Growling supercharger, and various other "god hates me" bits.

[Redlining 5th]

First off, my IRL is an 04.


So, i'm driving my car home from work tonight, and the only thing i can think about, is that damn intercooler water pump. "Is it working" i think to myself. I take it easy on the way home. Not that it would really matter, as if it isnt working, i've hammered the throttle 18 million times beforehand.


I pull into the driveway, and let the car idle for a little bit. What can i say, owning a few turbo cars has kind of rubbed off on me.
After saying a few words to my oh so tempermental boosted tupperware about it's slipping clutch, and the vast amounts of money that i will have to dump into the bitch; i remember that god damn IC pump.

I go ahead and pop the hood; and watch my coolant do it's little dance in the chamber. It's not flowing. In fact, Kevin Federline currently flows better than my Laminova's coolant. It's bobbing up and down, like it's trying to tell me "let me out before the evil broken impeller blade slashes me to bits!"

So, i do what any sane car enthusiast/"i do this shit for a living" kinda guy does. I grab it and shake the shit out of it to see if it works. (thought i was gonna say beat it with a pry bar didnt you? this is a GM, not a DSM ).

So i have my hand on the IC coolant line, the inlet; and im checking to see if there is any movement. the line is pulsing. Could this...heaven forbid...mean the little shit is working? ADD soon kicks in, and I begin thinking about that clicking noise coming from my only-redeeming-quality-about-the-car. The blower.


Now, way back when, after about 800 miles, i had problems with my car basically shutting off while running. The revs would drop, and i'd lose all power. even if i downshifted, i would get nothing. That was from the cat being clogged. I took the car in; and the tech said my supercharger was growling, so I got myself a new go fast part, and a new slow you down part (cat).


I seemed to remember that just about the same time that i am listening to this supercharger (car is at idle mind you). And think to myself "god damnit...i hope this blower isnt crapping out too". Then i get the "they are gonna blame it on my ghetto ram" thought, and then i have the "im gonna have to put that damn air box back in" thought, (that thought/task alone would upset me more than loosing my warranty).i say a few more choice words. I put my ear up to the blower housing, right on the heat sink. it's warm, but not at all unpleasent, like it used to be when it was growling (it used to be painful to touch back then).


Heres where i ask you all a question. Does your all's supercharger have a little "clickity click" noise to it at idle? I hope thats normal. I'm sitting here thinking maybe it's just the nature of the beast, with the screws whirring around in there. I can hear the clickity click noise whenever i pop the hood.


I close the hood, and decide to call it a night. I get back into my comfy, now ripped recaro (fiance' didnt put the seat back, and my naked lady studded belt ripped some leather, doesnt that suck?) and watch my tach lope from 200 to 800 rpms as usual; and let the car die as it normall does. while in gear, with the clutch in. I've grown accostomed to this. It's kind of nice, really, as im lazy, and it's one less thing for me to do, until i go to pull the key out. So just to be sure, i fire the car back up; let it idle, and it's fine. "Ding Ding Ding". "Low Fuel". What a way to end that experience eh?


Im feeding her race gas (107 unleaded) tomorrow. hell, it's only a tad bit more than the 93 anyways.



Thanks fellas
-Drew

[CuriousGeorge]

yup thats normal

[Redlining 5th]

Cool, i can go to sleep now. Thanks bro.

[CuriousGeorge]

no prob... now if it starts to sound like....... disgustingly sickening or something have it checked out. but last time i had the blower off everything spun freely and w/o any play if i recall

[Redlining 5th]

The car had been making the noise (clicking) for quite some time now, it had never really bothered me much, but tonight was for some reason an alarm in my head.

[Sp00ner]

The blower is noisy as hell. It clicks and rattles, a 'wooshes'... along with the rattle from the drivetrain, it's enough to make you think it's falling apart.

If the coolant is 'bobbling' up and down in the neck, it's most likely working... just pull a touch out and you'll be able to see...

I really have total faith in the driveline of the car... tons of people have thrown things at it and it's held up damn well... It helps to have someone like RiceEater around so you can gauge what his car can take, and know that you're not beating it as bad as he is at any given moment!

[Redlining 5th]

Well, it's great to know someone beats theirs worse than i beat on mine.


Well, if everything is in working order, go fast parts go on.


It's time to.....unpimp....ze auto

[Sp00ner]

Originally Posted by Redlining 5th

Well, it's great to know someone beats theirs worse than i beat on mine.


Well, if everything is in working order, go fast parts go on.


It's time to.....unpimp....ze auto

Every been to an SCCA or road course event? Talk about a beating... 2 min of solid 5000+ rpms, brakes used so hard that you can see the heat shimmer from a foot away looking down the side of the car, and the suspension takes loads that require a harness, or the RL's instantly locking seatbelt, to keep you in the seat to push even harder through a turn. I think I run about 20 laps at that intensity per event.

I don't think I've seen anything other than a diff pin from drag strips, and one case of an axle failure involving the driveline of the car. I would say that 90% of the issues I'm aware of are 'comfort' related, or gremlins in the electrical system... Oh the clutch! That's about the only 'weak' spot I see in the car, and I use weak VERY lightly. It' been fine for alot of us that drive the car hard, but not so good for others...

Hell, I could be wrong, I might blow my engine next week, but I'm not worried...

[Redlining 5th]

Havn't taken this car out yet spooner, but i took the old jetta to putnam a few times


I cant wait to take the Redline out. It seems pretty tough. I just worry, y'know. first new car syndrome.

[ptparker]

haha, love your aviatar.....

the really fast clicking from the engine bay is acutally your injectors. But you can't hear that inside your car. Our blowers do growl a lot, especially when they are cold. I cruched a bearing race and one of my 2 superchargers now sounds like chains are clanking around in it. chains = not normal; growl/whoosh = normal