Engine Ticking

[msp3710]

Ive had my car for two years now and it has a ticking noise in the engine bay that started like a year ago.. What do u guys think that could be?

 

[Hughes412]

anything from valves to exhaust. Need more info.

 

[msp35]

Yes, when does it occur, under load, Idle.....Is it a rattle or tick....ehaust leak, valves,
VCTS.....etc......More info needed.

 

[Chewbacca]

I get the same thing... I can only hear it at idle, but I can't seem to isolate where it's coming from. Sounds like it's coming from somewhere in the back of the engine (around where the TB is located). It's definitely a ticking, not a rattle.

It drove me nuts when I first heard it about a year after I got my car... But it has continued to tick without causing any problems, so I've just learned to ignore it. But if anyone knows what it could be, I'd like to know, too.

Yes, when does it occur, under load, Idle.....Is it a rattle or tick....ehaust leak, valves,
VCTS.....etc......More info needed.

 

[Stormtrooper77]

I have the same thing. I believe it was answered here before but I can't remember what it was (some sort of solenoid?).

 

[peepsalot]

it's a bomb! Everybody get down.

 

[chaos2015]

yea my car ticks too

 

[Stormtrooper77]

it's a bomb! Everybody get down.

Hahaha! Funny how you start to believe that from reading the ZOOM ZOOM BOOM theads.

 

[eddiejoe56]

My #1273 (03.5) ticks also, but only after being warmed up and only at idle. When I rev it up, the ticking stops. My MSP is unflashed stock boost. It really didn't start to do this until after a couple of weeks with my SRI and hardpipes. Reading a lot of threads from a "enginer ticking" search resulted in a lot of ignorant people thinking it has something to do with the valve train; "lifters, rockers, etc". They obviously don't know what DOHC means. I remember one thread had the most plausible cause stating it had to do with a TB by-pass solenoid of some type. This makes sense to me, but I don't understand why it only started to act up after the SRI install.

 

[Hughes412]

My #1273 (03.5) ticks also, but only after being warmed up and only at idle. When I rev it up, the ticking stops. My MSP is unflashed stock boost. It really didn't start to do this until after a couple of weeks with my SRI and hardpipes. Reading a lot of threads from a "enginer ticking" search resulted in a lot of ignorant people thinking it has something to do with the valve train; "lifters, rockers, etc". They obviously don't know what DOHC means. I remember one thread had the most plausible cause stating it had to do with a TB by-pass solenoid of some type. This makes sense to me, but I don't understand why it only started to act up after the SRI install.

Ah inlighten me, your saying that a DOHC engine can't have a rattle or tapping in it? Why not.

 

[xfaradx]

There is also a little thing called injector pulse can sound like ticking valves

 

[terbow]

and on msp's on the tb pipe theres that black solenoid that ticks too. or in that area, mine ticks.

 

[Bu11dogg2]

Hopefully you wont become part of the ZOOM ZOOM BOOM club like me...

 

[eddiejoe56]

Reply to Hughes412:

DOHC engines do not have lifters, push rods, or rockers. The cam lobe directly contacts the valve stem end to push it down to open the valve in the head. When shimmed/adjusted properly, there is virtually no mechanical metal-to-metal contact to make tapping noices like the old style valve train.

 

[Hughes412]

I thought you would say that, but what if the spring went bad or the seal?
By the way this is good learnin stuff also.

 

[eddiejoe56]

Reply to Hughes412:

Its been my experience that when you break a valve spring, there'll be alot of noise from the piston hitting the valve hanging in the cylinder. Lucky you don't snap off valve, or bust a piston, and crack the block. Bad valve seals lead to oil seeping into cylinder and tell-tale is blue smoke out the exhaust.

 

[freshorange]

Eddiejoe is totally correct. At this current time my car is in the shop getting a valve job to fix this problem. The shop owner took my head to get it shimmed correctly, only to be told that Mazda doesn't make the shimms as replacement. I was told that the shimm sizes are inconsistent with each of the others. The mechanic that is doing the headwork is having a pain of a time dealing with this problem. He told me that Mazda has does not have a fix it resolution. So in the meantime i haven't had a car in 2.5 months and will not be dealing with the a@@munchers doing the work on my car anymore nor will i recommend them to anyone.

 

[mazdaspeed/se-r]

Reply to Hughes412:

DOHC engines do not have lifters, push rods, or rockers. The cam lobe directly contacts the valve stem end to push it down to open the valve in the head. When shimmed/adjusted properly, there is virtually no mechanical metal-to-metal contact to make tapping noices like the old style valve train.

Oh i hope your not saying no dohc engine has rockers or lifters because that statement is wrong. now if your just talking about the mazda engine then thats correct. They use the bucket style valvetrain. now the sr20 dohc engine that was in my sentra used hydraulic lifters and rocker arms. The cams would press down on the rocker arms and the lifters would keep the correct valve clearance. Now the ga16de dohc that was in my old nissan used the same style bucket system that the mazda engine uses and yes they are known for having loud valvetrain. Rocker type valvetrain like used in the sr20 is alot quieter although that motor uses a timing chain and thats known to be loud but alot more reliable and better than a belt. oh well. Thats my 2 cents.

 

[freshorange]

I was talking about the Mazdaspeed engine.