I'm getting a nasty ticking coming from my driver side. Sounds to me like an exhaust leak or a lifter. Whats the easiest way to determine what it is? It's still running fine, just really annoying the **** out of me.
The one thing that gets me is that if it is an exhaust leak wouldn't that cause the o2's to go crazy and make it run crappy at part throttle? Because its running fine.

 

you can use a stethescope. like the doctors use to listen to your heard. but w/o the thingy on the end. put it on, and blow across the tube, you will be able to hear it perfectly. if its the exh. gasket leaking, you will know when you find it. if you cant find a diff. anywhere around the mann./header , then its the rocker. do you have roller rockers? if so then deal w/it. your not goin to get rid of the ticking. you could always try to readj. them one more time, but dont be suprised if you cant get rid of it. good luck finding the prob.
chris

 

I had an annoying ticking that was actually spark jumping across from a half way broken sparkplug wire.

 

The rockers are stock. It's definitly not the normal tick, I know what that sounded like but this is worst, honestly it sounds like an exhaust leak. I noticed it slightly when I put the car away for winter, but it's much more pronounced now. I hope it's not a ****ed up lifter because I don't feel like changing them until I do RR eventually.

Should I just slowly move the stethescope around the flange on the header to tell if it's an exhaust leak?

 

Nah, that was the first thing I checked. No arcing

 

I began to hear a ticking sound on the driver side when I first started in the morning... nothing big but I was like what the hell??

I changed the oil and used one quart of Mobil one mixed with the new el cheapo oil.... Ran her till hot drove for a few days and the sound went away.

Replaced the oil and filter again.. it came out dirty. Now the ticking sound is gone. I can only speculate it was deposites on one of the lifters...as everything in there is stock. Its been almost two months since and its all quiet.

I dont use engine flush cans. I dont think diluting the oil is gunna help any... if you get my drift.


marvin

 

Yeah I'm gonna check for an exhaust leak. If there isn't any I'm gonna change the oil and go from there. I hope I don't have to change the lifters.