I had the timing belt done on my ute about 2 months ago
about 6 weeks ago, when it started to get cold down here in canberra, it developed a whine at idle.
the noise seems to go away with revs, and when the engine warms up. its loud enough for someone on the phone to hear thru the bluetooth connection when sitting at the lights, or crawling in traffic
ive had it back into the mechanic, and hes replaced the idler bearings to make sure its not them and checked the belts. problem is if you spend too long diagnosing it, the thing gets too warm and the symptoms go away.
google searches suggest everything from timing belt tensioner, to idlers, to PS pump, alternator etc
Aircon ON/Off doesnt change it,
dry turning the steering wheel while stationary to load the pump seems to stop it sometimes, but other times it makes a sharp increase in the noise, before it dissapears
I suspect the power steering pump is on the fritz, is there any tests i can do to confirm it, prior to replacement
has anyone had the same issue?