GT-ER

IT'S NOT!

When you turn your car on in the mornings you hear this power steering like whine that mostly goes away in about a minute or so. The general consensus in this forum is that the whine came from the secondary air injection pump.

Well, today I removed my SAIP and the whine is still there as it was before and would still quiet down after a minute or so. Shocked at my findings I was determined to find out where this noise came from. Since it sounds like a power steering whine, I checked the power steering pump. No go.

So I sat down thinking, what could sound like a power steering pump? It came to my mind that a transmission pump is actually pretty identical to a power steering pump in design and so I placed close attention to my transmission.

THE NOISE IS COMING FROM THE TRANSMISSION PUMP which is located near the torque converter. Granted, I've heard this same noise on every single E55 I've heard start up so I can only assume it's normal.

Anyways, hope this helps you guys sleep better. I know I will.

BTW- I'm guessing the SAIP weighs about 5lbs. Less than I expected but a lighter car is a lighter car...lol

03'55AMG

Lol, No kidding, I usually hear it in the front of the bay, or so I thought

GT-ER

Me too...but apparently it's the sound traveling because I got under the car and placed a screw driver on the tranny and it was LOUD. It was also pretty apparent it came from there when under the car.

I could be wrong though, but for now I'm 95.542% sure which is more than I was before...lol.

tsquare

My car does it only when the temperature is cold in the morning, maybe in the 40's or lower. Now that we are headed into summer, I have not been getting the morning startup whine - explain that one ?

GT-ER

I'm guessing the whine will be more pronounced with wear. My car's tranny pump may be closer to it's death than yours...lol.

Also, do you have a W211 E55? Maybe the pumps aren't identical on other models.

03'55AMG

For me, Its there sometimes more than not. I only got it on cold and semi cold starts. I still kinda think its the SAI pump, but until I pull the fuse/relay myself, I will never know.

tunaglove

You know guys there is a little fan that blows cabin air into the ECU box. Sometimes mine whines like it has dry bearings then goes away.
Different car though. SRT6

dansamg

Right after my SC bearing went I would hear every little squeek and rattle.
The noise you described had me all concerned.
Turned out that it was just the normal tranny pump noise.
Thanks for figuring it out though. Makes me feel better when I'm not the only one obsessing over the sounds this car makes

guysandiego

So - Can i take out my stupid pump? I dont live in cold climates -- What are the pitfalls of removing it? I want a lighter car -- and with that void -- more air can circulate down there ++

bobgodd

If you're still in CA you can fail emissions for removing it. Other than that, it's just an annoyance.

guysandiego

Well - its not like they will visually check for it during smog --- will it give you a check engine light???

bobgodd

They are supposed to do a visual inspection of all the emissions equipment, but people have had mixed results. I haven't ever had a person check on everything. The OP should be able to tell you if it throws a light... I don't think it would.

guysandiego

The most i have ever seen -- is the inspector pop the hood and look under the car --- never see them searching for stuff like a pump in the bumper -- they wouldnt be able to see it unless they removed the bumper. So - nothign to worry there ---

Only function is for cold start up? So, if the car is warm -- no extra emmisions -- just need to know about the CEL?

GT-ER

I have yet to receive a CEL due to this as I did it this morning but it most certainly SHOULD give you one.

I'm trying to get rid of all emission annoyances. Just more parts to fail and make the car weigh more.

GT-ER

The pump is silent. I put it direct to hear it and it barely whirls. Plus, after removing it the E55 whine is still there.

All you have to do is take the undertray off and pull the pump. It took me a whole 10 minutes to do.

If anyone has seen an automatic transmission pump, it's a vane pump. These pumps make these kinds of whining noises ( just like the power steering pump is also a vane pump ). I've just never head a "good" transmission make this noise. I'm guessing it's just an over engineered part whose downfall is just the noise. I'd take the noise any day over a crappy transmission.

benz_addict

Please let me know if you get the CEL anytime! It should register one after a few cold starts and notices SAI not there?

GT-ER

I've had the CEL on already for the EVAP. Will have to scan the car in a few days to see if any new codes come up but there should be a SAIP code. I'm waiting for all codes to pop up to see if Jerry can just eliminate them.

03'55AMG

So I am correct in assuming this will not boost performance, but reduce weight and annoying sounds?

GT-ER

Just weight pretty much, and have one less thing to go bad. It's very quiet so sound isn't an issue.

Next on my list of thing to remove: EVAP.

OK55

To be frank, I've actually grown used to love sound. Worried me initially though...

GT-ER

Just removed the EGR switchover solenoid and all related vacuum piping and rubber tubing along with the braket. I also removed my entire EVAP system with piping ( except for the pipe coming from the fuel tank, I just plugged that one ). An easy 5lbs less and less mess under the hood.

In a few days I'll extract all the codes my car has and throw them up so you guys can see what they are.

GT-ER

I just got a message from Snogard stating that the whine is actually from the engine oil pump. I have to further investigate this as I heard the noise come from the rear of the engine/front of transmission but he seems to know this as a fact. I asked him to post it here.

skratch77

Just read this thread.its def a pump that is engine controlled either by a belt or the ecu.the whine gets lauder with revs.

GT-ER

The pump on the transmission is also controlled by engine speed without any kind of slip ( it's a 1:1 ratio with the crankshaft ). The pump has a shaft that goes "fixed" into the torque converter and has a 1:1 ratio with the flexplate. Even when the torque converter isn't stalling, the pump will always be revving at whatever the engine is revving.

GT-ER

For those curious, here are my codes:

2075 Purge Control System Has A Slight Leak (Minor Leak) : Leak In Hose Connection Or Shutoff Valve Of Activated Charcoal Canister (P0456)
202C Coolant Thermostat (P0128)
2003 Malfunction Of Secondary Air Injection (P0410)
2024 Y32 (Air Pump Switchover Valve) (P0412)
2026 Y58/1 (Purge Control Valve) : Open Circuit/Switchover Valve Permanently Closed (P0444)

I modified my T-stat to run slightly cooler thus the thermostat code, all the other codes are from the elimination of the SAIP and the EVAP. Now I just need Jerry to clear the codes permanently.