first question I asked.

I had a noise that seem to be somewhere in the right front corner of the vehicle and I couldn't tell if it was inside or outside. It turned out that the windshield gasket on the A-pillar was vibrating in the wind at 60 miles an hour. The dealership glued the gasket down with some silicon and the noise went away.

[wayneskid]

A split turbo boost hose will sound like that, but will usually cause a CEL. What model year is your Sprinter? Not the Airstream MY, the Sprinter.

[Interstate1]

It's a "2014" Airstream Interstate...

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by Interstate1

I have been an Airstream Interstate owner now for over 4 weeks. I keep noticing that when I'm driving the Mercedes Sprinter I keep hearing a howling/whistle sound when I'm accelerating at low speeds. Is this normal? I'm not sure if it's wind blowing through a loose exterior trim panel or just the diesel turbo working?

That's a rather specific condition, accelerating at low speed. I believe it is related to the turbo. Otherwise you'd hear it when you're going at a steady speed as well as accelerating.

Don't think it would be a split hose or other damage to the turbo, though. If it was, you'd definitely notice that acceleration would be sluggish; if the turbo was leaking either exhaust or intake air, it would barely have enough power to get out of its own way and you'd default to "limp home" mode.

More likely in my opinion, what you're hearing is the turbo spooling up, which would be a normal sound. I never hear it on mine because I hardly ever drive without tunes playing, either radio, CD, or iPod. That and the fact that I have old ears that don't hear as well in some octaves. Not everyone's hearing is most sensitive in the same octave, so it could just be that you're more sensitive to sound in that particular range than others.

Still, the best advice is, if you hear a sound you aren't sure of, check with your local Sprinter dealer. Offer to take a service technician for a test-drive, and when you hear the noise, point it out to him. If you don't point out the noise yourself and instead just describe it, they may not find the specific noise you're wondering about.

[Interstate1]

Oh I agree about having someone in the service department take a Look-see, I just wanted get some feedback from the community. Thanks

[73shark]

Does it change with engine speed or vehicle speed?

[Interstate1]

Hello 73shark, it seems like it goes away once I'm driving at a good speed... The howling sound is subtle but you can hear it when I am accelerating at slow speeds.

[Interstate1]

I just wanted to see if anyone else heard the same sound? Like I said, it is subtle sound and you have to listen for it... Once you hear it you can't help not hear it. I read online that sprinter vans do make a whistle sound do to the diesel turbo

[73shark]

I would take the earlier poster's advice and get it into the dealer and then have them listen to it while you're driving it.

[Interstate1]

Update...I had the sound checked out and it is the diesel turbo working. It's perfectly normal!

[MiMo]

Originally Posted by Interstate1

I just wanted to see if anyone else heard the same sound? Like I said, it is subtle sound and you have to listen for it... Once you hear it you can't help not hear it. I read online that sprinter vans do make a whistle sound do to the diesel turbo

I have the same noise on the same vehicle...I haven't gotten to~ fixing it yet....but here is what I recommend & I will do as well......it can be either 2 things...#1 Rear Brakes....#2 Rear Differential....

For #1~ Get some brake/oil spray cleaner and hose down the rotor and pads....get all the dust out...I plan on taking the calipers out and thoroughly cleaning the rotors...on both sides.....My guess is that....it's coming from the read brakes and NOT front....My van has only 45K miles and is a 2006 model....Not much mileage....My observation is that~ the dust got caked on the pads and is making solid contacts on the rotors...This causes whining noise from the upper part of the pads..where it usually collects....

Because the van is empty all of the time...the sound is 10x greater with the echo inside.....Drive it around to duplicate the noise..This may correct the problem..

For#2~ There are a lot of talk regarding differential issues.... I think it is NON-FOUND....the sound would be very harsh....For the sake~I will be replacing the fluid on my van..as to isolate the sound...

It's hard NOT to get emotions involved when it comes to vehicles.....cuz of the cost....but to be rational...Think everything you can do first...which that is cheap....Diagnose it that way...If all fails, you and I hae a lot to talk about...

FYI~...I am NOT a professional but a person who loves to work on cars.
Been doing it since my teens and I am hitting 50s... cheers..fill me in on the results...thx