Engine Noise / Ticking, Knocking, Tapping MERGED

[eric489]

All threads with vague titles regarding engine bay noises are now merged HERE.

If you honestly feel we can diagnose an internal engine problem from a poor description or low-quality video / audio sample, give it a shot.


I own a 1997 gst spyder and there is a ticking noise comming fron the engine. It comes and goes and it mostly sounds bad at idle. I have 97,000 miles on it and i change the oil regularly. I changed it about 2000 miles ago I need help to fix the problem.

 

[JBDdsmer610]

i kno when its hot i pull like 21-22psi vac at idel and when its cold i think like 23-24 ### it idels a little higher. and when its dead cold my rpms are mabey 1200 or 1100 when its warmed up it sits right on 800. and what do you mean pull the rockers off. and the car wont boost at all like when i was on the highway when it first happened it wouldnt boost

 

[1995gsx20g]

click the link in post 24 about the rockers.

did you reset the cam angle sensor when you put the motor back in time?

in your OP you said the car was pretty much stock, what mods are done to the car and i am guessing this isn't the car in your profile?

you said the car does not hit any boost still? correct?

 

[JBDdsmer610]

the head thats on the car has 1mm oversized valves ported and ss exhaust studs. i have big 16g at 15psi, evo gt manifold, 3in turbo back, plx wbo2, ACT 2600 with 6 puck unsprung plate, ACT streetlite flywheel, and thats it 20k on stock rebuilt bottom end. and yes i reset the CAS and yes that is correct no boost at all.

 

[1995gsx20g]

can you hook up the logger and log a pull and cruising?

 

[JBDdsmer610]

i dont have a logger anymore im gonna see if my buddy will let me use his ECU and ECM link to mabey get a log ill let you kno

 

[rost]

I have this noise that only occurs when the car is cold.Once it warms up,like 5 minutes,the noise goes away.At first i thought it was lash adjusters.But when i opened up the valve cover(head was rebuilt 5k miles ago by previous owner) i discovered that lash adjusters are upgraded version(3g).I even took one out,bled it,and drained it to make it tick.And it did tick,wich was a completely different sound.
I also didnt notice anything out of the order in the head,and the noise seems to be coming from there.Compression is fine also.I changed the oil,flushed the engine and changed the oil again.Didnt see any metal shavings or anything out of the ordinary.I also have a magnetic oil plug so it wouldve cought any shaving.
No loss of power,car runs good too.
And the sound is not constant only on the warm up,but it sounds pretty bad.
Here is the video.
YouTube - 4g63t engine noise only when cold

 

[1995gsx20g]

exhaust leak off the mani? that thing is loud as hell.
or it could be a timing component..
accessory belts??
turbo bolts loose?

 

[Indian]

Im guessing exhaust leak,they are always louder when then the engine is cold.

 

[SmoochDarling]

+1 to exhaust leak. Check your exhaust mani gasket, your exhaust mani might even be a little warped and not straight thus causing a small leak until everything expands..

 

[Kyle_B]

piston slap? do you have forged pistons with tight clearances? if not then i'd check for exhaust leaks

 

[90on35psi]

That does sound nasty. +1 to the exhaust leak.

 

[rx7ttlm]

there may be an exhaust leak but the evil noise I hear is valvetrain. Suggestion, Take a long screwdriver and put it on various places around the head and see if / where the nose is loudest. Either that or a bearing in an assy is crapping out. But it sounds very valve train to me. It just has a diesel like sound to me

 

[1995gsx20g]

there may be an exhaust leak but the evil noise I hear is valvetrain. Suggestion, Take a long screwdriver and put it on various places around the head and see if / where the nose is loudest. Either that or a bearing in an assy is crapping out. But it sounds very valve train to me. It just has a diesel like sound to me

i hear what your talking about but wanted to start simple. time will tell

 

[dsmdeliveryboy]

Sounds like a nasty exhaust leak before the turbo, any loss in power at all? Unusual smells?

