How much of a whining is normal? I have been in quite a few S2000's and they all whine disregarding mileage or age of the car. I recently noticed that mine has a minor, soft whining with the windows up and the radio off. The whining is speed dependent and not rpm dependent, and it can only be heard under acceleration or while maintaining a constant speed while still gasing the car. If left in neutral, I can hear a different type whining as the car slows down, which I'm assuming comes from the tires or any other rotational part. The car has 20,500 miles on the clock, and I perform preventive maintainance: I change the motor's oil every 3k miles, and I change the differential and tranny oils every 2 motor oil changes (in other words, the differential and tranny fluids get changed every 6000 miles). I use Mobil 1 Syn. for the differential. The car is not abused, and it seems to be running normally. One thing I noticed ever since I purchased the car (when it had 9400 miles) is that when releasing the clutch in 1st gear to get the car moving, an engaging/frictional sound can be heard, but it hasn't gotten any worse and from what I've researched, it's normal on the ap1's. I have read every thread on the matter and there are a lot of grey areas...any help/advice will be highly appreciated.

Etien

 

It is almost impossible to relay "sound" in the printed word, so how do you suppose your question is going to get answered? "Whining" to you my be one thing while it can mean something totally different to someone else. How do you know that we're all talking about the same thing? The same goes for the term "normal". We can define "normal" to mean different things to different people, so when we start talking about "whining" and "normal", how do you know we're all talking the same language?
If I tell you that any gear meshing with another gear will make a noise. This could be heard as a "whine" or a "hum" or a "buzz". Which one would you like to use? So I say, "Yes, any rear diff will make a whine to some extent or another". How do you know my point of reference is the same as yours?

Given the following statements:
As far as "advice", it is my opinion that you are getting way too obsessive over this thing. Relax, have a few good stiff drinks, go sleep it off and don't start to worry till something really happens.
As for "help", your car doesn't likely need any. You, on the other hand, might benefit from the services of a good therapist.

 

LOL thanks man...I guess I'm getting OCD with my car or something...I barely ever cruise with my windows up and no radio, and tonight was one of those nights when I decided to do so and I was surprised about the many tiny little "noises" that one overlooks on a daily basis, which again may be "normal" to a certain extent depending on the circumstances. But thanks again on the input, in about 99% of the threads I previously read you were the predominant poster, it's great to have someone with knowledge around!

Etien

 

Enjoy the car. Remember that it's a raw sports car. It doesn't have the same sort of sound deadening that most other cars have. I'm sure they all make the same noises, but occupants just can't hear them because of the sound proofing. Now that you know the sound, this will better prepare you for when and if it dramatically changes. This is how an owner keeps in tune with his car. Know when something becomes different.

 

Yeah the whole Honda + rwd is a totally new concept for me...I used to breed DSM's...and that's all I ever knew for the past 6 years...that's why any unfamiliar noise tends to freak me out..but now that I have verified that the car in general tends to emit noises, I will re-adjust my scale for normality...