# 02M Whining noise



## pgk2004 (Nov 4, 2005)

heres the deal, ive been hearing a whining noise out of my 02m during DEACCELERATION throughout all the gears. the car is a 04 gli with 78k on the clock.

shame on me to say, i never checked or changed the trans fluid ?

any ideas on what to do to solve the whining issue?

im planning on doing a fluid flush this weekend, debating between either Pennzoil syncromesh or OEM fluid , keep in mind in live in Chicago where the weather changes constantly.


thanks :beer:


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## harmankardon35 (Sep 16, 2009)

fluid change, absolutely. you see all the posts lately about transmission oil, get the proper stuff. that is a strictly gl-4 75w90 gear ol, or best off get synchromesh from the GM dealer (or pennzoil synchromesh if you can get it)


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## pgk2004 (Nov 4, 2005)

i forgot to add that the noise occurs only while in gear and when goes completely away when i put the clutch in.


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## jagt21VR6 (Jun 2, 2005)

I am having this issue with my 3rd gear only when I downshift into it and the higher RPMS I am when I downshift the louder the high pitched hum is...I have heard it could be the syncro strarting to go, but do not know...I too am in dire need of a tranny fluid change, that is number 1 on the list, along with power steering fluid change as well...


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## Gulfstream (Jul 28, 2010)

I have the same problem in my 02M, apparently it's a fairly common problem for the 02M.

It's the main bearing that need to be changed. Any tranny mech shop with VAG experience should be well aware of the problem and know exactly what needs to be done.


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## pgk2004 (Nov 4, 2005)

to update the situation, after replacing the trans fluid (it being black as night), the whining noise has toned down a bit, however it does still exist. It is more noticeable when the car stays overnight in the chicago cold and i drive it in the morning.


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## Ephry73 (Feb 18, 2002)

My wife's car('04 GLI 1.8t) has the same problem. Normally it would present itself coasting in gear in second and third. Third was way louder than second. I changed the fluid to Redline MTL and second gear doesn't whine at all now. Third is there, but faint, very faint. I will let the fluid distribute throughout the transmission for a bit and see how it goes. Is it just the main bearing? or could it be the synchros?


E


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## pgk2004 (Nov 4, 2005)

Ephry73 said:


> My wife's car('04 GLI 1.8t) has the same problem. Normally it would present itself coasting in gear in second and third. Third was way louder than second. I changed the fluid to Redline MTL and second gear doesn't whine at all now. Third is there, but faint, very faint. I will let the fluid distribute throughout the transmission for a bit and see how it goes. Is it just the main bearing? or could it be the synchros?
> 
> 
> E


i ended up using Pennzoil syncromesh stuff, after reading horror stories of the redline stuff becoming stiff under cold conditions, and seeing that i live in Chicago and the deep freeze we have here now it was not a good choice to go with _for me._

but i did notice that the whining noise has toned down a bit but still exists if the car was kept outside for more than one day and the weather outside was extremely cold. But once the car warmed up it tends to be less evident.


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## JayJetta (Mar 29, 2001)

Mine would whine only in third at low speeds and below 3k rpm. I changed the fluid to amsoil and it got less but remained. It got even quieter after i installed the vf pendulum mount. I hope to kill it completely with a shot of lubromoly i bought from ecs. I wont go to deep into it cuz i dont know enought, but its said to build a protective layer on the gears and such. Google it.


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## Ephry73 (Feb 18, 2002)

The lubro stuff works on really, really bad trannys. I changed the dogbone mounts on my wife's car to the ECS hard rubber ones. Shifts much better and feels more solid, but not sure if the whine is from that alone. I need to change all of her motor mounts though. Thanks for sharing.


E


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## reidguitar (Jan 25, 2006)

also part of what happens is as your gear oil ages it loses its ability to lubricate and provide cushin between the gears. I have this noise in my o2m, and I had a similar noise in the rear diff on my jeep. as soon as i changed the fluid the noise went away.


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## Margheriti (Mar 26, 2011)

First time poster here. Vwvortex always helps me, so I thought I would try to help too. 

Just took my 04 GLI for 80k maintenance and asked my mechanic (who does vw and audi only) to check out the whining noise from my transmission while decelerating in gear. Same exact symptoms as pgk2004. Mine was very prominent in 3rd, but could be heard in all gears. He came back saying my differential bearing was bad. Warranty company sent out an adjuster who agreed with my mechanic. I wonder how common this problem is or how severe it is. Besides the noise the transmission had no other problems.


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## Ephry73 (Feb 18, 2002)

Interesting finding on the bearing. I swapped gear oils, and have had solid mounts and stock ones. Noise is more evident with solid urethane mounts. 
Third gear seems to be the one with the most noise. With the fresh gear oil is less evident, but still there. Definitely goes away when clutch is in, or not in gear coasting. Leads me to believe its a load issue, so bearing or input bearing. 
I have to take the transmission down to fix the slave cylinder gone bad. Are there any other things one should look for since this going to be down. I need to get this car moving, but will be nice to get some things done on it.


