Vibration noise

[bryan]

3 years ago i had a running 94 celica st, i took out the motor and did stupid stuff with it so it sat for 3 years, now i finally dropped in a motor that came from the junk yard, it started just fine, however after i fixed the exhuast i decided to check all of the fluids before i go out for a test drive, i tipped off the auto trans fluid with the proper fluid and now i get a bad vibration noise that is dependent on rpm (anything 900rpm and down i get a vibration noise, then 4k and up i get the same noise) I replaced all motor mounts cause they were bad but im still getting this noise, its weird cause it was running fine before and now it makes that aweful noise, however I did put on the old air filter which was dirtier than ever (another idiot move), it almost sounds like torque converter shudder, so i dropped the tranny pan and replaced the filter and gasket and put brand new oil in it but it still makes that noise, any idea on what this could be? the belts seem to react to the vibration (when it occurs) as well. Im stuck and cant figure it out, all the local mechanics ended up loosing my trust which is why i now do eveyrthing on my own. This one has my stumped.

p.s. i dont get any trouble codes lighting up and yes the check engine light works.

Topic

[Steven Cummings]

I am sure you checked most or all of these, but it will give you something to cross off the list. Is your harmonic balancer/crankshaft pulley properly installed/all the way on? Are your motor/tranny mounts and subframe all correctly torqued? Is your flexplate correctly torqued to the crankshaft and torque converter (that would suck if you have to drop the tranny again). Is your torque wrench properly calibrated?

[bryan]

Thank you i will definatly double check all of those! evyerthing is worth looking at, definatly at this point! However i would think they would all be ok, because i ran the motor for about a week to test the exhuast i was working on and it ran fine with no noises and it never went out on the street, I dont think i can see something coming loose within a week :/ HOPEFULLY! Anyways thanks for the response i will double check those!

FYI i thought it was the tranny so i did a complete flush on it (a dyi job not from a perfessional) and then decided to drive it for a while to cycle all of the fluid through it. And nothing happened :(. For grins and giggles maybe i should try the Dr. Tranny Instant Shudder Fix??? maybe it will quite it down and if it has any effect on it then i guess i would have a better idea of what it is. And if it has no effect then back to the drawing boards.

[bryan]

Confirmed!!!!! I put in some bar’s atf repair which is suppose to help torque converter chatter and after I put it in. It quited down the noise not completely but it did help a lot. So it only took me $12 to figure out what was wrong with it!! I’m super happy. I’ll order a new torque converter soon. I drove the car today and the radiator cracked open. So looks like I also need a new radiator. I’ma save up for a 2 row aluminum radiator.

Thank you all so much for your help!

[Author]

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