[cuemark8]

I have a 2014 Ford Fiesta Titanium with the 5-speed manual transmission. Recently I noted in previous posts that I was developing a gear whine in the transmission. Most noticeably in 5th gear.
More recently I have a definite whirling sound in the clutch/transmission. It's been cold and definitely quite noticeable at start-up. After the vehicle is driven and warmed up the noise fades and almost gone.
When started a cold there is a pronounced sound. Actually sounds like a blower or supercharger whine on a big engine.
When I press the clutch pedal in the sound goes away. Gone completely. Let the pedal out it returns.
It can be quite noticeable if in gear while cold and coasting while in gear at lows speed such as stop light to stop light. Once driven for quite awhile, it's barely noticeable.

I still have gear whine in 5th gear. Don't seem any worse. Fluid levels are good. I've been under vehicle, I can't find any leaks or drips from any seals.

Any idea what it might be? Difficulty to fix and price to fix. Seems to me it could be imput shaft of transmission. Sounds is there when in neutral with clutch pedal out. A throw out bearing would make noise if going bad when clutch pedal is pressed in.

As far as operation. Everything seems to function as normal.

 

[cventrice]

The whining noise you hear in 5th gear could be from the carrier bearing. The carrier bearing helps support the passenger side CV axle and also keeps the planetary gears of the differential aligned. After I had my throwout bearing replaced for the second time, my car had a high-pitched whining noise when driven on the interstate. It would start at about 50 mph and go away above about 70 mph (could be that the wind noise was so loud that I could no longer hear the whine). I ended up having to replace both of my CV axle assemblies because of damage caused by the dealer. Once I did that, the whine went away and never came back.

Since the whirring noise you hear happens when the clutch is engaged (clutch pedal out), you are correct that it is not caused by the throw out bearing. When the clutch is engaged, the input shaft spins at the same rate as the crankshaft. All of the gears are also rotating. Therefore, it is not easy to diagnose which component is making the noise. Since the noise is not as loud after you have driven it a while, I suspect that it is a bearing on the input shaft. If may be running a little dry when first started up. After driving a while, the gear oil thins out a bit and works its way into all of the bearings. Mine also makes this sound in the morning. Some mornings it is really loud; others, not so loud. I would normally say that you should just ignore it, but my transmission seems to be nearing the end of its life.

About a month ago, I noticed that when I take a long trip on the interstate, I could hear a rumbling/grinding noise at high speed that would lighten up when I let my foot off of the gas peddle. At first, I thought that it was just the rumbling of my snow tires. However, the noise should not go away when taking my foot off of the gas if it were from the snow tires. Yesterday, I drove from Albany, NY to just north of Philadelphia. After about an hour, it made the rumbling/grinding noise at interstate speed (70-80 mph). When I got off of the interstate, I heard what I thought was the blower motor going bad (an intermittent grinding/squealing noise). I switched the fan speed to higher values, but it did not affect the sound. When I came to a stop at a stop light, the noise went away, so it was clearly not related to the blower motor. After driving a few miles in lower gears, I found that it makes the noise in second or third gear. In third gear, it was really loud. This morning, I drove the car several miles, and it did not make the noise anymore. I drive back to Albany tomorrow. Hopefully, the transmission does not explode on me during the trip back. The vehicle has about 70k miles on it.

 

[WildmaninME]

If the sound is going away when the clutch pedal is depressed, it's likely not the carrier, as it would still be spinning. I would say that you most likely have a main shaft bearing wearing. However, having had a couple of bad axle carrier bearings, the second paragraph sounds a lot more like the bearing going bad than the first.

After 70K miles on our 2011, I am noticing a whine in 5th as well, that comes and goes at certain speeds along with accel/decel. Most 5 speed transaxles I've owned over the years all had some slight whine eventually.

