350 turbo trans

[streetrcr4]

I have a 350 turbo in a 66 nova that is making a howling sound, similar to a rear end. Does anybody have any ideas what would cause that?

[Blue Bowtie]

Howling in any particular range/gear? That's not really uncommon in 1st at higher RPM.

[silicon212]

Originally Posted by streetrcr4

I have a 350 turbo in a 66 nova that is making a howling sound, similar to a rear end. Does anybody have any ideas what would cause that?

My $.02 would be torque converter, or front pump. There may be some cavitation, which could indicate a restricted filter.

[streetrcr4]

Does it in all forward gears. I'm not sure that it is the trans for sure, but I took the rear end apart and didn't see anything wrong there.

[streetrcr4]

I just rebuilt the trans over the past weekend and it is still making the exact same noise. I'm wondering if it could possibly be the pinion bearing? that is the only thing that I didn't look at while I had the rear end apart.

[silicon212]

Originally Posted by streetrcr4

I just rebuilt the trans over the past weekend and it is still making the exact same noise. I'm wondering if it could possibly be the pinion bearing? that is the only thing that I didn't look at while I had the rear end apart.

Did you put a new torque converter in it? No? Shame on you. That's the cause of the noise.

[streetrcr4]

It's not the torque converter, had it gone thru..

[silicon212]

Originally Posted by streetrcr4

It's not the torque converter, had it gone thru..

How was it 'gone through'? It's hard to check one of these without cutting it apart. You can check stator operation, but wear won't always show up on some pressure test or whatever.

With many years of TH350 experience, I can tell you the cause of a 'whine' on one of these transmissions is almost always front pump or TC related. With the ridiculous low cost of TH350 replacement torque converters, it's a false economy to 'save money' and not replace it during a rebuild. As MT-2500 so eloquently puts it, you can get bit in the butt once, or you can get bit in the butt many times - the latter is what happens when you don't replace a torque converter during install.

[streetrcr4]

Well, I did have it cut open, cleaned and checked. I also put a new front pump in it when it was rebuilt. Anyway, turns out it is the pinion bearing, but thanks for the input.