Tapping at idle

[NYGarageQueen]

Hey everyone -

Well I completed the swap and got the motor running, and the car moves under its own power now. The only thing is at idle I am hearing a tapping from the right valve cover - but as soon as you give her a little gas it goes away.

Now here are some conditions the car is under;

-The gas in the car is back when I started the transplant, which is over a year I would say.

-The gas is 87 :shake: I know I know but that is what I had in the tank before the transplant and I was stupid not to drain the tank before end.

-Here in New York we get condensation in the tank so I have a feeling there might be water in the tank.

Now this only happens after the motor is running for a good 5 minutes. At a cold start, you do not hear this what so ever. Just did an oil change yesterday so there is plenty of oil in the motor.

The motor has around 70 thos on it.

Any thoughts?

Thanks!
-Jon

[CBT]

You using the right oil?

[Blackened300a]

First things first, Get that gas out of the tank!!!!! These engines do make ticking noises at idle. Its common. Anyway of posting up a video or sound clip to identify it better?

[Egon Spengler]

I have a tapping at idle in my car as well with 103,000 on her... Goes away when not idling... I used correct oil and correct gasoline.

[NYGarageQueen]

Wow, I was gone for 5 minutes fast responses lol. As far as oil I am using Motorcraft 5-20 synthetic blend because I had no previous history on the motor and what oil the owner used (the motor was out of a wreck).

I am going to drop the tank this week and get put my other tank in and fill it with the appropriate gas.

A side note, I just took the pcv valve off to look inside the valve cover, it was dry in there. The left valve cover has a nice lining of oil on the internals - the only thing is and you guys can better explain it there is a metal piece in there that prevents me to looking directly at the internals of the covers, so I am at a loss.

I will get a video up ASAP on it.

Thanks everyone!

[NYGarageQueen]

Okay here is the video. You can hear it towards the end, I would suggest turning your bass level down to hear it. The exhaust is pretty load because it is on, well sorta, its rigged on until I get something custom done, right now I just don't want to be running full open manifolds - only really so I can move it in the driveway, etc.:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NHAssx9YbPw

[Egon Spengler]

EEEKS! Gotta use synthetic! Not blend!!!

[NYGarageQueen]

EEEKS! Gotta use synthetic! Not blend!!!


Well someone recommended to use the blend for a very short time just to clean it out then switch back to synthetic - this that is the cause? If so, I will dump the oil and change her over now since its been running for a little bit this weekend.

What do you recommend on synthetic?

Thanks
-Jon

[justbob]

I have used Motorcraft synthetic blend 5w-20 on my application since new, no problems at all. Get that gas switched around, and use a bottle of sea foam and go from there. Have you done a compression test?

[Zack]

Oh jeez its not the oil, please dont waste money changing it.

How long has the engine been sitting before you got it running in your car?
Was it in DRY storage or HUMID storage?

[Dennis Reinhart]

Hey everyone -

Well I completed the swap and got the motor running, and the car moves under its own power now. The only thing is at idle I am hearing a tapping from the right valve cover - but as soon as you give her a little gas it goes away.

Now here are some conditions the car is under;

-The gas in the car is back when I started the transplant, which is over a year I would say.

-The gas is 87 :shake: I know I know but that is what I had in the tank before the transplant and I was stupid not to drain the tank before end.

-Here in New York we get condensation in the tank so I have a feeling there might be water in the tank.

Now this only happens after the motor is running for a good 5 minutes. At a cold start, you do not hear this what so ever. Just did an oil change yesterday so there is plenty of oil in the motor.

The motor has around 70 thos on it.

Any thoughts?

Thanks!
-Jon


If it is a 03A and it is the drivers head then it can be a bad head that was covered by a TSB

[Zack]

If it is a 03A and it is the drivers head then it can be a bad head that was covered by a TSB

Watch the video then edit your post.

[NYGarageQueen]

I have used Motorcraft synthetic blend 5w-20 on my application since new, no problems at all. Get that gas switched around, and use a bottle of sea foam and go from there. Have you have a compression test?

Alright I will try that first. Have not done a compression test yet, sounds like it is time.


Oh jeez its not the oil, please dont waste money changing it.

How long has the engine been sitting before you got it running in your car?
Was it in DRY storage or HUMID storage?

The motor was sitting in the car for about 8 months (had to take a break due to other unrelated issues) before I got it running, so I would say its humid storage for that period. Before that, the person I picked it up from maybe had it for a few weeks in his garage - I know he took it out of a totaled car so who knows how long it was sitting in that car previously.


If it is a 03A and it is the drivers head then it can be a bad head that was covered by a TSB

Oppps Zack got to that quote before I did hehe.

[Zack]

If you rule an exhaust leak out, I recommend driving the car for a while before getting to worried about it.
Lifters can stick or not pump up if the car sits in a humid environment for extended periods of time.

Did you make sure all the spark plugs on that side are tight?

[RF Overlord]

EEEKS! Gotta use synthetic! Not blend!!!Why? The engine comes from the factory with blend.

[LeoVampire]

Was what sounded like an exhaust manifold leak in the end between the head and manifold.

Just @ the very start did I hear something but as soon as you reved the engine it was gone so I could not listen to it long enough to get a real idea of what it might have been.

Do you have a remote microphone for the camera you can use and place it lower down on the drivers side of the engine and do another cold start run video?

[Blackened300a]

My mark8 was sitting for over a year outside before we got it running. It started up and had a tapping sound that went away after a little while. From the video it just sounded like the injectors clicking.

[NYGarageQueen]

Thanks everyone,

I will have a go double checking everything tomorrow - hopefully it is just in need of some driving which I am most happily honored to accomplish, I hopefully will give that a go tomorrow.

[4play]

put a metal rod or wood to your ear and the ither end around your engine compartment including on each exhast bank. just to pin point it out a bit.

[Big Black Beast]

I have used Motorcraft synthetic blend 5w-20 on my application since new, no problems at all. Get that gas switched around, and use a bottle of sea foam and go from there. Have you done a compression test?

Yeah, oil is not your problem here.

[FordNut]

Were the plugs replaced, either by you or the previous owner? It may be a good idea to make sure none of them are loose. Maybe even replace them since they don't cost much. Use a torque wrench.

[NYGarageQueen]

I am going to go ahead and replace the plugs anyways while I do an oil change soon. I finished my exhaust today so no more open headers, plus burped the system and got fresh new gas - sounds like no more tapping! I guess it was the combination of these things but the motor runs smooth so that works for me! :)

[Black_Out]

put a metal rod or wood to your ear and the ither end around your engine compartment including on each exhast bank. just to pin point it out a bit.

Screwdriver

Or a mechanics stethoscope for 2.99 at harbor freight :D

[RoyLPita]

I have 77k, use 5-20 and an 820 filter, plus had the head cooling kit installed at 59k and I still have the same tapping noise since I bought it with 7811 miles.