93 dodge caravan noises

Hello everyone
I have a 93 dodge caravan that had many problems all of which I have
repaired except for two things.

1. At idle there is a intermittent rattle that is very loud coming from
the passengers side engine area that gets worse when the AC is on and
when the steering wheel is maxed out in both directions (probably cause
of load). One guy told me it was the harmonic balancer and another told
me it was the AC compressor clutch bearings. This noise goes away when
the rpms are increased and I am at a loss

2. This noise is coming from the front driver's side wheel and only
is heard when applying the brake. I looked at the wheel and it was
totally black (wheels are white) and very hot so hot that the wheel
smoked like a train when I was washing the black goo off with a water
hose (may be normal since i had just driven across town). It kinda
feels like a loose wheel bearing or a bad tie rod but the black gunk
kinda threw me off.

Thanks everyone for taking the time to help me!!

 

For #1, have you checked the water pump? When mine went bad, it sounded
like a rattle more than a bearing noise. Turning on the A/C or turning
the steering all the way to one direction, would put more tension on
the serpentine belt and make the noise stronger. This will only be the
case if you have the 3.3L engine.

-KM

 

Yes I do have a 3.3L V6 and you are right it sounds more like a rattle
than a bearing. What would I be looking for on the water pump loose
bolts? Is it hard to replace?

 

I used to have a 1994 Grand Caravan.

You do not mention the mileage of the van, but my money is on the belt
tensioner.

Mine did not ratle, but it made a high-pitch noise that drove me
crazy! I hate rattles, squeels, noises, etc.

With the engine off, use a wrench to release the tension on the belt,
and then use your hand to spin the pulley on the tensioner. If it
rattles or sqeeks, etc, then you have more than likely found the
problem. These tend to go in the 160,000 to 185,000 km range. If yours
is original, then relacing it as a preventive meaintenance item is a
fair bet since if it goes you WILL be stranded.

I got the same thing at one point. In my case, the rotors were worn
out, and the brake pads had worn out as well. So what happened was
that the cylendar in the caliper "popped out" and jambed in place,
forcing the pads hard into the rotor. I think mine was on the
passenger side, but it can happen on either side.

I was noticing extra power was required for acceleration. About 20 min
after it happened, I had to stop at a store. When I got out, there was
actually smoke coming from the wheel!

When I went to touch the wheel, it was EXTREMELY hot!

Fortunately, this all happened about 200 yards from my favourite
mechanical shop!

Good news was no accident, no stranded, no tow required.

The solutions was a total from brake job. Remanufactured calipers, 2
new rotors, and new pads. In addition, I needed 2 new rear wheel
cylendars which just happened to be leaking! (Glad I found that little
surprize!)

Total bill for everything - parts, labour, shop charges AND taxes -
about $550 CDN$ using first quality parts.

Check your brakes my man! You do NOT want to drive like this for any
length of time. It is not worth your life (or someone elses!)

hth