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.

 

[myaceofdiamonds]

I had the same thing happen to my tsi awd. how much gear oil did you put in the trans? that was my problem, I was runnin a quart less than i needed. it sounded exactly like you said. I pulled the top plug out of the trans and added another quart and that baby got quiet. what was happening was when my clutch was pushed it took the pressure off the trans so it didnt rattle, but when I was in neutral with the clutch let out the trans was turning and rattling, hope this helped

 

[DSM pHrEaK]

Recently replaced transmissions and after doing so i have developed this strange clanking/knocking noise that seems to be coming from the motor...but just doesn't make any sense. I pulled the motor to do a balance shaft eliminate, replaced timing belt/pulleys/etc. Then decided to swap trannys while i was at it. When i get everything put back into car i get this strange clanking noise. I haven't been driving the car do to this issue. You don't even have to have the motor running to hear the noise, if you bump the starter you can hear it. Also something strange, if you take all the spark plugs out the sound goes away....but put just one back in and it doesn't matter which cylinder...the sound is back....Have good oil pressure, rod bearings are new (replaced those after developing the sound...didn't help)....any suggestions? I was starting to lean towards maybe a flywheel issue?

 

[Artago]

Does it only make the noise at idle? Or does it make it all the way through the RPM band?

 

[DSM pHrEaK]

Does it only make the noise at idle? Or does it make it all the way through the RPM band?

It almost seems like it wants to go away at higher rpm...then as soon as you let off the gas and coast it's just horrible loud

 

[Artago]

It almost seems like it wants to go away at higher rpm...then as soon as you let off the gas and coast it's just horrible loud

Post up a video. Pan the camera around to various area's so we can hear it better.

I have a similar problem, also trying to figure it out.

 

[DSM pHrEaK]

Post up a video. Pan the camera around to various area's so we can hear it better.

I have a similar problem, also trying to figure it out.

Car is about 100 miles away right now...i'll try and get a video up as soon as possible

 

[BLINKY619]

yea man in these situations a good video recording would help alot and pinpoint the problem quicker instead of guessing

 

[DSM pHrEaK]

Tore into it over the weekend....all the flywheel bolts were loose. Don't know how it happened but it did. I had them torqued to spec with locktite too

 

[sharky559]

ok so i finally got my car running took it out for a spin for about one hour, but when i got home and parked it and popped the hood and it started to make loud ticking noise. but if i rev the engine it would go away it only does it when idling. someone help need to know if it a bad lifter or rod knock.

 

[black_eclipse96]

can you post up a video? i have lifter tick on start up until it's warmed up. where does it sound like its coming from?

 

[95blackGsTurbo]

Easy way to tell rod knock is to remove the spark plug wires on each cylinder while the car is running and see if the noise goes away. If it does, then it's a problem with that cylinder. If not it's most likely lifters if it goes away with an increase in RPM which also increases oil pressure.

 

[sharky559]

no it keeps ticking warm or cold and its only on the timing side that the noise is hurd.

 

[bsbllfit7]

could perhaps be a timing belt tensioner going bad as well.

 

[sharky559]

yea also someone had told me to pull out the oil dipstick and look to see if there are any metal shavings.

 

[cookmeup272]

yea also someone had told me to pull out the oil dipstick and look to see if there are any metal shavings.

Might be hard to find on your dipstick...draining the oil is a good/easy way to find metal shavings.

 

[prockish_90gsx]

i would say from not hearing it personally i would think it is lifter tick. As you said it goes away when you rev it. a rod knock will USUALLY sound like a bunch of gorillas banging away in your block but not always. Drain the oil in an open pan and look for shavings big or small. if small maybe you can change bearings and still be ok but probably not???

 

[georgiaboy]

Could be lifter tick.......as you rev the engine, the oil pressure should increase and possibly allow a stubborn lifter to pump up fully taking away the lash causing a tick. Using a long screwdriver or long, rigid object, can you isolate where exactly the noise is coming from? What weight of oil are you using?

-Les

 

[sharky559]

ok bro's so i think i know what happend. i did a valve job on it and i did a bad rookie mistake I FORGOT TO BLEED THE LIFTERS. i did some reading and found out that if you dont bleed the lifters they could bend the valves is that tru need help

i did drain the oil and didnt find metal shavings.

 

[bsbllfit7]

if you did bend valves that should show as a problem on a compression check. I have the same issues right now and am running 170 compression on all 4 cylinders and the knock is intermittent. Do a compression test and that will help us diagnose the problem further

 

[georgiaboy]

Just like bsbllfit7 said, a compression check will tell you if you have bent a valve. Of course, if you did bend a valve you would most likely have a "stumble" or "shake" to the engine at idle due to uneven compression unless you bent every valve the exact same (REALLY unlikely).
Honestly, it could be that you just have a problem lifter that doesn't like to stay inflated during low oil pressure conditions. Are you running really thin oil?

-Les

 

[sharky559]

i did a compression test and got around 150 on all pistons

 

[sharky559]

well found out that lifters are bad and also got rod knock any help would be good

 

[bsbllfit7]

how do you know that you have rod knock? if the lifters are bad what makes you think you have a bad rod bearing as well?

 

[sharky559]

ok for sure i know its the lifters. but when i turn on the car i could hear a louder noise. it comes and goes. but for sure it the lifters because when i rev to 2000 or 3000 rpm the noise stay and never goes.

 

[bsbllfit7]

when the car is first started the oil pressure in the head is non existent almost. This is when we will hear the lifters the most because they have not been oiled yet. My problem happens when i initially start the car as well!