Spazz698 Posted July 10, 2005 Share Posted July 10, 2005 Well I went to work horribly early this morning (6:30 on a sunday!! not only that on my DAY OFF!!! Company meetings suck) Got there just fine but on my way home 2 hours later my car started making this horribly loud tick. I know its within the engine it goes faster (and possibly louder, it seems like it) the higher the rpms. Is this that tick of death thing I've read about? 260k mi on this car, and not once did it make this painful sound til this morning. well I can verify the first 230k...but you know. Now I am the type to turn up the radio when I know something's making noise but it's not gonna affect driving the car in any way (like the clicking of my cv axle, I got 20k left on it lol) but this ticking is LOUD. I heard it over my stereo, which is usually fairly loud at that. I need this fixed, and I want to avoid pulling the valve cover off as much as possible thanks to the limited space in there. It's either coming from the front or the drivers side, unfortunately a stethoscope didnt help me on this since it didnt absorb any sounds so I cant tell for sure. From what I've read (and know about my car) its either the timing or the valve lifters. Should I try seafoam? Oh and if this helps, apparently my car was low on oil, I do have a leak and I swear I checked it less than a week ago and it was close to full, checked it today and barely on the dipstick (ie way way low) I've done this before but it never made sounds of it. I'm driving more thanks to my new job and I havent taken it to account of my oil loss yet, I wasnt expecting to add oil for a few more days! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soobmater Posted July 10, 2005 Share Posted July 10, 2005 yes it is the tick of death. if it is really loud. hows your oil pressure? is it a lil bit low. i just had it on my car. you might have to rebuild or replace oil pump. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
86subaru Posted July 10, 2005 Share Posted July 10, 2005 try 20-w50 or 15-40 weight oil , or mmo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spazz698 Posted July 10, 2005 Author Share Posted July 10, 2005 Well I just checked my lifters, they look good, well lubed and they're not sticking, nothing seems to blocking oil movement but I did hear a nice leak coming from my intake manifold. Now that I've actually looked at it it sounds a lot like my car's prematurely detonating in one cyl. According to a couple people I've talked to that leak can cause it to do just that. I just dont know why I didnt hear it w/ a stethoscope but when I checked it again a little more throughly I could hear it just fine. Maybe cuz I wasnt listening for that inparticular. So I have to wait til tomorrow since the intake manifold gasket has to be ordered to see if it was really that or not. I had a feeling it was leaking a long long time ago when I couldnt figure out why no air was going thru my iac valve. If its not that that's fine too, I think it's time this car gets a series of new gaskets, Im justhoping it's not serious, I dont really want to give up on it (as if I have to tear down the motor I will, I cant afford to do that right now and I just dont have time either) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spazz698 Posted July 11, 2005 Author Share Posted July 11, 2005 On my way to napa (yeah I drove my subie) the ticking quieted down, I picked up some seafoam and since it quieted down I managed to pinpoint the damn ticking- within my driver's side valve cover (yay lol it was the lifters) put the seafoam in there, probably less than it said to cuz I have a paranoia thing with stuff I've never used, drove it 50 mi on the freeway and after about 5-10 min on the start of that drive (not quite on the freeway yet) the sound totally disappeared, right along with any strange noise my car may have been making except the intake leak of course lol. Totally made my day. That stuff's great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Setright Posted July 11, 2005 Share Posted July 11, 2005 If only they sold over here! (Although, I don't have any use at this time. Fingers crossed) Glad it did the trick :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subie94 Posted July 24, 2005 Share Posted July 24, 2005 i haven't tried seafoam yet,but the other day i picked up a quart of rislone engine treatment.picked it up while i was at work(walmart)supposed to keep engines clean-quiets noisy lifters & valves-restore lost power.i put it in yesterday cause i was down a quart(says i could put it in when down a quart),started it today an ran her for about 10 mins.tick went away like that. now i'm not trying to say it's better then seafoam(cause i haven't tried seafoam)but i was surprised that it worked that fast. :cool: just thought i'd add my tick fix Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subie94 Posted August 6, 2005 Share Posted August 6, 2005 i haven't tried seafoam yet,but the other day i picked up a quart of rislone engine treatment.picked it up while i was at work(walmart)supposed to keep engines clean-quiets noisy lifters & valves-restore lost power.i put it in yesterday cause i was down a quart(says i could put it in when down a quart),started it today an ran her for about 10 mins.tick went away like that. now i'm not trying to say it's better then seafoam(cause i haven't tried seafoam)but i was surprised that it worked that fast. :cool: just thought i'd add my tick fix well it didn't work Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spazz698 Posted August 6, 2005 Author Share Posted August 6, 2005 Mine comes back about every 3k mi- so if and when I get the chance to do an oil change I stick like 1/4-1/3 can of seafoam in it soon after. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted August 6, 2005 Share Posted August 6, 2005 these additives will work on dirty or seized HLA's (hydraulic valve lash adjustors). if dirty or sticking HLA's are causing your valve train noise then this may work. if the HLA's are not functioning properly due to air bubbles in the oil supply (bad oil pump gasket or seal) then these additives will do nothing. changing oil or viscosity can change the ticking and might seem like a good fix but if a seal or gasket is leaking it's only a temporary band aid. that is why these additives work for some and don't for others. typically the oil pump seals/gaskets need to be replaced to maintain good oil supply to the HLA's. air in the oil won't allow the HLA's to pump up properly because air is compressible and oil is not. this causes the HLA's to not pump up properly and the resulting noise. if additives don't do it for you then it's likely the oil pump needs attention. in my experience the oil pump seals are more problematic than anything else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverback Posted December 11, 2005 Share Posted December 11, 2005 How is your ticking? From time to time I scan the posts and I have not seen what I use: Chevron Delo 400 Multigrade 15W-40. You will find it locally available in gallon jugs, quart containers take some searching. Delo 400 is known as an oil for diesel engines. It is rated for naturally aspirated and turbocharged 4-stroke diesel and 4-stroke gas engines. Works well with EGR, (exhaust gas recirculating), engines due to soot dispersancy. Concerned with compatibilty of Service? API Service catagories of CI-4 PLUS and below. I don't sell it, I just use it. Use the correct filter, try some Delo 400, and post a performance note after 3k miles. 87 GL wagon, 5spd, d/r, almost 180k Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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