and another problem

[tweety2300]

i know i know seems like i have alot of problems with this car but its actually not even mine its my fiancee or however you spell it she just doesnt take care of it. about 3 months ago it started ticking sounded like a lifter but only did it after about 4000 rpms. i checked the oil it was 3 quarts low put some cheap walmart stuff in it temporaly after 2 weeks i did a real oil change i went with royal purple 10-40 made a noticible power difference i might add. but it quit ticking untill about 2 weeks ago and still only after about 4000 rpms but not all the time i try to make it tick i even wound it all the way out in 3rd rev limiter comes in at 90-95 but when she drives it she shifts at about 3500 to 4000 from 1st to 2nd and it ticks sometimes but still not all the time. im hoping with it runing low on oil its just a lifter im not sure if over head cams have them but still im hoping.

ps. to any smart asses yes im making the mistake of getting married

 

[pw~mp5]

That ticking that only occurs above a certain RPM and especially after running low on oil is a spun rod bearing. You will either need to rebuild the engine or find a replacement.

 

[martispeed]

+1 most likely a spun rod bearing... Were there any metal shavings in the oil when you changed it?

 

[tweety2300]

no there was none i made a point to check. and it mainly only does it in 1st its never done it in 4th or 5th. and i noticed yesterday that the ticking doesnt get faster as the rpms go up. how can you tell which rod bearing is bad and about how much do they cost? im just wondering if it could be something in the trans?

 

[tweety2300]

http://www.jcwhitney.com/connecting-rod-bearing-set-standard/p2024740.jcwx?filterid=c1694d1455j1

i found this not sure if its right what else should i replace while im in there i was thinking about piston rings and obviously head gasket and all the other gaskets

 

[tweety2300]

does anybody know how much of a power gain you can get with forged pistons? i figured i may as well throw some goodies in when i do it. it will never be turbod or have a s*** ton of power so im gona stick with the stock rods and crank ive made the list of stuff im ordering from protege garage just need the money and to know if its worth spendin 300-600 on pistons

 

[CulRidr]

Zero power from going forged (unless you bump up the compression, which means tuning and more care, which the car obviously doesn't get), and a total waste of money if it's simply going to be daily driven...

 

[tweety2300]

o wow i was thinkin about spendin 600 on the arias i woulda been pissed. but the ticking has stopped again does it come and go if its a rod bearing?

 

[tweety2300]

Ok so I've had a chance to fix a few of the problems its had but the cel came on after I got the new o2 sensor I took it to autozone and it came up the 2nd o2 sensor and another one p0660 intake manifold tuning control the guy seemed to know what he was talking about but he said it was a valve in the head stuck open which is probly the cause of the ticking I also noticed that it also ticks in between shifts while the rpms are going down and a rough idle the tick is really quiet u actually have to be listning for it to hear it I had somebody look at it and said it was way to quiet for it to be a rod bearing and that I would experience somewhat of a power loss and there would be metal in the oil it also seems to be going through oil rather quickly about 3\4 of a quart of royal purple in 2 months. Does any body know for sure that this is what is causing all of my problems and if it is is it possible for it to wait till I get my taxes so I can do it right and rebuild the head completely? Any help would be greatly appreciated

 

[CulRidr]

Not sure about the problem itself, but you can buy used heads on here pretty often at rather good deals. I've seen some rebuild ones sell for under 300$ so I would start searching if you are convinced it's the problem. Someone will eventually come on here and post something more concise. Might be worth your while to post in the P5 section as well as there is more traffic over there.

 

[pat_neumerz]

Not saying that this is the problem but i had a weird ticking at certain rpms too and it was super weird i though spun bearing and was not happy about it. At just about 2000 rpm the coilpack would tick almost like a gas stove lighting. I pulled off the plastic engine cover and sure enough the coilpack was sparking. I ended up temporarily fixing it for about 30 cents worth of silicone in the mean time while I order a new one.

 

[tweety2300]

Well its gettin the 2nd o2 sensor tom. Along with a header gasket ( I noticed yesterday it had a lot of seapage) I'm thinking it could be an exhaust leak but doubtfull. And thanks pat I've noticed it will missfire on rare occasions usually up hill so ill be cheaking those tommarow as well. And culridr I believe I read one of your threads on rebuilding your head did you do that yourself or have someone do it for you? If you did it yourself where can I get a good rebuild kit (lifters, valves, springs etc.) Thanks for all the help next time I'm at a computer ill put this in the p5 section

 

[CulRidr]

I had it done when the entire engine was rebuilt by my dealership.
I bought separate springs due to the cams I was putting in, but no need to replace, those and the valves. You just need all the seals, o-rings and gaskets and a couple of other things. I'd buy it from onlinemazdaparts or someplace like that if you want to rebuild yourself instead of simply buying a used head on here.

 

[tweety2300]

I thought we had lifters? And does anybody have a clue as to what the intake manifold tuning control is? I've looked everywhere on here and no luck I'm thinking it could be the egr valve. The dealership says they won't know unless they hook the computer up to it which is 80 bucks and also bs

 

[CulRidr]

Sorry, I was thinking push rods (brain fart). Are you talking about the shims?

 

[tweety2300]

Shims? Sorry I'm more used to small engines and older cars shims are used to adjust the lifters I believe aren't they?

 

[tweety2300]

Well after I put the 2nd o2 sensor on the ce light went away for a day but now its throwing p0421 this is usually the egr valve being clogged up right? I'm kinda thinkin that since it was runing with a bad o2 sensor for so long the cat might be bad which means obx header

 

[dstmsp03]

time for some sea foam! the ticking could be an exhaust leak, coil pack could be a cam cap has loosened a bit.. could be a worn valve. a number of things... fix your exhaust leak first, get some windex when the car is running and give a little spritz over the coil pack.. if they are arcing, you will see it.. if its not these.. then its internal on the head..

 

[tweety2300]

I'm positive its the internals it was a lil low on oil I put some in it (kept with the royal purple) let it idle for a few mins let it mix in good and its not ticking now I tried through 1st and 2nd took it up to 4500. it also ticked \ rattled for about 2 seconds this morning on a cold start

 

[tweety2300]

And this one has me completely stumped. Sometimes when I go to star it it will just click like the battery is dead or it has a bad solenoid but if I pull the hood latch to pop the hood itl start right up. It usually does this on cold starts but is becoming more frequent and it has thoroly confused me any ideas?