85percent

My latest issue on my 99 boxster.. there is a loud ticking sound coming from my engine (i have an S engine) and it seems to be more noticeable after I slow down from a long drive on the freeway.. It speeds up and slows down with the RPM's... I'm thinking my valve timing is off? the same thing happened when I had an S2000... any ideas? and is this a serious problem?
thanks in advance.

delanobe

Valves?

99firehawk

if your valve timing was off you would have a cel, can u isolate the noise, could be exhuast leak, idler pulley waater pump have you had any work done recently ?

85percent

no i haven't had any work done besides having my mass O2 sensor replaced, but the sound was there before that... it seems like the ticking comes and goes.. when car is cold I don't seem to hear it at all.. so I'm thinking if it's a belt or pulley, the sound would be consistent..

99firehawk

no such thing as a mass o2 sensor, mas air flow sensor or a o2 sensor 2 diffrent things
could be an exhuiast leak, what years your car?

85percent

yea oops. mass air flow sensor.

my boxster is a 99 with an 02 boxster S engine.

99firehawk

i would bet that the ehust manifoilds are warped ticking soiund after getting off the high way................
get it to make the noise then jack it up and liste for the noise with a pice of rubber hose to your ear

85percent

the sound comes and goes.. I'm thinking it's not an immediate problem though. what do you think?

99firehawk

hard to say discusing noises over the internet . insticnt would tell you if it was a problem it would do it all the time right

85percent

=) true. thanks again.

Macster

Noise can be from any number of sources, due to any number of reasons...

I assume oil level good (check with dipstick in case in-dash reading wrong)? Extremely low oil level, wrong oil, wrong viscosity, wrong type can cause a noisy engine.

Old oil can lose viscosity and become thinner (due to water/fuel contamination). If bad enough, hydralic lifter (zero-lash) mechanisms can become noisy, and intermittently so.

Can be a noisy fuel injector.

Loose spark plug.

Can be a serpentine belt or one of the idlers, tensioner rollers, or even one of the accessory drive pulleys making the noise.

Not on my Boxster, but this has happened with other cars, a ticking noise that matches engine RPMs and comes and goes can be an exhaust manifold or exhaust system leak (usually ahead of the muffler) though these usually (almost always) appeared after exhaust manifold work.

Sincerely,

Macster.