I have a 2002 Mustang GT. Recently had to have a new alternator put in, which was fine but yesterday the car got REALLY loud. Every time I hit the gas it sounds like Indy! Being a woman I hate to just take it somewhere and end up with a huge bill that I can't afford for stuff I don't need. Can someone please tell me what I need to look for and what I can say may be the problem. I can't even hear myself think when I'm driving because it's so loud. Thanks for any help/suggestions!

 

Is it like a whining noise? Does it happen all the time or just when you rev it up? Pop the hood open start the car then look & see if you see any obvious problems especially around the alternator.
If you have to go to a shop take it to a Ford dealer they *usually* don't try to rip you off lol. Or better still take it right back to whomever installed the alternator & b!tch at them, demand it be fixed for free!

 

Am not sure it's the altenator from what she says. The car got loud, meaning a whining noise or an exhaust noise, does the noise increase with rpm ???? need more infoe, but yes I agree take it back to the shop that installed the altenator and have them tell you what they think. iF it's the atenator it sould be under warrenty. If not take it to a dealer.

 

It does get louder the move I rev it up. So if I turn a corner for example, hit the gas, it gets very loud but as I increase speed it gets even louder. I did talk to the guy who put the alternator in and he seems to think it's the exhaust manifold gasket...(wow...I sound impressive using these big words when I dont' know a thing about cars!) lol...My son said the header gaskets..is that the same thing? He said they're inexpensive enough, around $20 for a set and he'll put them in for $80....he is a Ford mechanic...so does that sound reasonable?
Thanks for your help!
Laney

 

Well, yes the exhaust manifold gasket is the same thing as a header gasket.. but that part of the engine has absolutely nothing to do with swapping out an alternator. Either you're having an incredibly bad luck streak, or it's not the problem.
A leaky exhaust gasket usually has more of a tick-tick-tick sound that increases with engine RPM. Does it sound like that?
Or if your alternator or belt is defective it'll sound more like a whine noise

 

Check the alternator pulley and look for black dust. The bearing in the pulley may have seized causing a noise. It could have been a bad part from the factory or installed wrong.

 

Well if his a mechanic he should be able to find the problem real easy. However if his not sure just take the belt off the alternator and see if the noise is still there or goes away that will tell you what's going on. But from what you say I it's an exhaust leak.

 

What does the noise sound like?

 

has to be the exhaust....