For the past few days, I've had a clunking noise coming from my engine/tranny area. I brought it to a friend of mine who has been building engines for 25 years and really knows his stuff. He looked at it for awhile, revving in neutral, made me powerbrake it, etc. I let him drive it and he doesn't think it's coming from the engine.

It makes a clunking sound kinda like marbles....can't hear it at all when driving the car, only at idle, and it's not audible at all when the torque converter is engaged. My friend thinks it's a cracked flexplate or a broken converter......

Does this sound right?

I am pulling the transmission tomorrow (needs a rebuild anyways...how convenient!).

What should I look for besides the obvious cracked flexplate? I'd start the car with no transmission, but with open headers I don't think I'll hear anything.

 

I got under the car with it running w/no inspection cover, and it definitely sounds like it's coming from the converter/flexplate area. I'll update this thread as I go along...

I also have a video of the sound which should be posted shortly.

 

http://www.sbzro00.com/Vids/MOV02955.MPG

 

And the car runs like it should still?

 

Yup...drove it to Port St. Lucie to my friends shop (20 mins each way) last night to have him look at it and it didn't get any worse. I think the flexplate bolts backed out or something...

 

I had a truck that sounded like that. Before I figured out what it was I thought I had a rod knocking. It turned out to be the flexplate bolts had backed out. I tightened them and they did it again. Finally I had to use lock washers and locktite. They never did it after that.

 

one way to rule out the rod or main bearing knock is to put a peice of wood to the oil pan and your ear to it, and if it gets REAL loud (the noise) its on the bottom end. Remember, oil travels and like any liquid, sound will carry through it and you wont know where its coming from

 

^I did that with a screwdriver, and it didn't seem too loud when I put it on the oil pan.

 

Got the tranny out yesterday...the flexplate and bolts looked normal but I didn't really have much time to look at it. I'll have a look after work....

Can I remove the flexplate without screwing anything up? Does it go on a certain way?

 

Also, has anyone ever had a knocking torque converter?

The tranny would slip a little at WOT (hits the rev limiter, which is why I took it out for a rebuild).

 

Sweet, my flexplate is cracked in like 10 spots. Whew!

 

In the bin...Sterilite 45gal. - Frank Cahall's recommendation and a PERFECT fit!


Ready to go!

 

how much was shipping ??

 

$63, and $1500 insurance was another 6 bucks.

Shipped it under my boss's UPS account - he ships about 200 boxes a day so I got a good price. Local UPS wanted $185 to crate it and ship it.