I've had my vortech v3 kit with 2.87 pulley installed for about 1,200 miles with zero mechanical issues. About 7 days ago, however, I noticed a loud squeal / whistle coming from the car while at idle. The noise happens infrequently, but when it does show up, its only after the car has been in use for >15 mins, only happens at idle (800 rpms), and will not go away until the car has been turned off. It sounds like a really loud whistle (louder than has been described on this forum) and is similar to the noise made by a smoke detector. Is this the normal whistle sound everyone talks about?

I isolated the noise to the bypass valve after checking all the stuff described in other threads (belts, pulleys, blower, etc). If i put one finger in front of the bypass valve opening (not touching it) when I hear the noise, the noise will immediately go away. As soon as I remove my finger the noise returns. It seems to me that the bypass valve either isn't fully closed or fully open, and that's causing the noise.

I searched around and found tylerxfire's and 350z066's discussion of some similar issues they had (quoted in the post below). tyler posted a vid that sounds very similar to the noise i'm hearing. both of them noted that it was unusually loud, but the vortech filter muffled it away. I'm fine with installing the filter to get rid of the noise, but I don't want to bandaid the symptom of a larger problem.

I'd just like to know if this is normal. Thanks guys!

Btw, I called Vortech this afternoon to see if they had any ideas. I'm now 0-3 when it comes to getting correct parts or questions answered...

 

the posts mentioned above...

 

The filter was indeed a band aid...a very bad band aid at that as it was still obnoxious even with the filter on...

You may want to try adjusting you BPV screw on top, so the whistle doesn't show up...I couldn't do that on my used BPV because it was pretty old and jammed up so I bought a new BPV...problem solved!

So try adjusting the screw to fix the whistle (and be careful to make sure you don't get compressor surge with the adjustment)...if that dosen't work buy a new one...or maybe even the HKS BPV

 

thanks for the reply man!

i played around with the screw last night to no avail, but will try again this evening. basically, when the noise first showed up i had 8-9 threads showing. i adjusted it down to 6-7 threads last night, but it didn't help much (the noise actually persists longer now ). anyway, i'll try backing it out even further tonight (+9 threads) to see if that helps. i won't have to worry about surge at that point, but i hate waiting that extra half second for the BPV to close

 

I have heard people say it is harmonizing on the sway bar. Turn your bpv so it faces the other way.

 

wow that sound would get very annoying after awhile

 

never heard that ever. if you o-ring on the BPV properly seated?

 

+1 never had that sound at idle.

 

its just some are louder than the other ive been told by numerous people..mine has done that since day 1..It does it on a cold start after it idles down for about a min..It will do it only at a certain rpm, i beleive its like 1000rpm but i dont remember since i havent driven my z in about 2 months, but it whistles until the car idles down to its normal idle..The filter does not help the whistle...I plan to get a new bypass valve from vortech over this winter and change it, everything is installed 100% correct but it is facing out toward the wheel, ive never tried to turn it around so idk on that...They replaced them a while ago with people who complained but i dont know if they still will for free or not..

 

do u have warranty on ur kit or no? if so when u talk to someone at vortech see if they will warranty it or not and send them the link of this video or something and let me know if u could so i know..I have a rubber tube on mine now bought at lowes in the plumbing section..lol, that is attached to the bpv on the one end which is 1 1/2 " i beleive and then on the other end is smaller and goes to a 1 1/4" and have the bpv filter sold at superchargersonline attached to it at the smaller end which goes inside the filter..hard to explain, home made and temporary got rid of the whistle and still no surge, the filter alone did nothing, but id like to replace it with one that just doesnt do it if they will warranty it..

 

yeah, i bought the kit 2-3months ago so I'm still under warranty. the tech at vortech also suggested i check the o-ring, but absent of a problem there he had no idea. i told him that i would like to have the BPV replaced if there was nothing mechanically wrong with it and that's when he got into a huff. apparently their policy is to just rebuild faulty BPVs rather than replace them, and of course, that means more downtime for customers. weak sauce.

anyway, i ordered a K&N filter to put over the outlet and it should be in by early next week. in the meantime, i clamped a narrow, thin piece of fabric over part of the outlet (similar to the way i held my finger over it). i drove about 50 miles roundtrip to a meet tonight and didn't hear the whistle so it looks like this will be a decent short-term fix.

 

gonna check that in the morning. i was very careful not to mess around with the BPV before or during installation so everything should be kosher

fyi, the tech says its OK to push on the pressure plate to inspect the o-ring, just don't go wild with it. there seems to be some controversy over how harmful it is to touch that plate.

 

i dunno, i pushed mine in to reset my o-ring and it flipped the valve inside and didnt work anymore. Had to send it back to vortech.

what the the tech say about the noise? any possibility that the breather cone is messed up?

 

i truly beleive it is just some are shaped a little different than others on the end which causes the whistle noise, which is a vortech malfunction but since it still works fine just is noisy seems like they dont really care...if i hold 2 fingers in front of the bottom of mine where the air is released there is no whistle because it diverts the air slightly.

dont waste ur time with the o ring, if u have the same sound as me there is no problem it is just the bpv itself...im gonna call vortech today and ***** to see if we can get some new ones..

 

that's exactly what i was concerned about, but the tech says its OK to push it in slowly. he said the problems arise when people repeatedly push it in hard.
the tech had no ideas about the noise other than the o-ring. he said if the BPV works properly (open in vacuum, closed in boost), then there's nothing wrong with it. the breather cone didn't come up, but if it was the problem, i think the only solution would be reinstalling it or replacing it.

its just annoying that something so simple can cause so many annoyances - loud whistle for some, fluttering for others, etc...

 

ya thats weird. i never touched mine from day 1 and it was perfect til I sold it. I had mine facing towards the wheel.

cant offer much else. good luck.

 

Just get a greddy RS BOV

big C hope you get to the bottom of this.. ill be installing my kit soon maybe Feb.. its just sitting in the garage at the moment.. and would be nice to know if i should expect any issues..

a bit off topic.. you run any gauges?

 

BigC

This is the nature of the Vortech Bypass valve . All of the guys that first put on the SC 5-6 yeas ago had the same problem . Try backing out the adjustment screw by one or two threads . If thats doesnt help , nothing will other than a stronger or weaker spring inside to hold the valve at a different position .

 

^ thanks for the advice man. i saw in a few of your threads the issues you had when you changed pulleys, IC, & blower. i'll try backing out the screw some more today when i check the o-ring. its annoying problem because it only shows up after i've driven for a while, and sometimes doesn't even happen. ugh!

 

thanks man, i appreciate the help
hey edgar, i'm running an innovate wideband AFR gauge and a PLX multiguage (monitoring OBD2 stuff, oil press, oil temp, and boost/vac) in a dual pillar pod. let me know if u need any help with the install. its straightforward on paper, but there are a few areas that require some persuasion.