 

[FordService]

I have a 2014 Ford Fiesta Titanium with the 5-speed manual transmission. Recently I noted in previous posts that I was developing a gear whine in the transmission. Most noticeably in 5th gear.
More recently I have a definite whirling sound in the clutch/transmission. It's been cold and definitely quite noticeable at start-up. After the vehicle is driven and warmed up the noise fades and almost gone.
When started a cold there is a pronounced sound. Actually sounds like a blower or supercharger whine on a big engine.
When I press the clutch pedal in the sound goes away. Gone completely. Let the pedal out it returns.
It can be quite noticeable if in gear while cold and coasting while in gear at lows speed such as stop light to stop light. Once driven for quite awhile, it's barely noticeable.

I still have gear whine in 5th gear. Don't seem any worse. Fluid levels are good. I've been under vehicle, I can't find any leaks or drips from any seals.

Any idea what it might be? Difficulty to fix and price to fix. Seems to me it could be imput shaft of transmission. Sounds is there when in neutral with clutch pedal out. A throw out bearing would make noise if going bad when clutch pedal is pressed in.

As far as operation. Everything seems to function as normal.

Hi cuemark8,

I recommend heading to your dealer to have this checked out. Setting up a ride along with a tech will allow you to demonstrate how and when it happens. What's your mileage?

Meagan

 

[neeqness]

The whining noise you hear in 5th gear could be from the carrier bearing. The carrier bearing helps support the passenger side CV axle and also keeps the planetary gears of the differential aligned. After I had my throwout bearing replaced for the second time, my car had a high-pitched whining noise when driven on the interstate. It would start at about 50 mph and go away above about 70 mph (could be that the wind noise was so loud that I could no longer hear the whine). I ended up having to replace both of my CV axle assemblies because of damage caused by the dealer. Once I did that, the whine went away and never came back.

Since the whirring noise you hear happens when the clutch is engaged (clutch pedal out), you are correct that it is not caused by the throw out bearing. When the clutch is engaged, the input shaft spins at the same rate as the crankshaft. All of the gears are also rotating. Therefore, it is not easy to diagnose which component is making the noise. Since the noise is not as loud after you have driven it a while, I suspect that it is a bearing on the input shaft. If may be running a little dry when first started up. After driving a while, the gear oil thins out a bit and works its way into all of the bearings. Mine also makes this sound in the morning. Some mornings it is really loud; others, not so loud. I would normally say that you should just ignore it, but my transmission seems to be nearing the end of its life.

About a month ago, I noticed that when I take a long trip on the interstate, I could hear a rumbling/grinding noise at high speed that would lighten up when I let my foot off of the gas peddle. At first, I thought that it was just the rumbling of my snow tires. However, the noise should not go away when taking my foot off of the gas if it were from the snow tires. Yesterday, I drove from Albany, NY to just north of Philadelphia. After about an hour, it made the rumbling/grinding noise at interstate speed (70-80 mph). When I got off of the interstate, I heard what I thought was the blower motor going bad (an intermittent grinding/squealing noise). I switched the fan speed to higher values, but it did not affect the sound. When I came to a stop at a stop light, the noise went away, so it was clearly not related to the blower motor. After driving a few miles in lower gears, I found that it makes the noise in second or third gear. In third gear, it was really loud. This morning, I drove the car several miles, and it did not make the noise anymore. I drive back to Albany tomorrow. Hopefully, the transmission does not explode on me during the trip back. The vehicle has about 70k miles on it.

How often have you guys done the tranny service or flush on your cars over the previous years?

Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk

 

[cuemark8]

I will probably ride it out till it becomes worse. The 5th gear whine has be . There for quite awhile. I figured it was just age and wear of the components.
Ironically it's been unseasonably warm where I'm at on Sunday and today also and also for next couple of days. The morning low was almost 50 overnight. Not surprisingly, I didn't notice the whine from the bearing or whatever is this morning or after work today or yesterday.
The typical gear whine I've been hearing is still present.
When I have noticed the whine the most it had been quite cold teens and 20's and even a few single digit mornings.

