Loki

Since the weather warmed up (last 2 months) I have noticed a noise coming from the right rear underside of the engine... Sounds like something in between "dakadakadaka" and "chufchufchufchufchuf". car has 173k miles What I know it's NOT: spark plugs/wires/ changed them out. exhaust leak/ patched 2 small holes between cat and muffler, tested exhaust system by covering tailpipe with a piece of cardboard pressed by hand... pressure built up in 3-4 seconds and caused idle to change. other observations: Intermittent P0325 code (engine knock sensor) Goes away after complete cooldown. Seems to only show up when car is driven multiple hours consecutively The sound is timed with engine rpm not speed of vehicle, and is most apparent when accelerating, almost completely inaudible when car is not moving even when revved into 3-4 k rpm range. Engine seems to deliver plenty of power/ no trouble merging into 70mph traffic gas mileage is down maybe 5 % Not burning oil, (no white or blue smoke) only adding 1/2 quart every 2-3k miles b/t changes Head gasket is intact/ no mayo under oil cap or bubbles/oil in coolant Exhaust manifold is solid/ no loose gaskets All 4 injectors are ticking along normally no major fluid leaks under chassis Would adjusting the valves remedy this? any Ideas are welcome and appreciated.

Could be. I wonder what would explain why it only does it noticeably under load.

Just got my car resurected from a head job. retorqued the heads.got much improved performance... now noticing a puttering noise not unlike farting when accelerating. no noticeable smoke or fluid leaks. any ideas?

I was pulling the oil pump to check it and redoing the timing belts, so I decided to pull the radiator to get at the front of the engine easier. I drained the coolant with the valve on the Passenger side of the radiator, Then I noticed there were two small hoses (1/2"ish) going to the driver's side of the Radiator... When i pulled the hoses reddish /brownish oil drained out... Is this AT tranny fluid? That's my best guess anyway. On a side note... when I drained the oil there were very small particles of coolant in it. Like 1mm beads... I know that it probably means I need to resurface the heads but there was no oil in the coolant... Hrmmm. On another side note; How do you test the oil pressure gauge in the instrument cluster? can the gauge handle a direct jump to the battery? And would an improperly installed oil pan (translated LOOSE) cause an apparent lack of oil pressure? Hoping to get back on the road some day. :-\

well, a screwdriver in the timing hole worked like a charm. Now I am having a hell of a time getting the Passenger side timing belt cover off. all of the bolts are spinning freely in their housings.... I am going to have to break it off. Oh well... So now I realize I have a blown head gasket after draining the oil. Found very small particles of coolant in the oil. I hadn't seen any bubbles in the coolant reservoir tho. any thoughts?

OK so for all who are interested. Changing SP Cables seemed to make a difference... until the car warms up... then the idle drops way low... but not dying anymore. Checked the sender signal from battery to oil pressure sensor... had voltage (Like 14). decided to pull the oil pump, clean it, check it to see if it is within spec. The leak from what I thought was the oil pan gasket seems to be mostly up around oil pump anyway. Got halfway through getting the timing belt off then had to quit. Is the best way to get the crankcase pulley off with a sprocket tool? seems like that would put a lot of tension on the TB... oh well I am pulling it anyway... If i mess it up I can always put a new one on.... Always fun to learn by doing it wrong the first time. Will post about progress here.

Ok stupid question... I know how to measure volts, resistance, and connectivity... So which setting do I use to measure drain? Would it come up measuring amperage? Thanks for the input though.... Thanks in advance for a reply

So I just bought this 92 Loyale (1.8 l SPFI) AT. 143 k miles. The oil pan gasket is leaking... will be dropping oil pan and replacing gasket... The oil pressure gauge is reporting nothing. Maybe wiring issue... wanted to know if anyone had trouble with oil pressure sensors. Also the battery is draining with the car off. Alternator is new and charges battery fine. I wonder if anyone has any experience finding electrical leaks... like a short that is happening with the car off? Thirdly, after the engine warms up, she doesn't want to idle... When I accelerate, the power seems OK but she makes a bit of a puttering sound. THe guy who had the car before me changed the spark plugs w/out doing the wires too. I have new wires to put on, so I was going to test for a missing cylinder while I was doing the changeout. Last, the drivers side window cluster doesn't work.... Was going to pull the door panel and clean connectors to start with.... Any ideas would be appreciated... anything I am not doing that I should be?