I'd like to add that it could be something rattling giving false knock. I was getting false knock and I noticed that the lower alternator mount (which is mounted on the passenger front of the header). There are two bolts there and the one to the mount was loose causing a vibration. It is possible it worked loose and is rapping the alternator on the valvecover. ... the headers should be snugged down again anyways after a few heat cycles.

 

well I seafoamed the engine -and that did not help any. also more specifically this is happening in 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th any time that I at at 2500rpm or less it starts making the tinking noise.
the speed shop that I went too said they could desensitize the knock sensor but I dont know how that would help because it would still have whatever problem is causing it to knock in the first place right?

 

Just a thought,what kind of plugs are you using?

 

NGK TR55's

 

does anyone think that a cooler thermostat would help?

 

I would try some different gas and a cooler pll.....////////

 

Did you try to add Toluene (available at Sherwin Williams) to boost the octane? That would tell you if it is false or real knock.

 

is it safe for the fuel system, and O2 sensors and such to add toluene? also how much would I add?

 

It is safe... same as what Octane Boosters use.

Q: How much toluene should I use per tank of gas?

A: Octane ratings can be very easily calculated by simple averaging. For example, the tank of an Audi A4 1.8TQ is 15.6 gallons. Filling it with 14.6 gallons of 92 octane and 1 gallon of toluene (114 octane) will yield a fuel mix of:

(14.6 * 92) + (1 * 114) / 15.6 = 93.4

The Audi A4 1.8T is a good example of a car that has very high octane needs if it has been modified to produce more turbo boost. The base compression ratio of this car is a very high 9.5:1 and when an additional 1 bar (14.7 psi) of turbo boost is applied on top of it, the resulting effective compression ratio is way beyond what 92 or 93 octane fuel can ever hope to cope with. Most modified 1.8Ts running without octane enhancement are running with severely retarded ignition timing and boost.


Q: Will toluene damage my engine or other parts of my car?

A: A 5 or 10% increase in the aromatic content of gas will most likely be well within the refining specifications of gasoline defined by ASTM D4814, which specify an aromatic content of between 20% and 45%. What this means is that if the 92 octane gas that you started off with had an aromatic content of say 30% and you increased it by 10% to 40% you would still be left with a mix that meets the industry definition of gasoline. So the above question would amount to: "Will gasoline damage my engine or other parts of my car?"

Even in the unlikely event that the 92 octane gas has a aromatic content of 45% the resulting mix would still be within the bounds of gasoline sold in other countries.

If you give me your email I'll send you the whole article. It is a good method to find out the real anwers to knock.

 

please do send me the whole article, just click the "email" button at the bottom of any of my post.

 

well I am still having the problem, do you think it is possible that I could have some oil getting into the combustion chamebers, lowering my octane? - would this be possible due to leaky intake manifold gaskets?

 

It is possible. If oil was leaking into the combustion chambers, your plugs would look "sludgy" or glossy black (depends on the severity of the leak).

 

I guess I really need to pull a plug and look at it

 

That's what sucks... there is no easy way to get to all of the plugs. Time depends on header style.