 

[Rajin]

I just bought a 97 Talon TSi, And the car has a lifter tick, it runs fine, oil pressure and everything check out normal.

I've read they may be wore, car does have 192k on a 7 bolt and I treat the car like gold. I don't shut it off immediately after hard driving or well any type of driving.

Car shows no sign of crankwalk, generally just a wonderfully well kept DSM.

But the lifter tick annoys me, she's sat for a few months and was a quart low when I first drove it, I added oil in to balance it out but still no change. I'm changing the oil tommorow to see if any thing will change. But otherwise I'm at a loss.

 

[atruepretense]

I just bought a 97 Talon TSi, And the car has a lifter tick, it runs fine, oil pressure and everything check out normal.

I've read they may be wore, car does have 192k on a 7 bolt and I treat the car like gold. I don't shut it off immediately after hard driving or well any type of driving.

Car shows no sign of crankwalk, generally just a wonderfully well kept DSM.

But the lifter tick annoys me, she's sat for a few months and was a quart low when I first drove it, I added oil in to balance it out but still no change. I'm changing the oil tommorow to see if any thing will change. But otherwise I'm at a loss.

That's part of owning a DSM, lifter tick is always there, and isn't really an issue. If it really bothers you, run a thicker oil, or just use some Lucas Oil Stabilizer, that stuff works wonders and thickens up your oil. Got rid of my lifter tick. I promise you, lifter tick is normal on these things.

 

[kenuwine4g63]

lifter tick is common on dsms, and theyre not hard to change.I just got finish putting one together thats been sitting for almost a year, and it runs fine. The lifters dont even tick and it has 155k on it. Just make sure u flush and drain everything, clean everything and the car should be ok from your stand point. Just use a good grade of oil(Royal Purple).

 

[Rajin]

Well, the old owner was VERY straight up with me, she has 3G lifters already.

So that means I've got a wear spot. I was told my oil pump could be failing. But she holds good oil pressure under boost. It's got a big 16G.

 

[ilco187]

some people claim seafoam clears it up.

 

[Rajin]

I was figuring to do that tommorow, I'm also going to replace the manifold, it's got a small crack. Not anything serious, just enough to aggravate me. I've not loved a car more than I love this one.

 

[1995gsx20g]

i guess all went well.. and your out driving your car instead of sitting on this forum because you don't have any money and your dsm is broken

 

[lowlyfe]

i have a similar prob it really only does it in 1 2 3 and only does it under acceleration when boost kicks in does it sometimes and doesnt others and its on the pass side a mechanic said it could be my motor mounts but idk i hope to god its not what yall are describing

 

[c_k06]

I'm sorry for your luck bro.my problem was minute. There is a braket under the intake manifold that bolts to the bottom of it and the knock sensor clips on it.it came loose and was rattling around and the bracket was just sitting there hitting everything. I bolted it down and the noise went away. I thought it was the clutch disc or the driveshaft but it wasn't. I'm sorry for your luck man.

 

[DJ23GSX]

I'm sorry for your luck bro.my problem was minute. There is a braket under the intake manifold that bolts to the bottom of it and the knock sensor clips on it.it came loose and was rattling around and the bracket was just sitting there hitting everything. I bolted it down and the noise went away. I thought it was the clutch disc or the driveshaft but it wasn't. I'm sorry for your luck man.

Funny you should mention that cause I noticed that mine wasn't bolted to the intake only to the block but mine was bent slightly enough away from the intake that I doubt there was any way it could of been hitting it causing my noise. There is a new knock sensor in my car and the previous owner must have bent that bracket slightly to get his hands in there. My other tranny finally got pulled out of the parts car and should be going in next weekend hopefully. Either way I needed a new tranny and I'm really hoping it cures my issue. From the looks of my clutch it had to have been done recently so I'm hoping that cant be the issue.

 

[c_k06]

I'm sorry for your luck man hope it works out for you.