S13 KA Transmission Whine

[CrimsonRockett]

Originally Posted by Taniguchi_Is_#1

a throwout bearing doesn't really do anything until you push in the clutch. if the noise goes away when you clutch in, chances are that it's not the TOB.

Agreed. It's definitely not the TOB.

Why would it only whine in gears 1-3, but not 4th and 5th?

I've had two S-chassis (S13/S14) with that exact transmission whine you're referring to. It definitely was NOT the throwout bearing. On the S13, we dropped the transmission, replaced the OEM clutch for an Exedy Stg 2 with a Fidanza flywheel, new TOB, and all seals. The wine was still there. We didn't replace the TOB hoping the noise would go away. We already knew the noise was coming from the transmission itself.