Obnoxious valvetrain tick. Ideas?
 

I've had a very annoying tick ever since I changed my oil about 600 miles ago. I just got this car on March 30th. This tick is coming from the top of the motor. It's steady with rpms and honestly sounds like a sticking lifter. I used 10w30 Mobil1 and a Wix oil filter. Could it just be that the engine needs a good cleaning? I'm considering using seafoam for a few miles to clean as much of the gunk out as possible if that seems the case.

Post a video. I think wix oil filters are good but I only use Mann or OEM.

seafoam wont help brother. l was in the same shoes. post a video and we will help u figure out whats wrong with yours. does it sound like this?

There's a specific issue that causes this, and a fairly standard fix for it that doesn't cost a fortune. The drawback is this: you're not going to like doing it. It involves dropping the oil pan and replacing the O-rings on the pickup tube. Mine ticks as well, but it doesn't bother me enough to drop the pan yet.

My lifters ticked a bit (Not as as bad as the one in slimflex's video.) once when my oil got a tad on the low side and I had left my car sitting for a couple of weeks. I topped off the oil and drove around the block for a few minutes and the tick went away.

I have also heard using the wrong oil filter can cause lifter tick. Try an OEM oil filter and see if that does the trick.

My tick is EXACTLY like the s70 in this last video. I may completely top off the oil and see how well it does. I keep it in range but never low. It's usually mid way in the hash. Also, the filter it had originally when I got it was a Valvoline filter. It didn't tick at all then.

I use mann filters, which are o.e. And i still tick a little for the first few minutes when it's cold.

That's the weirdest part about it. This car doesn't tick when it's cold. It ticks once it warms up. It'll rattle around for a couple seconds once it starts but after that first 2-3 seconds, it's smooth until the engine warms up. That's when it gets noisy.

one or two of your lifters are shot. the same thing happened to me. mine knocked real hard when it was warm. took me two years to figure out what was wrong with my car.

l added soo many additives and still didnt help. got new lifters, found special time and changed all my lifters. for a couple of days the knock stopped and came back after two days. it knocks and stops. finally changed my oil pan seals and now it sounds really quiet.no more tick. thats my engine after l worked on it.
ignore the squeaking sound. its my power steering pump needing greasing.

man oil filters stops dry start up. if you use aftermarkets oil filters your lifters will tick on start up and should stop after a few minutes. but when it doesnt stop, either your lifters are shot or the oil pan seals needs replacing as the seals are bleeding off pressure to the lifters. l would change the oil pan seals first and see if that helps because its the cheapest way.the seals cost like 20-30 dollars

Well, I completely topped off the oil and it practically cured my tick. Wix filters are supposed to have anti-drainback valves but I guess not. Next oil change is going to have a much better filter included. I really don't like dry starts. I'll do research on what I have at my store and find the best fit. Mann filters are a little beyond my reach and I get a really good discount at my store. Also, this is a little off-topic, how much does the stock downpipe hurt performance? What would I gain from changing it to a performance one? I want to do an exhaust and I'd like to minimize costs for now.

What are you calling "oil pan seals"? The oil pick up tube seals that prevents low oil pressure?

Mann oil filters are pretty cheap, under $5 each on must euro websites.

yea l mean the oil pick up tube seals. l was referring to all the seals found in the oil pan

what is your cars year and model. upgrading the exhuast helps better flow.

Mine is a 1995 850 Turbo. I found this OBX kit with two of the three styles of downpipe for $410 shipped to my door. I could sell the unused one for a little cash back. The only type it won't fit is the conical flanged turbo.

The obx will NOT fit the stock turbo on a 94...all me how i know! Lol...I'm betting it won't fit the 95 either.

Well, you were right about the flange. The 94-95 uses the conical flange. Either I weld the proper flange onto the OBX pipe or I change the turbine housing. I think I'll change the housing since I have to rebuild this turbo sometime soon anyway. No big deal. So, excluding fit issues with my car, is OBX worth a few Benjamins?

My car was doing the same thing as yours,ticking after I changed the oil.

I read through the thread a bit; decided togo check the oil level. It was within the full marks, about 3/4 of the way up.I added almost a quart and the ticking noise has gone away. Thanks!