High pitched whine behind dashboard

So I have searched the site for this problem and cannot seem to find the information that I need. I have a 2002 330Cic and about twice a week there is a high pitched whine comes from behind the dash board on the drivers side. This will either happen when I start the car or will just start while I'm driving. If I switch the car off and back on the whine stops. I'm pretty sure that this is coming from behind the instrument cluster, what could this be?

Ant help would be appreciated as it's driving me insane.

Could be the blower motor scraping against the housing.

This was a problem on the early E46s, but I'm not sure about MY2002.

All the blower motors I've ever seen are expensive.

When it happens, turn off the blower to confirm.

Otherwise, have you checked underneath the hood? Or are you sure that it is an interior noise?

The blower motors do get noisy, sometimes start to sound like crickets under the dash. Change blower speed and see if the noise stops when the blower speed is changed? I had the blower in my car make noise after the car was warmed up and the motor had run a while when making right hand turns under light acceleration and when stopped at a traffic light. Sometimes when turning the car off, I would hear a slight chirp when the blower spun down. I swore there was no way the blower could make this chirping/metallic noise, thought there was something metal under the dash vibrating. Turned out the crickets under the dash in my case was in fact the "typical" BMW blower problem.

Also keep in mind there is a small blower motor inside the auto temp control unit as well if you have the auto temp control for the HVAC.

Just make sure the noise is inside rather than under the hood and try to eliminate the blower as the source as it can be a common problem.

...and if blower motor chirping...it's almost always the culprit...search me and blower motor...I blew mine out and seems to have kept the chirping at bay for over a year now.

Sorry I don't have a direct link for you.

Doug

So the noise happened again yesterday and its not the blower as it was not even turned on and when I switched it on it did not affect the noise. I followed the noise and it appears to be coming from the upper left of the drivers side kickwell just above the foot rest. Could this be the ECU fan?

Maybe its your wife.... whining.... again....

Might want to check out your Blower Motor Resistor...

We have replacement units available if you are in need of the part...

Click HERE to order or for more information.


Please let us know if you have any questions! Feel free to shoot me a PM or email.

Best,
Joe

I'm going to be brutually honest now and say that if you have nothing of value to add to this thread then don't say anything. It's people like you that ruin these forum's for everybody else.

Joe,

Thank you but I do not think that it's the blower motor as the whine comes on when the car is started and the blower is off.

From many years of personal experience with E46s when a blower motor resistor goes bad it does not matter whether or not the blower is off or not, it will run when it wants to. Usually creating a high whining noise (your problem). I understand you are not in need of the motor, thus the suggestion of the resistor.

I appreciate your honesty, however there is complete relevance in the post, as it deals directly with your specific problem.

I do wish you well in your search to fix your problem.

Best,
Joe

Just tried this today, it worked so far. I got an extra long nozzle and attached it to a can of WD-40, put the nozzle in the center a/c vent to where I could see the blower motor vanes and gave a couple of spritzes. No more chirping at low fan speeds driving over bumps.

Not to resuscitate an old(ish) thread, but this the one you're talking about DMAX? http://forum.e46fanatics.com/showpos...69&postcount=4

Think I'm going to try that one this weekend myself...

I have a similar whine that is coming from the control box cooling fan. Mine doesn't seem to run when it is cool outside, so I assume its temperature dependant.

Anyways, if you stick your head under the drivers side dash and you hear the whine coming from above the left foot rest about 18 inches up towards the side of the car, this may be your culprit.

Realoem part # 5 here


Link to RealOEM

Hope this helps somebody!

Originally Posted by hurls

Not to resuscitate an old(ish) thread, but this the one you're talking about DMAX? http://forum.e46fanatics.com/showpos...69&postcount=4

Think I'm going to try that one this weekend myself...

,

That's the one.

I went back to see where WD40 was referenced in this thread and didn't see it...but whoever did that, I'm thinking be careful is all...make sure blower isn't running in case you get wd40 somewhere it shouldn't be. There was a guy here who wrote authoritatively enough about the issues with it that I really don't use it much on my car anymore...sorry wd40!

Anyway, I did that blowing out blower twice within a few weeks...and that was maybe a year ago...no chirping. Also, keep cabin air filter and housing clean.

Doug

I am getting this same sound described by OP and agree it is not a mechanical sound, nor do I think it is the blower.

JR81, did you figure out what it was and find a solution?

I now have this problem too, and it does not sound mechanical to me. I've replaced a chirping blower motor before on an older Audi, and this does not sound anything like that. Mine is a high pitched whine, and comes and goes with various engine vacuum. I can almost always make it go away by stepping on the brake or accelerating hard. I've also sometimes heard it continue to whine for a couple seconds after I shut the engine off. Pitch doesn't really change much or sound like it's related to the blower speed. I've played with the fan speed and vent settings and that does not affect it. The best way I can describe it is that it sounds similar to a whine that would occur from electric engine interference on a radio, but the pitch does not change with engine RPM like that would.

More specifically is it a whine or could be described as s whistle? From what you're describing, it sounds like it could be the intake boot which is on the driver's side and really not too far from the foot well. Lots of threads on the topic.

Sent from my HERO200 using BimmerApp

Originally Posted by eweis

More specifically is it a whine or could be described as s whistle? From what you're describing, it sounds like it could be the intake boot which is on the driver's side and really not too far from the foot well. Lots of threads on the topic.

Sent from my HERO200 using BimmerApp

It sounds more like a whine and less like a whistle, but you know how difficult it is to describe a sound. It was happening when I parked in the garage tonight, so I let the car idle and found that from inside, it sounds like it is coming from the area near the brake pedal. I popped the hood and I can hear it in the engine compartment as well. I will investigate more tomorrow, but since it always goes away when I touch the brakes, I'm suspecting it's related to vacuum or something related to the brakes.

I have this exact problem..electrical sounding whine that is in the vicinity of the driver's side dashboard. If the car is turned off and back on, it goes away. Yesterday it happened while I was driving and then went away after about three minutes by itself. It is very sporadic but annoying.

Finally found a thread that seems to describe the noise I've been hearing. To me, it sounds like an electrical whine akin radio frequency interference, i.e. bare wires rubbing together, kinda of trembling. Tse...tse...tse....