When idling at the lights....

[sabih]

I have this problem with my car that when the car is idling i hear this weird noise every so often its like a 'hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm' noise that lasts about 2 seconds and then goes.. but it happens every time the cars idle. The interior and headlights also dim and then go back to normal..

[DomenEK]

Thermo fan maybe?? Don't know, need a better explanation.

[aznpsuazn]

possible the idle dropping when the thermo fan comes on.
im guessing this doesnt happen on cold starts

[jdmTYPE R]

power steering pump?????

[Professional]

Not enough information mate. Where the sounds from?

[EuroDude]

Sounds like its just the engine cooling fan kicking in and out. You only notice it during idle because there is road and engine noise tuning out the fan noise when driving.

My lights on my civic and euro also dim a bit when the fan comes on.


If the lights dim quite significantly, then the engine may be idling a bit too low and causing the battery power to drop excessively. Do the revs drop below the normal idle level (should be around 750rpm I think)? You may need to clean the throttle body, check the spark leads resistance, and get new spark plugs. I would imagine an old battery thats starting to fail could cause this too.

[aaronng]

On the Euro, it dims because of the A/C compressor. When in climate control auto mode, A/C still kicks in eventhough you set a high-ish temperature. It's to stop the buildup of condensation in the cabin air.

[INTEGGRA]

If your lights are diming normally a blown fues,thats one easy thing to check...wont be causing the nosie though.

[bennjamin]

its the radiator fan kicking in. The revs drop coz of the load ( lights might slightly dim etc)

[Limbo]

try earthing ther is a DIY by Arrong. It might help stop the lights dimming when the thermo fan kicks in. Otherwise might need a new battery soon

[aaronng]

try earthing ther is a DIY by Arrong. It might help stop the lights dimming when the thermo fan kicks in. Otherwise might need a new battery soon
The grounding didn't fix the dimming. I did get better warm-starting (it's bad on the Euro). If you want to fix the dimming, get a good battery like an Odyssey.

[Kiz_EG6]

wot sort a car man.

I
f it has ABS it could be dat. ma G/F's had a prob that sounds the same in her Del Sol... cleaned all the sensors and flushed the lines and it improved heapz...