Our engine light is on. When we start the car after it's been off awhile, we hear a slight ticking and sometimes a squeak sound from the front of the car. That goes away within a minute or so but until the car runs for about 20 mins, when we shift from 1st or 2nd gear or 2nd to 3rd we hear a distinct whooshing sound from the front of the car and it seems like it's getting a bit louder as the days go on. After about 30-40 minutes of driving it stops until we start it up the next day again.

Also we've noticed that when we stop at a light or for another reason, our AC unit stops cooling and becomes neutral but will blow cold again when we move.

Anyone have a clue as to what this could be.

What Car is it please? The Engine light on could be many many things, it's usually a problem with the emissions so you car might be over fueling(faulty injectors), it could be a fault with the air intake (clogged air filter), it could be a problem with the catalytic converter. Or a faulty sensor on one of the above systems. I'd recommend getting a diagnostic device (laptop) plugged in as that will tell you what going on. I have a panda and the Engine light came on, so plugged it in to the laptop, was praying it wasn't the injectors, fortunately it was a faulty Lamba (exhaust) sensor replace it for about £20. The same advice for the Gear shift noises and the AC issues I'd Highly recommend getting it plugged in to a laptop this will tell you any faults and give you a better idea if it's cost effective to repair. unfortunately they aren't cheap so maybe ask if anyone on here has one, lives close to you, and could help you out.

ChibiPoP said:

Our engine light is on. When we start the car after it's been off awhile, we hear a slight ticking and sometimes a squeak sound from the front of the car. That goes away within a minute or so but until the car runs for about 20 mins, when we shift from 1st or 2nd gear or 2nd to 3rd we hear a distinct whooshing sound from the front of the car and it seems like it's getting a bit louder as the days go on. After about 30-40 minutes of driving it stops until we start it up the next day again.

Also we've noticed that when we stop at a light or for another reason, our AC unit stops cooling and becomes neutral but will blow cold again when we move.

Anyone have a clue as to what this could be.

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Hi, I see this post is from the summer..so you've probably got the answers now..,
It sounds like the drive belt to the charging system (alternator) is not in tension..the belt slips when cold, and over time warms and grips,

this will mean less electrical power available, so a sensor has detected low power and illuminated the fault light

simple fix..just a little labour

my 3 year old car has occasionally done this when cold - little to worry about until it slips everyday , the belts all "bed-in" from new so the need for a check of tension is a common occurence

Charlie