after much time searching and seeing what others had faced with possibly similiar problems i decided to ask now for other's inputs and views. with the changing colder weather, i just recently discovered that my engine is making a ticking and knocking noise at idle. from the inside of the car i can hear the ticking noise but when i accel it'll subside. i just opened the hood when i had gotten back from work just now and i can hear the ticking noise but also a knocking noise as will. the noise seems to be coming from around the head cover. i checked the oil level and its fine. 1500 miles into an oil change with 10w30. i replaced the spark plugs with bosch platinums, none of the plus' or of the sort back in august. i currently use only 87 octane. my assumption would be are the lifters needing adjustment, upgrade in fuel grade, possible spark plugs arent good enough, or something else much more severe which i dont yet know. if anyone has any experiences and advise, that'd be greatly appreciative. thanks in advance.
Using a higher octane wont do @!#$, actually it will, your car will run worse. Higher octane wont burn all the way and you will get carbon build on valves and rings and spark plugs.
You say the noise is most noticeable at idle. This can be caused by excessive clearance in the valvetrain.
- 2004 Cavalier - 124k, owned since new
Does the noise go away when the engine warms up? I have the same issue with my 2002 Cavalier 2200 OHV and I think it's piston slap. Not anything to worry about but is common with other GM cars and trucks. GM claims it is harmless anyway. I don't notice the noise until the weather gets cooler. Doesn't seem to do it at all in the summer.
God bless America.
cavaleer2002 , no the noise doesnt go away after the car reaches operating temps. i understand piston slap or something close to that occurs on most ohv 2200s, but i rarely see any instances occur on the 2.4TC. what would i do to check to see exactly what would be the source of the ticking? i am leaning it on perhaps since its getting colder that the engine is reacting to it in some form or another, or just a bad coincidence of it occuring and it really is something else
again thanks ppl in advance.
may be lifters or timing chain, most likely lifter, use a long screw driver, pit the skinny end to various places, and listen to the fat end, or use an old vac line or sum sort of small rubber hose. (sort of like a Stethoscope) and see where exactly the noise is coming from
if indeed it is a lifter problem, and from my understanding if it is, its not a serious threat to my vehicle right? i'll possibly schedule an appointment with my mechanic if it might be it or not, he'll have to check it, unless it would be something i could fix myself and save. bare in mind im only partially mechnically inclined; im still learning. timing chain, is it something i can easily take apart and look at, or is it something that requires oil to be drained and taking the timing cover off to look at?<--sounds like a dumb question i know......thanks again
im at work now and i took a few min outside my job to start the car up and looked under the hood. i paid close attention to the ticking noise and it seems to be coming from just around the alternator and the serpentine belt<---correct item? i have to take a closer look, if its just a worn belt then perhaps i can look over my haynes/chilton book to see how to take the belt off and see if i can replace it. hopefully its just that, a worn belt that squeaks. if anyone wants to give me advice on how to properly take apart the belt, by all means, all the help is greatly appreciated.
damn no edit button. if i remember correctly that theres a serpentine belt lube that could be used. perhaps one of the first steps to see if it is a crack/worn belt would be if i check the belt for signs of cracking or see if it needs some lube cause of the cold?
im home now. i did the mechanic's trick test on the serpentine belt by running the engine and dropped a few droplets of water, the ticking stopped but i hear a knocking sound coming from under the IDI cover. what is this sort of knocking associated either the LD9s or cars overall?
From under the IDI cover it could be valve tapping or spark arching. How many miles is on the car? It might be time to change the springs from the coil packs to the plugs. If it's from the valves, you might wanna try 5W30 oil in your car since it gets cold in PA and the slightly thinner oil will lube up the innerds of the motor quicker in colder weather.
Just a side note, going to a higher octane gas will not hurt your engine. I have a 98 Z24 and run right now 91 octane. It burns clean and I get a little more get up and go using it. I have run my own tests using 87, 89, and 91 octane in my car over the years. Using 91 octane dollar wise costs me just as much as using 87 octane. The fuel burns more effiecently with 91 octane and since it does, I use less of it, hence I get better gas mileage. Since I get better mileage, I use less 91 octane. This is why I say dollar wise I use, or should I say, I buy the same dollar amount when I go to fill up. If you want, just use 89 octane and see what happens with your car. IT WILL NOT HURT YOUR ENGINE.
98 Z24
RIP Specks
Well when it gets cold out the fuel gets cold. Sometimes and I do stress sometimes
the injectors can be heard clicking when its running when its cold outside. Try and take a quick listen around where your injectors are and see if the clicking doesn't come from them. If not it may be just because of higher mileage and the oil being thicker when its colder when you first start it. It doesn't sound like you have an engine thats on its way out just an older one.
