It may have seemingly come on overnight or maybe you’ve noticed it for a while but your engine is making a weird noise it didn’t before. You might be playing the odds to determine if you need to get your car in for maintenance right away or if you can wait a little longer to see the mechanic. Here are 5 noises that, if your engine is making, you can’t wait for maintenance and you should get your car to a mechanic immediately.
Squealing
Sometimes when you’re driving it can be difficult to detect exactly where a noise is coming from: is it in the engine, is it somewhere else in the car or maybe it’s not even your car. However if you hear squealing coming from the engine compartment then it could mean that a belt or a pulley of some kind is loose. Belts perform important functions in your engine so if one breaks it could cause a lot of damage or leave your car in a position where you can’t even drive it.
Clunking
If you hear a clunking sound accompanied by a clicking sound when turning, or just the clunking on its own, it could be you have a suspension issue. This sound could lead to damage on axles and/or other suspension components on your vehicle. The suspension is an important component for keeping your vehicle up and balanced so it doesn’t sink over tires. This clunking is important to check out and determine the cause.
Ticking
This sound could be hard to detect as it may be quiet overall but a ticking sound coming from your engine is very important to have checked out. Ticking could be an issue with your engine oil being too low and therefore can’t maintain the necessary oil pressure. If you notice this noise, stop your vehicle and wait a few minutes. Then check the oil level, and if it’s low then add the amount needed to stop it up. If, when you start up your car again, it continues it’s likely an issue with oil pressure and you should stop driving your car immediately and get it checked out.
Hissing
If you notice a hissing sound coming from your car this is usually related to a loose hose of some kind, specifically those connected to your radiator. The best way to check if this is the case is to determine if your car is overheating. If there is steam coming out from under your hood then this is an even worse sign, and you shouldn’t drive your car any further. Bring it into your mechanic right away as driving a vehicle that is overheating will cause damage, and possibly very expensive damage.
Sometimes noises coming from your engine are just small and they don’t have to be checked out right away, but there are other noises that just can’t wait so that you don’t do huge damage to your vehicle if you continue to drive it. If you are unsure or don’t feel safe driving your vehicle when you hear noises with the engine it is best to pull in to the closest mechanic shop. Alternatively you can pull over on the side of the road and call for a tow truck near you.