My 190E 2.6 is starting to develop a loud "swooshing" sound around the fan belt. The belt itself is in excellent condition (no cracks, fraying, proper tension etc...) I've had this car for almost 1 month now and the problem has developed within the last week. It has just been cold and then very damp. I live in southern Canada where the humidity index is often 100% regardless of the temperature outside (usually cold this time of year) The problem I'm describing is prevent among other cars aswell (especially Dodge Caravan's 3L V6). The belt does not "shreek" or anything of that nature. It sounds as if it's rotating somewhat dry. Can I just attempt to lubricate around pulleys, belt tensioner with oil can? Would that be a possible fire hazard? What about lubing the belt itself VERY lightly? Would that cause slipping? SIDE NOTE: car has mainly been used for short trips to work and back (unfortunately) and gets washed with a pressure washer a great deal (salted roads). I'm stuck!!!HELP!!!!!!!!!! THANK YOU MIKE MCKINNEY

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1989 300CE - 269,000 km
1994 SL600 - 59,000 km

SHYNE,

Do NOT lubricate the belt. Without hearing the noise, it's difficult to suggest much more, but do NOT lubricate the belt.

Alternator bearings can cause a noise similar to what you describe. If it is indeed the belt, I expect that it will take a new belt to fix it. There are some things you need to know to change it, but it's not a great big mysterious operation.

Good luck,

Are you sure all the pulleys are turning? Is your belt adjusted to the right tension? Check the belt tensioner. Like Larry said DO NOT put anything on the belt. As a matter of fact, check if the belt has anything on i.e.oil, antifreeze, etc.. I just re-read your post. Did your problems started when you first starting washing the engine for salty roads? If your answer is yes, that is your problem. ANYTHING on your belt is bad.
Let us know...

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J.H.
'86 300E

Larry and J,
Thank you for your replys. The alternator bearings are doubtful as a probable cause. The noise appears to be coming from higher up, near pully for fan behind radiator fans. The alternator doesn't make any noises whatsoever, the belt just appears to "swoosh" I heard a 2000 Pontiac Grand Am with the same problem. I think the Canadian climate is one cause, the conditions up here are constantly damp and humid all winter. The belt just seems to be noisy. I have seen a bad alternator in a Dodge Omni once before in shop class in high school, the bearings on that alternator squeeked like crazy. The sound of the bad alternator was similar to a power steering pump struggling with no or low fluid "shrieking"

MY PROBLEM IS A PERSISTANT "SWOOSHING"
ITS DRIVING ME CRAZY

Please anyone!!!!!!! HELP!!!!!!!!!
ANYONE WITH SOME IDEAS PLEASE HELP ME!!!!!!!!!!
THANK YOU
MIKE MCKINNEY

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1989 300CE - 269,000 km
1994 SL600 - 59,000 km

Mike,
Your dry belt sound could be when the air pump is energized.
To test this , start the car cold and let it idle til warm. As it warms the pump will go off. There will then be a distinct noise level diffference.
Worth a try.
Mine had a simular belt sound and that is what it turned out to be.
More noticed as weather gets colder.
Arthur

Arthur,
Thanks for your tip but, alas the noise is present once motor turns over. I can't understand this!!! What if I lubed the belt tensioner, pulleys around radiator fan off of belt (not in front of radiator) and possibly around water pump if I can manage. Any thoughts? PLEASE SUGGEST ANYTHING!!!! ANY STORIES ABOUT SIMILAR SITUATION? LET ME KNOW!!! Other cars out there have this problem and most owners don't care about the noise (how could they not care?)
In Canada at least, people just seem to accept the noise but, I WILL NOT TOLERATE THIS BULL****!!!!!!!! Please help a desperate enthusiast!!!!!THANK YOU MIKE MCKINNEY

__________________
1989 300CE - 269,000 km
1994 SL600 - 59,000 km

You may also want to see if the clutch has
a gap when off on both the a/c comp. and air pump.
Stethiscope may also help locate noise.

It has been my experience that getting any lube of any kind on belts, pulleys or the bearings that turn pulleys is a bad idea. I would suggest replacing the belts and while they are off, clean the inside of the pulleys with lacquer thinner to remove any residue. You can check each pulley for bearing wear at this time. If you spray lube on bearings that are permanently lubricated they will quiet for a few minutes and then start to get louder and louder until they fail eventually.

Perhaps you are going to have to take the belt off and rotate each pulley and see if one of them make noise. I just had to replace the fan bearing about three weeks ago on my car.

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Ron Miller

1986 300E

I purchased my E320 in May of this year with 80k miles. This being the only MB I have ever owned I thought it was kind of loud so I started by replacing the idler and tensioner pulleys. It was still quite noisy. Yesterday (at 96k miles) I was in Atlanta and decided to visit with Webmaster and Benzmac. I had Benzmac take a look at it and he told me it was the alternator bearing making the noise. I did not have him replace it at that time because I figured I could do it myself this weekend. Now the interesting part - I never drive this car in traffic like what is found around I285 and I85 in Atlanta. I got into a line of cars on I285 southbound that were going 0-20 mph for MILES. Anyway, the radio ant. went down the radio turned off and the digital display went off of the radio. Every now and then it would come back on. I continue on in this kind of traffic and the radio keeps doing this crazy thing. Finally the car started bucking real bad and would not accelerate worth a flip. After thinking about it for awhile I realized that I always drive on clear roads where the rpm only drops below 2000 when I am coming to a stop so the alt. keeps charging. Once I got into the heavy traffic it became quite clear that I needed a new alternator. Try to make sure that it ain't the alt. before you rule it out.
good luck
engatwork
'95 E320
'97 Honda CRV

I'm not sure I know what a 'swooshing' sound is. Might the viscous fan be stuck on? That can be loud.

Sixto
78 450SEL
91 300SE

I drove my car for an hour and 1/2 straight this past weekend to a friend of mine's house. Upon arrival I noticed no "swooshing" noise whatsoever. Over the coarse of the trip something happened to the belt which is now "swoosh" free!!!Do you guys see any coincidences? I still think it is somehow climate related as many cars in Canada have this problem in the cold season. What do think about short trips (my commute from school to work or home) causing this condition? As I said before, everything is fine with the car itself. Belt is fine, no cracks, fraying, proper tension etc... What do you guys think about this???????

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1989 300CE - 269,000 km
1994 SL600 - 59,000 km

OK, I'll try a WILD guess.

I wonder if a little moisture is being absorbed by the belt? I've heard a sort of "crunchy" noise in a belt when it was beginning to de-laminate. If your noise is from a moist belt, your short drives may not be much help, but a long drive might have finally heated the belt up enough to drive off the moisture, like when oil finally heats up.

I told you it's a wild guess, but it's free! Whaddya think?

BCingU, Jim

Did anyone using aftermarket belt and orignial belt (OE) make any different? Now, I use Conti Belt (Germany one). Only use 2 weeks, then it comes very noisy. Anyone had that happened before?

I think that I will back to dealership tomorrow and buy the OE belt to try. Hope that fixing the problem.

Shyne:

From your last post I'm wondering if it might indeed be your alternator. If you have travelled for 1-1/2 hours, the battery would be completely charged therefore the alternator would not applying any load on the charging system to charge the battery. Might also point to other bearings on the belt path though!

Just a thought.

Ron

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1995 E320 -171k-km
1995 S420 -333k-km