My c3180 makes a noise like a machine gun before printing

The grinding noise is probably related to the carriage moving back and forth in the product. The good news is...it's still moving! :-)

I would recommend reviewing the steps for clearing a 'carriage jam' in the following section of HP customer care. Even though you do not have a total jam, there are some useful steps for checking the carriage path, to make sure all is clear. You can find the info here (I would pay special attention to Solution Three and Solution Four):

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c01447224&lc=en&dlc=en&cc=us&product=1146331&rule=8836&lang=en

For the colours seeming washed out, I might check out the following information on HP's customer care website:

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c01580790&lc=en&dlc=en&cc=us&lang=en&rule=10306&product=1146331

I hope this information helps!

Thanks,

_K

I had this noise, and it comes from the spindle that drives the cartridge cleaning tray back and forth, when it is not engaging properly in the clutch gears. The clutch is triggered by a small plastic tab which is engaged by the cartridge housing as it moves into position for cleaning the cartridges. If you leave this too long, the small plastic tab breaks off - mine did. I totally disassembled the printer to remove the cleaning tray - which is quite difficult as it has to be forced out of its guides. I then found that the underlying cause was a build up of ink on the spindle and in the cleaning tray guides which was making the tray too sticky to move freely. I used Isopropanol to clean everything.