My 2006 Dodge Caravan chirps (sounds like a chorus of crickets) when I accelerate. The tricky part of bringing it into the mechanic is that it stops making the sound sometimes, and then other times it only chirps when I slow down. Any ideas? Is it dangerous? Is it expensive to fix?
Is it like the valves are making the noise or it is more from the belt pulley area? The valves could be from a bad knock sensor. Have they checked the serpentine belt, pulley water pump etc.? What engine does the van have?
I haven’t checked anything yet, because the noise isn’t always consistent so it’s hard to describe to a mechanic. It sounds like a belt to me. The engine is a V6. A week ago I would have said it always happens as I’m accelerating. When I hit the breaks, but had not yet stopped, the sound would disappear. This week, it seems to be happening more often as I slow down. It is always in the process of accelerating or decelerating, but it will sometimes switch as to which one it is more prevalent with.
To test for a chirping serpentine belt, catch it when it’s in a chirpy mood and spray some household cleaner on the groovy side of the belt. I usually do it running, but you may not want to as the spray can go all over the place with the fan tossing it around. Besides, it’s a bit dangerous. It will distribute all over the belt as soon as you restart it. If it quits chirping, that’s it. It’s only a very temporary “fix”. Any cleaner will work, windex, pledge, 409… It’s just to wet things down a bit.