# Annoying Loud Squeal **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Tags:** civic, honda\ **Created:** [October 9, 2010, 1:25pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/annoying-loud-squeal/56135 "2010-10-09T13:25:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 2\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Seby55](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@Seby55](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Seby55)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2010, 1:25pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/annoying-loud-squeal/56135/1 "2010-10-09T13:25:40Z")
Hello ?Car Talk?, this is Jean-Sebastien from Land O Lakes Florida. I am the original owner of a 1998 Honda Civic LX 1.6 engine with 327,000 miles. I use the car for my field work and I?m not ready to give it up due to economic constraints. I had the engine replaced at 260,000 miles with a refurbished engine of 60,000 miles because a crack had developed in the original engine block. I have been very good at regular oil change and tune-ups. The transmission is the original. The question: There is an annoying loud squeal that occurs. It?s not constant but appears to happen at specific times. I want to say that I checked and ruled out the belts (even so that the sound is like a noise or squeal that bad or loose belts make). While I?m driving the squeal is never present. Most of the times when I?m Idle waiting for a light change it sounds off, or when I?m in park but sometimes it seems that it does not happen only if I?m idled for a longer time. It also seems to get a little louder just at take off when accelerating and then it goes away. Also it appears that it happens when I?m turning but I haven?t figured out if it is because I slow down for the turn or not. Another clue is that when I use the electric windows at idle at a toll both or something like that, specifically when I close the driver?s window which is stressed due to it being a little stuck making the window motor work harder. When the head lights are turned on it happens more frequently except when I?m driving. A friend said that he believes that the noise is a bad bearing coming from the alternator. It sounds like a viable conclusion but I don?t understand why it happens on seemingly specific times and since you guys provide us with a service/advice that qualifies you as the guru of auto problems, I wanted to try asking you for help with this problem, also maybe one of the listeners may have come across this problem. I thank you in advance for your help and really love your radio show Jean-Sebastien ---
**Author:** ![kizwiki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/7cd45c/32.png) [@kizwiki](https://community.cartalk.com/u/kizwiki)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2010, 11:46pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/annoying-loud-squeal/56135/2 "2010-10-09T23:46:20Z")
Your friend is right.