Semper Fi SAINT. May you rest in peace.
This will sound like I have no idea how a engine works but here it goes.
I have heard engines tick at idle and it would sound like it was coming from the valve/lifter area.Mostly on dual overhead cam engines (stealth and dohc 2.3 olds). Now what the fix was the pcv valves were plugged and the engine needs the vacuum at idle(low oil pressure/flow) to help pull the oil up to the top of the engine. On the stealth it raised the oil pressure 1/2 lb at the top end and the lifters quit ticking at idle. This was on older high mileage engines and as the engine wears the clearances become greater and more oil can flow out at every bushing/bearing and it requires more flow to keep the same oil pressure through out the engine. The valve train is at the end of the oil system in most motors, so it only gets what is left over.
Check them and also look for vac leaks in the scavange lines it might help
^ you mentioned the pcv valve. i understand it'll need replacement adfter every oooo what 15000miles or so? i dont think the previous owner had done so. the car when i bought it had 74000 and now its at 80000. ever since i got the car back in August i used the wal-mart brand-super-tech, with 10w-30. IF and IF changing the oil from a thinner blend, 5w-30, hopefully it'll work. again i have yet another 1500 more miles til 3000 for an oil change and i've been lazy changing it myself, so the next wal-mart visit i promised myself i'll switch to snythetic blend and 5w-30. going back to the pcv valve, where exactly is that located and how would i be able to replace it? i do have the manuals, but its outside right now and its freezing cold! hmm i might as will go tomorrow for the oil change and replace the pcv valve and see if it'll fix the problem. again thanks ppl for your support and expertise!
Never thought of the PCV valve but I guess it makes sence and its easy enough to try.
Well good luck hope it works for you!
Semper Fi SAINT. May you rest in peace.
my eco makes a similar noise i just brushed it off as valvetrain and nothing to worry about.
2004 Cavalier, 2.2 ecotec, 5spd getrag
do you ever notice that the ones who talk the loudest have the least to talk about?
ok i have a 2.4 twin and this is tha exact same symptoms i had when i threw my bearings dont hold it against me but thats my guess, but im no damn mechanic!
Riley was your noise coming from the top of the engine or below the engine? i think where the noise is coming from plays an important role. anyways i didnt change my oil yet, my dad listened to the sound and only heard the ticking noise coming from the serpentine belt area. the belt seemed new, i saw no ribs on 90% of the belt. i did went out to buy a bottel of serpentine belt lubbe, but for some unknwon reasno it made the ticking/suealing louder than usual
. i dont know why it did so but now its more annoying. the knocking seemed to had stopped since i added 89 octane and fuel injection cleaner. i cant find the part number for the cavalier's pcv vavle anywhere. pep boys nor autozone carried it. is the only place to get the pcv valve from GM directly? i do bet it'll cost a number for the part
. anyways let me know if theres a better place to buy one and where the pcv valve is located on the car. thanks in advance.
will i just posted my 2.4l problems
after a mechanic change my sprak plugs i got the ticking a few weeks later
6 months later i finally have money and find out it was just the other mechanice didnt torque my spark plugs and they air was being pushed out during compression.
try regapping and torqueing your spraks plugs, or get ac delco since there the best for 2.4l anyways
yea i saw that jago. i havent had the chance to check my spark plugs yet. i do have however the bosch platinums but i have to see on the box if and whether its pre-gapped to .06 or not. also, call me a newb but how do you go about measuring the gapping distance on spark plugs? i hear there is a certain tool to measure them but the tool's inexpensive so thats not a problem. just curious if i do need one to find the measurements. thanks
The 2.4 does not have a normal PCV Valve. It's a PCV oil serparator. More like a permenant type system.
98 Z24
RIP Specks
The 2.2's pre ecotec I believe, had a PCV valve in the top of the valve cover. The 2.4 has an oil seperator below and slightly behing the TB and Intake. There is no valve per say. Just a big vacuum line going into the air intake can on top of the TB. This takes any fumes from the crank case and gets sucked into the TB. I know someone on here could probably explain with more technical expertise than myself. That is what I understand.
98 Z24
RIP Specks
If you look in your other post about gas smell, Jackalope answered your PCV question a little better than I did.
Sorry for the quick double post.
98 Z24
RIP Specks
ic....will thanks for educating me on the subject
Mine knocks, I have 184,900 miles tho
its a 97 2.4 Z24
BUT!!
it was knocking when it had 60,000 miles
somebody told me its just the valves and not to worry about it.
The dealer also told me that it only knocks a little bit during idle, but after I give it gas the knocking goes away. I can only hear the knocking noise if I turn the radio OFF
and play close attention to engine noice.
if that's the knocking you're talking about, then I think you might be O.K
