Within the past two days the TB has started behaving oddly following a cold start-up.
Last night I cranked it and the gauges came on 1/2 brightness and the volt meter dipped below 9V for about 10 seconds, then the volt meter went back up above 14 like usual and the gauges returned to full brightness.
The headlights and all other electronics were not impacted by this.
I forget the name but I'm aware of the system check/test thing that happens and dims the lights, but usually that occurs 5 minutes after start-up, so it wasn't that.
To add to my concern, this morning I cranked it and the entire cabin was shuddering and there was a loud rumble coming from under the floor. It sounded like I was in a rice burner.
It felt like the vibration was coming from the transmission (the center console was visibly shaking), so I shifted between Park and Neutral a few times and it didn't seem to make any difference.
I popped the hood and all looked and sounded normal there, the noise seemed to only be inside.
I shifted into Drive and pulled forward and the noise seemed to keep pitch with the engine until I reached 1100RPM and it faded out.
Any RPM above 1100 sounded completely normal. In Neutral the noise was a little quieter, but it was still there.
I had no SES light either time.
I'm coming up on 70,000 miles, ATF hasn't been changed yet (100,000 recommended for non-fleet).
All fluid levels are good.
Ambient temperature was 18oF.
On start-up 5 hours later everything sounded normal again.
Here is a recording I took this morning on the driveway:
http://youtu.be/fB48Q-Ynypw
I texted my mechanic and based on just the noise I described he suggested:
1) Fan clutch failing
(I don't think so, it was only below 1000RPM and wasn't a roar)
or
2) Misfire/dropped cylinder
(again, no SES light and I didn't notice any loss of power)
I am clueless. I want to chalk it up to cold weather but I don't want to ignore anything that could become catastrophic.
Last night I cranked it and the gauges came on 1/2 brightness and the volt meter dipped below 9V for about 10 seconds, then the volt meter went back up above 14 like usual and the gauges returned to full brightness.
The headlights and all other electronics were not impacted by this.
I forget the name but I'm aware of the system check/test thing that happens and dims the lights, but usually that occurs 5 minutes after start-up, so it wasn't that.
To add to my concern, this morning I cranked it and the entire cabin was shuddering and there was a loud rumble coming from under the floor. It sounded like I was in a rice burner.
It felt like the vibration was coming from the transmission (the center console was visibly shaking), so I shifted between Park and Neutral a few times and it didn't seem to make any difference.
I popped the hood and all looked and sounded normal there, the noise seemed to only be inside.
I shifted into Drive and pulled forward and the noise seemed to keep pitch with the engine until I reached 1100RPM and it faded out.
Any RPM above 1100 sounded completely normal. In Neutral the noise was a little quieter, but it was still there.
I had no SES light either time.
I'm coming up on 70,000 miles, ATF hasn't been changed yet (100,000 recommended for non-fleet).
All fluid levels are good.
Ambient temperature was 18oF.
On start-up 5 hours later everything sounded normal again.
Here is a recording I took this morning on the driveway:
http://youtu.be/fB48Q-Ynypw
I texted my mechanic and based on just the noise I described he suggested:
1) Fan clutch failing
(I don't think so, it was only below 1000RPM and wasn't a roar)
or
2) Misfire/dropped cylinder
(again, no SES light and I didn't notice any loss of power)
I am clueless. I want to chalk it up to cold weather but I don't want to ignore anything that could become catastrophic.