To answer fordservice. Just shy of 94k mi.

 

[FordService]

I will probably ride it out till it becomes worse. The 5th gear whine has be . There for quite awhile. I figured it was just age and wear of the components.
Ironically it's been unseasonably warm where I'm at on Sunday and today also and also for next couple of days. The morning low was almost 50 overnight. Not surprisingly, I didn't notice the whine from the bearing or whatever is this morning or after work today or yesterday.
The typical gear whine I've been hearing is still present.
When I have noticed the whine the most it had been quite cold teens and 20's and even a few single digit mornings.

To answer fordservice. Just shy of 94k mi.

Thanks! If you decide to head in to have this checked out, just let me know.

Meagan

 

[Millennium XL-200]

I have a '14, bought used in October 2015, with approximately 24000 miles. I hear a high pitched whine during light throttle(maintaining speed) between 57 and 75 mph. I took it to my dealer last month and was told it was "characteristic of the 5 speed Fiesta". I asked to drive another 5 speed Fiesta on the used car lot, but they said " not all of the Fiestas will make the sound".
I'm taking it to another dealer in my city Tuesday to get their opinion. The sound is very annoying, and can be easily heard over wind noise and the radio.
I love the car, but considering trading it if this is "normal".

 

[WildmaninME]

Unfortunately, it seems to be a characteristic of the IB5 transmission. Our 11' makes the same whine in 5th. So does our neighbors' 12' and another acquaintance's 14'. Ours isn't as loud as our neighbors, and the other one I'm familiar with isn't very pronounced at all.

 

[cventrice]

I have a '14, bought used in October 2015, with approximately 24000 miles. I hear a high pitched whine during light throttle(maintaining speed) between 57 and 75 mph. I took it to my dealer last month and was told it was "characteristic of the 5 speed Fiesta". I asked to drive another 5 speed Fiesta on the used car lot, but they said " not all of the Fiestas will make the sound".
I'm taking it to another dealer in my city Tuesday to get their opinion. The sound is very annoying, and can be easily heard over wind noise and the radio.
I love the car, but considering trading it if this is "normal".

The sound that you hear could be from a misaligned carrier bearing. This is the bearing that helps support the CV axle on the passenger side of the car. I purchased my Fiesta new and it did not have this sound until after my throwout bearing was replaced (actually, after the throwout bearing was replaced a second time). During the replacement of a throwout bearing assembly, both of the CV axles are removed so that the transaxle can be removed from the car and then reinstalled after the transaxle is bolted back onto the engine. Because the dealer damaged one of the CV joints during the throwout bearing replacement, I ended up replacing both CV axle assemblies. The new passenger side CV axle assembly came with a new carrier bearing. Once I replaced the CV axles, the whine went away. Therefore, I'm pretty sure that the whine that I was hearing after the throwout bearing replacement was caused by the dealer improperly mounting the carrier bearing.

A possible reason that so many manual transmission Fiesta owners have the whine is that aligning the carrier bearing is a little tricky. The outer side of the outer race is rounded. This keeps the axle from moving in the lateral direction. However, the carrier bearing does not self-align very well during the mounting process. To attach the bearing to the mount, you need to carefully seat the bearing and wiggle it back and forth until you feel that it is properly centered. Once it is centered, you then need to attach a new bearing strap (and carrier bearing shield, if you car has one) and put both nuts on the threaded studs that hold the strap (and shield) on without moving the bearing. Again, you need to keep the bearing in firm contact with the bearing mount during the assembly process. You then need to tighten the nuts about an 1/8 of a turn at a time, going from one nut to the other a few times, before using a torque wrench to get the proper torque. Since the bearing strap will permanently deform during the tightening process, it cannot be reused. If the bearing is not perfectly centered when the strap is tightened, the bearing will be cocked a little, which will cause the balls to ride on the edge of the races, instead of the center.

