ticking noise *worried*

[richi]

Hey everyone, my stivos done about 10000kms, and it seems like the engine doesnt sound as healthy as it used to. There seems to be a loudish sorta ticking sound coming from the engine when idle (not during warm up, mainly after driving it), loudest when you put your ear near the grill.

I complained when i took it for my 10k service, but they said the ticking noises coming from the car was the heatshields (i know this sound, u can hear it when the engine is off), and the fuel injectors (????).

was wondering if anyone elses car makes that sound? and if anyone has had it checked out, or has an explanation. thanks!

[stauff]

Mine's just over 10,000km too, I'll give it a listen tonight after driving and get back to you tomorrow..

If you want to check the noise of the injectors and see if that's what you can hear, the easiest way is to get a screwdriver and put the tip of it on the injector (or as close as you can get, normally on the rail right next to the line to the injector is good enough), then put your ear on the other end of it .. be careful of long hair, ties, etc :). If you get it in the right place you can hear the squelching noises of the fuel going through and the click of it opening each cycle. I haven't actually tried this trick on my stivo, but it's worked a charm on all the other cars i've used it on.

Cheers,

- Matthew

[richi]

sweet much appreciated =)

the engine makes a chug chug chug spluterring sound with an underlying tick tick tick when idle, but on warm up (just startin the car) its a nice hum

[peekay]

Do you have a CAI or not. There is a VSV valve which your engine connects to. This valve opens and closes constantly as it is a soleniod and controls vacum going to the carbon box for polution control. At idle it can be heard opening and closing faintly, it is more pronounced when you have a CAI. I have the same issue that you do but am aware of this as it is stated on the doco for the CAI. So it does not bother me. Perhaps this is what you are hearing. It is only faint in loudness but I don't beleive it is an issue. Maybe your valve is just a little noiser if you have the standard air intake. Any way one way or another your car is under warranty for 3 years or 100,000 Km if there was an engine problem, you would hope that it would develop before then. Hope this helps.

Also the cars run like tractors when they are cold so warm it up before you drive it.

[Exec6speed]

The tick is how it all started for me... :o But I think my case is a lil extreme ... Its not an injector or something you can hear ?

[dakota]

Weird !!! a service departement that cares...!!!

Exec, we all want this...can you name the dealer ??

Good for him, good for us.....

[richi]

im not really sure, but it seems to come from the area where all those belts are, behind the grill, to the left of the toyota emblem. its quite loud because i can just hear it from inside the car when the window is down. toyota checked it out, and said it was nothing, and they adjusted all the belts.

whats the normal idle sound of a stock stivo supposed to be like?

[Ilivfor6]

A lot of the noise you hear while idling are to do with it being chain driven. They are a lot louder than a normal belt driven engine.

If you look at the overseas forums everybody has asked this question about their T/Sports, Runx etc. Its just one of the characteristics of the car it would seem.

[peekay]

Since you said it was on the left side then ignore what I said about the VSV that is on right of the motor looking at it. If it worrys you so much go to a different Toyota dealer. If you were in Melbourne ILIVFOR6 and I could recommend one but....

[BlackRolla]

I get exactly the same problem with the ticking noise.

There is a ticking noise under the car when idling..sounds like 2 pices of metal hitting each other.

The other ticking noise is coming from the engine. when I;m sitting in the car i can hear it coming from the left side.

I've taken it to Toyota nad they say it's normal.

Also when I accelerate I can hear a sizzling noise. You can only hear it when accelearting. Does anyone else hear this?

[126]

a small problem can easily and quickly turn into a big problem. do you know why toyota say it is "normal" for a new car to make ticking noises?

i think there is something wrong unless toyota can give you a good explanation why there are ticking noises. does the sales brochure or owners manual say there will be ticking noises?

[BlackRolla]

It's normal because it is a CHARACTERISTIC of the Stivo....u know...the same old Bullsh*t.

[126]

that is what apple computers said to its customers a few years ago with a macintosh computer that was faulty (poor wiring/connection) from the factory.

it was only a matter of time until the computer monitor would blow (symptoms flashing monitor and popping sound). many monitors would blow straight from the box (dead on arrival). most monitors would blow 2-4 weeks later.

there was no recall and customers were upset. yes it was under warranty but customers need to find time to go to service. typically when things are serviced the parts that are removed/repaired/replaced never go back as good as factory.

[stauff]

I've listened, and beyond the standard things I expect to hear from an idling engine, I can hear a slight ticking on mine. Although, it's nothing that sounds particularly out of the ordinary. Keep a close ear on it I guess and complain if it gets worse.

- Matthew

[dakota]

Has anyone heard a sort of "chuffing" noise like a leaking manifold gasket, when starting up and running from cold...?? (it sounds normal when it warms up).