E


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## specialk98671 (Jul 12, 2008)

My 2004 GLi 02M had the problem in 3rd gear only at 33k miles. It now has 72k, and the deceleration whine (ONLY when in gear and coasting) has spread to every other gear. Shifts smoothly and it goes away immediately when clutch is in or in neutral. Noise is less pronounced in upper gears most likely due to wind/road noise. Looks like it's time for synchromesh...

I did call German Transaxle of America in Bend, OR, and the guy there thought it was the ring-and-pinion going out. 

*praying for gear oil fix*


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## specialk98671 (Jul 12, 2008)

Update on German Transaxle of America: 
Was talking with the owner of a local VW shop and he said it was probably the main bearing. After telling him GTofA's diagnosis, he told me his shop stopped using them since they changed ownership a few years ago because they diagnosed nearly every transmission as "ring-and-pinion" problem. Apparently this forfeits/reduces the core charge. He changed rebuild suppliers and always gets his core charge - no more false r&p diagnoses. For what it's worth, I'm avoiding GTofA.


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## black wolfsburg 99 (May 7, 2005)

So whats the going rate to replace the main bearing at a good shop roughly?


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## Slamtastic (Jul 24, 2010)

Does anyone have an update on this? My 02M seems to have the same type of whining noise on deceleration.


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## specialk98671 (Jul 12, 2008)

After my transmission began resisting first gear engagement and I had to use 2nd gear for starts, I took it to J&L Transmission in Portland, OR. The whining noise when coasting in gear - no gas - was diagnosed as a loose/broken "main" bearing on the input shaft. The shaft had loosened so much over the last 60k miles that 1st gear was out of alignment, too. He did a "rebuild" that included replacing all the bearings and syncros, but no gears or other parts. Total cost was $3k including 1 year labor and 5 year parts warranty. I drove the car away and it was perfect for about 50 miles. He had told me before I picked it up that he had had to use shims from another brand of tranny to get everything lined up and to call him if (when?) it failed. I called him and he had already ordered the factory shims that "didn't come with te rebuild kit he had to special order from L.A." I brought it back and the shims were replaced. He noticed wearing on the inside of the case, but didn't replace it because he didn't have one. He told me it would probably be fine, but when I pressed him about what would happen with my 1 year labor warranty, he extended it to 5 years parts/labor and ordered 1/2 the tranny case to have on hand just in case... 6k miles later and it's working fine!


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## gti vr6er (Oct 8, 2010)

pgk2004 said:


> i forgot to add that the noise occurs only while in gear and when goes completely away when i put the clutch in.


Input shaft bearing. It's funny because it seems like everyone is having the same problem. I've been told its a bad input shaft bearing and requires rebuilding the tranny. Mine is an 02J but I've seem this prob with 02M as well. A few threads up, I replied to another similar thread. Anyways, I've been told the symptoms point to a bad input shaft bearing. Symptom being: sitting at idle with clutch up(not pressed) u hear a subtle grinding. U push the clutch down and grinding completely disappears. Also, when driving in first gear with window down and clutch up the sound/grind is pretty obvious. Mine has been this way for a few years and car works fine albeit the annoying and increasing grinding noise. The tranny needs to be rebuilt apparently but since it's my daily, it's been put off. Let us know(or pm me) if u find out more or if there's anything else that can be done. GL


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## Ephry73 (Feb 18, 2002)

Resurrecting and old thread. After logging 20k miles on the new tranny fluid the noise is still there. Changed the clutch after a clutch failure from the slave blowing up prior to replacement(long, long story) the car is running fine. seems stouter. The VR6 tranny mount and solid dog-bone definitely help. Shifting is smooth and no grinding, however, the whining noise is there when coasting in gear or downshifting 2 through 4th now. No oil leaks on the tranny that I can see. Other than that just have a pesky clinking/clunking noise coming from what seems to be the steering rack or passenger tie rod now. 

Any updates on the previous poster's issues? 
So is there anything to do about this whining other than a bearing change? Thanks 

E


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## specialk98671 (Jul 12, 2008)

Short of a class action lawsuit against VW? Nope. Although we might want to focus on the plastic impellers on the water pumps first... :sly:


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## Ephry73 (Feb 18, 2002)

specialk98671 said:


> Short of a class action lawsuit against VW? Nope. Although we might want to focus on the plastic impellers on the water pumps first... :sly:



Indeed


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## totis68vdubr (Feb 15, 2011)

Its the main shaft bearing in the tranny replace that ur issue should be fixed :beer:


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