62k miles. Recently had my EGR valve replace and system cleaned due to a CEL. Since then I have noticed a faint rattle coming from the passenger side of the engine bay; seemingly from the belt area. It has gotten slightly louder over the past week. Present in park or in gear. Does not seems to increase or decrease with acceleration. Difficult to even hear when engine is under load. Any suggestions on this matter would be greatly appreciated.

 

Does it sound like the video in this thread?
https://dodgeforum.com/forum/dodge-c...-pressure.html

One person on here reported this noise being a bad water pump, replacing the pump cured it for them. On my van the noise was the timing chain. It bothered me enough that I ordered the bits and spent 14.5 hours replacing the chain in my garage.

Mine was loudest at idle but would clearly make the noise up to ~2000RPM then it would get quieter.

 

yes, it sounds very similar to this and in the same area of the engine bay. If timing chain related, are there any immediate problems that can arise?

 

My understanding is that there are no immediate issues and the chain is intended to go the life of the engine. However, I have also read that the 3.3 IS an interference engine (one with a chain) and even if it's not, if you determine it to be the chain, I'd consider replacing it.

Consensus seems to be that it's not an immediate issue but if it starts to get louder, etc., obviously it should be dealt with.

 

https://dodgeforum.com/forum/dodge-c...ml#post2733906

Here is the thread I started about it. Lots of people gave me lots of good information about my problem that might help you.

 

The official stance is that the noise is not indicative of failure. Personally I felt better with a new chain and no noise so I did the work involved in changing it. Lots of people (probably the vast majority) just drive with the noisy chain and leave it alone.

I thought about this some more last night and it could also be a number of other things, there are a lot of moving parts on that side of the engine bay. I suggest that you check for any loose pulleys, such as the tensioner and idler. Also I suggest using a stethescope and checking for any noise in the alternator or A/C compressor pulleys. The timing chain is a lot of work so I'd rule out everything else first.

In my case I was able to narrow it down because the only place you could even hear the noise through a stethescope was when you put it right on the edge of the oil pan where the timing chain is.