ENGINE IS MAKING A SCREECHING NOISE

i have a manual 1996 honda civic with 100,000 miles on it and today as
i started the car from first gear the engine made this nasty
screeching noise and this happened in 2nd 3rd and 4th gear also. the
screeching noise stopped after a while. this is the second time this
has happened. the last time it happend was a month ago. someone said
it might happen when the engine is over reved but i was not over
reviing the engine. does anyone know what the noise could be
from???... any help answering my question would be appreciated...

 

Hello,
I advise you to open the hood and watch the engine as someone starts your
car. It should be easy to locate the source of the screeching noise. It's
my guess that it could be a slipping belt. Please repost after you have
done that. We may be able to provide you the advice you need to fix the
problem. For example, if it is a slipping belt--we can tell you how to
prevent it from slipping.
Jason

 

Loose accessory drive belt most likely. Belt could also be glazed or very
worn.

 

Serpentine belt.
Replace it.

 

thanks for the help peoples. so im guessing the noise is from some
belt thingy in my car. should i still get it fixed even though it
stopped making the noise again??.. is the noise even suppose to be on
and off??

 

It may be on and off for a while, but it will surely get more constant.
Don't delay, get it looked at today.

It's the possibility of it being a bearing that is the danger. Bearing
failures will strand you and can cause ancillary damage that will add to
the repair cost. It's probably not a bearing, but it would be economically
foolhardy to wait until one failed to find out that it was.

The water pump, for instance, is under the timing belt. A failure of its
bearings will do very expensive damage to your engine.

An experienced mechanic will be able to tell by listening whether it's the
belt.

The longer you wait, the more danger you're in. Your car is talkng to you;
listen to it.

 

Besides the belt or bearing possibilities, I've noticed my daughter's '93
Accord made a squalling noise when the coolant was low (crack in the
radiator), not so much after warm-up. It sounded like a bad bearing and had
me going for a while.

But my first thought is for a belt, too. Don't put off the repair or you may
find yourself stranded, and possibly with some serious engine damage.

Mike