My car has been running nicely all summer. Today it just started making a strange noise and I hope someone can help me diagnose it.

Sounds like a slow metallic rattle. It sounds like it is coming from the top of the engine instead of the bottom end. fairly loud at idle, but goes away briefly after a blip of the throttle then starts up again. It feels like it is related to oil pressure but oil level and pressure seem fine and no other roughness to the engine.

Any ideas as to what it might be before I take it to my mechanic for investigation?

Thanks,

Murray

 

Have you replaced the plastic pins in the oil galleys with the metal ones?

 

The plastic pins in the oil galleys have not been changed.

 

if thats the case it should not be driven till the cam covers are removed and the pins inspected it sounds like a rubber pin fell out and the head is now running on less oil pressure.
have you noticed any loss of oil pressure?

 

The car has always had good pressure. It may be a bit lower right now but not enough for the light to come on. Without taking a stethoscope to things, I think the noise is from the rear of the passenger side. I will try removing the cam cover this weekend and take a look.

 

Had the same on the R side. When I removed the cover I found the the little rubber hockey puck with the pin at the bottom of it lying in the corner. The superceded replacement part is a metal pin #928.105.262.00

Also check the status of the oil check valve. This will give the same symptom of a faulty cam drain. WSM Vol. 1 17-10

 

before you remove the cover,
order new cam cover reseal kit( BOTH of them) from Roger he will also include the 26 sealing rings for the bolt heads
get a tube of Hondabond as well to put a bead into the cam cover groove for the gasket.
order the 5 pins as well

 

Use the stethescope Luke!

Seriously, try to isolate where the noise is coming from as closely as possible.

Makes chasing it down a lot easier..

 

And then what mrrmerlin said.

 

When I did mine as a preventive I also got some LocTite 574 to re-seal the "bearing" caps as I had to remove them to get the old pins out and the new ones in.

Mike

 

What Greg and Stan are suggesting is the same reason my Perl has been off the road.

Well, I'm finishing up a AC R&R, but directly following that, I'm doing a cam cover R&R. Got a little valve ticky ticky in the right rear corner.

After talking with Greg about this a few months back, I put this project high up on the job list.

Get a stethescope, make sure to isolate the sound to the engine before digging in. The sound also reads like a TT, and that would be easy to isolate as well.

Good luck, Bill.

 

Be sure not to get to much 574 there, if it gets down in the bolt holes you will be drilling the bolts out most times.

 

Is there a write up on the procedure to replace these pins that I can review before diving in there?

Thanks

 

See Dwayne's write up on Intake Refresh and apply his instructions for Valve Cover removal and installation. The pins simply go into the drain holes under the cam seal bridge cover. This is a procedure.

 

Thanks. I was reading his write up to see how to remove the cam covers but was unclear where I would find the pins in question or what they looked like.