 

[WildmaninME]

The sound that you hear could be from a misaligned carrier bearing. This is the bearing that helps support the CV axle on the passenger side of the car. I purchased my Fiesta new and it did not have this sound until after my throwout bearing was replaced (actually, after the throwout bearing was replaced a second time). During the replacement of a throwout bearing assembly, both of the CV axles are removed so that the transaxle can be removed from the car and then reinstalled after the transaxle is bolted back onto the engine. Because the dealer damaged one of the CV joints during the throwout bearing replacement, I ended up replacing both CV axle assemblies. The new passenger side CV axle assembly came with a new carrier bearing. Once I replaced the CV axles, the whine went away. Therefore, I'm pretty sure that the whine that I was hearing after the throwout bearing replacement was caused by the dealer improperly mounting the carrier bearing.

A possible reason that so many manual transmission Fiesta owners have the whine is that aligning the carrier bearing is a little tricky. The outer side of the outer race is rounded. This keeps the axle from moving in the lateral direction. However, the carrier bearing does not self-align very well during the mounting process. To attach the bearing to the mount, you need to carefully seat the bearing and wiggle it back and forth until you feel that it is properly centered. Once it is centered, you then need to attach a new bearing strap (and carrier bearing shield, if you car has one) and put both nuts on the threaded studs that hold the strap (and shield) on without moving the bearing. Again, you need to keep the bearing in firm contact with the bearing mount during the assembly process. You then need to tighten the nuts about an 1/8 of a turn at a time, going from one nut to the other a few times, before using a torque wrench to get the proper torque. Since the bearing strap will permanently deform during the tightening process, it cannot be reused. If the bearing is not perfectly centered when the strap is tightened, the bearing will be cocked a little, which will cause the balls to ride on the edge of the races, instead of the center.

While this is true, the op hasn't mentioned his car being disassembled. I've had the dealer screw up 4 support bearings on my Fiesta and am intimately familiar with the sound it makes. The bearing sound is very much different from the 5th gear whine which is a gear mesh sound versus the rotational whine of the bearing.

 

[cventrice]

While this is true, the op hasn't mentioned his car being disassembled.

The owner of the Fiesta bought it used, so it is unknown if the axle assembly has been previously removed from the car. In addition, it could have been improperly attached at the factory. Since the whine is speed related, Millenium XL-200 should try driving at that same speed range in 4th gear. If he/she gets the same whining noise, it is definitely not a problem with the meshing of the 5th speed gears.

 

[Millennium XL-200]

I bought the car from the original selling dealer. They had no record of any service, other than regular maintenance. I did try to replicate the sound in 4th gear. Both in the speed range, and RPM range. Neither replicated the sound.

 

[WildmaninME]

I bought the car from the original selling dealer. They had no record of any service, other than regular maintenance. I did try to replicate the sound in 4th gear. Both in the speed range, and RPM range. Neither replicated the sound.

The IB5 seems to be a much noisier transaxle than others (NVG units for instance). There are many reports of 5th gear whine while maintaining speed, which would likely indicate a resonating frequency with the pitch/material of the meshing gears. If the noise was evident while accelerating or decelerating then there would be reason to worry about a faulty main/idler shaft bearing or case wear. I'm certain that you'll have many troublefree miles if you can live with the sound. It's annoying to me on long trips, but turning the radio up a smidge cures it and overall the Fiesta is a phenomenal little car so this isn't a dealbreaker.

 

[FordService]

I have a '14, bought used in October 2015, with approximately 24000 miles. I hear a high pitched whine during light throttle(maintaining speed) between 57 and 75 mph. I took it to my dealer last month and was told it was "characteristic of the 5 speed Fiesta". I asked to drive another 5 speed Fiesta on the used car lot, but they said " not all of the Fiestas will make the sound".
I'm taking it to another dealer in my city Tuesday to get their opinion. The sound is very annoying, and can be easily heard over wind noise and the radio.
I love the car, but considering trading it if this is "normal".

