Hey Folks, I joined just now to see if I can get some assistance. My ES 330 is a 2004 with 117k miles on it. When I bought it in Nov 2019 the dealer mistakenly didn't do some of the prep work which they claimed to have done. When they were finally convinced of this, they took the car in and "fixed it" (replaced head gaskets and also serviced the evap system cause check engine light was on for evap leak), but then when I got it back it started making these weird whining sounds.

The sounds went away this past winter. But starting at the beginning of May they came back stronger than ever. Here's a video I just recorded to give you an example:
It only happens when I accelerate from the lowest gear. Once I get up to speed the sound goes away. It's as though I'm hearing an amplification of the sounds under the hood, like suddenly some connection happens or something opens that allows the transfer of sound, then that goes away. If I'm cruising at 25mph or higher, then slow down to 15mph to take a turn, it's not an issue. It's only when I slow all the way down to the lowest gear then speed up again, or when I'm accelerating from a dead stop. Once I'm up to speed everything sounds smooth and sweet. The video shows that I'm decelerating without any strange sounds (I think the creaking you can hear is my sneaker on the brake pedal), then when I hit the gas the whining sound is loud and sudden, but goes away once I get up to about 30 mph.

Any ideas? I'm stumped. It is leaking power steering fluid pretty badly, which started at about the same time the noise came back, but the check engine light has never come on since that day I got my car back "fixed" from the dealer (except when I replaced the spark plugs - it went off again after a restart). It never rumbles, there's no squeal - nothing high pitched. There's no shaking or clicking. It happens whether the wheel is turned or straight.

Thanks!

 

Even if the noise is not coming from the power steering system you need to fix that leak or things will get even more expensive. Could very well be power steering pump whine if so that's the worst I've heard outside of zero fluid in the system.

 

Thank you, and noted. There's definitely fluid, I'm keeping a close eye on it and topping it off often cause fluid is cheap. Looks like I've got a project on my hands though.

 

This hose most commonly fails, "from pump"
https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/...sure+hose,7320