ticking noise from engine

[nimos]

hi, i have a 320 v6 engine 1996 i have giving it a full service, the engine was very quite when ticking over but after i changed the spark plugs there is a ticking noise, have i done something wrong? or is the tappets thanks for you help

[supertack]

Gotta be the valves hitting something. Timing chain issues, I dunno. I've heard about the older 6ers having this problem a lot.

[LiquidBMW76]

Alot of the times it is the timing chain tensioner when you start getting a ticking noise.

[Wayne 962]

Right, you can try changing the chain tensioners, but I think he's describing a sticky lifter. When I had this problem, I changed oil to a thinner viscosity, ran the car a few hundred miles, and then changed back to a thicker oil, and it went away. Apparently flushing the oil out with different thin oils can help clear passages and bring lifters back to life. There's some more info on this too in the head gasket Project of the 101 book...

-Wayne

[Jeron]

Did you change engine oil grades during your maintenance? Is the noise when hot, cold or both?

Ticking noises are common questions and not always a problem. The chain tensioner is a good part to consider if it sounds like chain rattle. It could also be that you aren't used to hearing your engine running with the hood up.

[nimos]

thanks for that, will change the oil, what oil do you recommend, i got some synthitic 10/40

[Jeron]

In the summer, I use 10w40 in my E36 M3 in the winter I use 5w-30. I use Royal Purple. I would choose in this order: Redline, Amsoil, Castrol, Royal Purple, Mobil1. Mobil1 is at the bottom because I, and others have had consumption issues.

On another forum today, a ticking sound was diagnosed as a bad belt, a missing chunk of rib actually. It's worth a look

[Wayne 962]

I like Mobil 1, but it is a very thin oil, and can sometimes cause leaks on older cars, in particular air-cooled Porsches. The rule of thumb I typically have is if a car has been run with synthetic, then stick with it. If not, then don't. Keep whatever the car's seals are used to...

-Wayne

[Chilly]

Did you lean on the plastic fan shroud when doing the maintenance? Listen to see if the sound comes from near the radiator.

Chilly

[Wayne 962]

Originally posted by Chilly
Did you lean on the plastic fan shroud when doing the maintenance? Listen to see if the sound comes from near the radiator.

Chilly

Good thought - it may also be the radiator not mounted properly (there was another thread on this a while back), where the engine fan hits the shroud...

-Wayne

[brka]

Originally posted by nimos
hi, i have a 320 v6 engine 1996 i have giving it a full service, the engine was very quite when ticking over but after i changed the spark plugs there is a ticking noise, have i done something wrong? or is the tappets thanks for you help

This ticking noise could be caused by a loose spark plug. Compression escaping trough the spark plug socket can sound just as you described.

[nimos]

thanks for your feedback, i changed the oil and the ticking has gone, cheers

[Jeron]

Originally posted by brka
This ticking noise could be caused by a loose spark plug. Compression escaping trough the spark plug socket can sound just as you described.

Funny coincidence, I've had a knock for the last few weeks and finally got around to looking at it yesterday. It was exhaust side and sounded like a cracked header or header gasket but I finally isolated the noise to the #4 sparkplug which was loose.

[Wayne 962]

Originally posted by Jeron
Funny coincidence, I've had a knock for the last few weeks and finally got around to looking at it yesterday. It was exhaust side and sounded like a cracked header or header gasket but I finally isolated the noise to the #4 sparkplug which was loose.

Also, plugs can have their insulation fail, which can cause similar problems / noises...

-Wayne