Let me know how your dealer trip goes, Millennium XL-200, along with your updated mileage.

Meagan

 

[Messy Ford]

My fiesta has done it off and on since about 10,000km it also pops out when going into reverse but an easy workaround for reverse is hold it into position and make sure it fully engages. The 5th gear humming is easy to get used to and you wont notice it as much. I wonder if using a better gear oil would help? I know on my 1998 cherokee sport my rear dif made a similar whine and the forms suggested a certain gear oil and it worked fine after that.

 

[Millennium XL-200]

Let me know how your dealer trip goes, Millennium XL-200, along with your updated mileage.

Meagan

I have 27,500 now.
https://youtu.be/wqOjiSYbzsI
A short video from this afternoon. You can easily hear the whine/noise from about 15 seconds in, coincidentally, as another Fiesta passes me.
I'll update the info from the deal tomorrow.

 

[cuemark8]

I was the OP of the this thread. I am still keeping an eye, or should I say ear, on my vehicle.

The gear whine I mentioned has been there forever since new. Seems more pronounced now. Could simply be the wear and tear on it. At present, I'm about to pass 99kmi.

My vehicle was purchased new. It has never been apart or had any repairs to speak of at all. Only routine service.

Temperatures have moderated where I live. The bitter cold seems to be gone. The mystery sound I would hear at startup isn't nearly as noticeable. At home the vehicle is in a heated garage. At work daytime Temps have be 30's to 50's. Nothing extreme. After a brief warmup the sound goes away.

My only problem is I'm beginning to believe I may have a carrier bearing issue. Presently I have rumbling sound, not bad, most noticeable around 55 MPH or so. I have winter snow tires on the vehicle and they are reasonably worn. I however don't think the sound is coming from tires and road noise. I also have a vibration, not bad. May or may not be the tires being worn and off balance.
Shortly I will schedule some service for oil change and some other recommended service and have the rumbling issue looked at.
I am certain it is not a wheel bearing. The noise doesn't seem to change turning left or right. Which also makes me think it isn't related to the tires.

As another posted mentioned, when I lift off the throttle or cancel cruise control the rumbling seems to lessen.

 

[cventrice]

I have 27,500 now.
https://youtu.be/wqOjiSYbzsI
A short video from this afternoon. You can easily hear the whine/noise from about 15 seconds in, coincidentally, as another Fiesta passes me.
I'll update the info from the deal tomorrow.

I just listened to your video, and the high pitched whine that you hear is identical to the sound that my Fiesta was making after the second throwout bearing replacement. For me, it would start at about 55 mph and go away at about 75 mph. When driving on the interstate, I would always try to drive above 75 mph or the whine would drive me crazy. After about 6 months, I finally got around to replacing the CV axles. Fortunately, the high-pitched whine went away and has never come back. My transmission does make other noises, though. In the last few months, I often get a lower pitched rumbling/grinding noise when driving long distances on the interstate. In addition, I have had the transmission occasionally make a loud squealing noise in third and fourth gears after driving on the interstate. I think that the squeal is caused by metal chips seizing up one of the bearings. At this point, it is intermittent, so I am ignoring that noise. If it gets worse, I'll either have to buy a new transmission or do a rebuild of the existing one.

 

[cventrice]

I wonder if using a better gear oil would help? I know on my 1998 cherokee sport my rear dif made a similar whine and the forms suggested a certain gear oil and it worked fine after that.

After reading your post, I just remembered that when I replaced my CV axles, I had also changed the transmission oil in the transaxle. The oil came out black, as if it were motor oil with about 10k miles on it. I replaced it with the fully synthetic Motorcraft transmission oil that is recommended for the IB5 transmission. Now I'm starting to wonder if the dealer had accidentally topped up the transmission with the wrong gear oil after the throwout bearing replacement and that this was what was causing the high-pitched whine?