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HELP-metallic tapping sound, what could it be?

F

fst

New member
recently just started making this metallic tapping noise. the pace of it seems to go with the throttle, meaning the higher the RPMs the quicker the it gets, but theres a slight delay between the taping and the RPMs. also when i turn off the car the tapping can be heard very obvious with a few tapping then it stops. i checked this morning the rear exhaust mani gasket as it sounds like its around that region, but the gaskets fine and no blow out. a failed lifter? spring? need your guys expertise on this please im getting worried and aggravated[X(][>:][:@][:'(]
metallic tapping
u can tel in teh vid i was aplying a bit of throttle to let u guys hear if the tapping is going with the RPMs, i think it is.

again any help is gratly appreciated [:(]

i checked the flexplate and i saw no cracks. i changed the oil and filter in case it was a collapsed oil filter, as a local suggested but teh sounds still there.

:th_nervous::(:confused:
 


i took off the rear and front valve covers but did not notice anything wrong with the springs nor the rockers. although i dont have a 28mm socket to manually crank the crank pulley i tried pushing down on the rockers on the pushrod on all of them to see if any of them would sink, to test whether it would 'collapse', but none of them did. upon start up i noticed the lifters tick a bit louder than usual and after driving til the motor warms up and i start eharing the tapping sound, it seems to go in sync with the misfire/lopiness of the vs cam. is it possible a lifter(s) would go from a loud tick to a metallic tapping sound?
 
try taking out the lifters and seeing if any of them are damaged...have you changed your oil too? Might try some Lucas Oil Stabilizer...it got rid of my lifter tick...until the INJECTOR failed :p
 


changed the oil and the old oil looked fine and the level was within the dotted lines. new oil is the same i've been using, mobil 5000 10w-30, but i tried switching from the ac delco pf-52 to the oem pf-47 but still no change. oil level with the fresh oil is again within the dotted lines.

edit-did anyone listen to the sound? i heard dubob's sample clip of a local having loud lifter ticking that was failing, but is this a smiliar scenario?
 
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I listened to your vid. It sounds like the chatter I had before my lifters all pumped up and oil got to the top end of the motor after my top swap.
 
is using the oil stablizer even worth a chance to try? my beater's down at the same time as well, and when it rains, it sure as hell pours on my case >.<
can i baby the car til i get a chance to get the beater running, or is it more catastrphic as i keep driving it?
 
I would be inclined to say that sound is a lifter. And yeah, the more you drive it, the worse the damage will be. A lifter failure could score the cam as well.
 
i will say this sounds exactly like what my engine did right before i spun a 3 bearings take off the oil pan and take a look
 


FST:

Even though I am a newbie here, I am going to vote on a valve train related issue. The tapping does not sound deep enough to be a bearing (to me anyway).

Possibly a bent pushrod, or cracked rocker arm. How about a loose flexplate/convertor bolt?

Since I am not sure about the timing chain tensioner on these newer 3.8s, how about a loose chain? I do agree though that you ought to find out the cause sooner than later otherwise you might be in for a new motor.


Don
 
I drove my car on a bad lifter...if you didnt see the pics they was bad :(

You can try some oil stabilizer but if you can change them out...check the springs/pushrods/rockers...hope you get it figured out.
 
a majority of ppl suggest its a valvetrain issue, a few say cracked flexplate, and only one mentioned bearing. i pulled the valve covers on both and although i dont have a 28mm socket to manually crank the motor over, i did inspect and felt the springs and rockers and noticed none were cracked and i pushed down on each rocker arm on the pushrod side and none seemed to collapse. i also checked my flexplate and saw no signs of cracks.

when i start the car i do notice the lifters are ticking louder than normal especially when driving with the windows down, which i thought was a leaky exhaust. as i would drive more and the motor would eventually wamr up is when i start to hear the metallic tapping gradually get more steady in sound.
 
FST:

If you have not already, get yourself a piece of 3/8 fuel line rubber hose, and CAREFULLY listen in and around the motor while it idles. Don't be afraid to put the end of the hose right on parts of the engine during this process.

The hose should funnel the noise right up to your ear, and let you pinpoint it a bit better.

One more caution: Be careful about getting the hose too close to any source of vacuum while it is close to your ear. If you are like me, I cannot afford to have what little brains I have sucked out. LOL

Don
 


well i tried using a long philips with the plastic handle to use as a stethoscope(did i already mention that above?:th_laugh-pointup:). i didnt hear anything abnormal around the valve covers, front exhaust primaries, blower, a section on the block where the valve cover is located, and the section b/t the tranny and block.
 
I was gonna say...since you sometimes hear the rotors clapping, you might try taking off the S/C belt and then listen...helped me out ;)
 
a bit of an update....swapped the motor out and swapped in another motor. only thing i actually reused from the old motor was one oil lifter. this 'new' motor i installed new timing chain and dampner, new cam bolt, front cover gasket, new zzp alunimum LIM gasket and i also reused the flexplate as i need it for my 2750 zzp stall converter. the flexplate i notice no cracks.
the bottom line is, the metallic tapping is still there! so frustrating what it could be.
 
i'm no expert, but i noticed that you have a cold air intake. if this tapping is with the rpm's, the cai can put emphasis on sounds like that from the engine. this same thing happened with my brother's '04 GT
 
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