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ticking/knocking....oh yes

1K views 8 replies 6 participants last post by  jux 
#1 ·
hey fellow members, i think my miata is telling me that it is about to give up on life. For about a month now i have been having this problem but i have just been ignoring it; i cant do that anymore. SO WHAT IT IS: from about 4k to redline my car makes a noticeable rattling noise that is definitely corresponding with the rpms. The car deinfatly feels slower and more sluggish when it is in this state...how i can compare still? well besides, having the car for almost 2 years now, when the car is in its first 5-10 mins of driving for the day; that ticking sound is completely gone. And the car feels like the little monster the miata has always been to me...about 15-20 mins later the car will make the rattling noise at that certain rpm range resulting in slowness/sluggyness and fear in my eyes. YES,i have tried lighter oil...5w30 YES, i have tried putting 93 ocatne gasoline. No difference. the sound BTW seems like its definitely coming from the engine bay, however at first i was thinking it was the cluster because the sound is coming from right in front of me....but to far back it seems to be the cluster itself..and definitely sounds really mechanical too.....please help guys;let me get some input and things to try!!! much appreciated.
 
#4 · (Edited)
Is vavle lash adjustable in Miata heads? I'm an ex-Honda guy, and I know that on B-series engines, for example, valve lash eventually grows, meaning the tolerance has gotten bigger than it's supposed to me. It can result in a raelly clackety, nasty mechanical sound at high rpm, especially. Because the valves aren't operating properly there will eventually be a loss of power at high rpm.

I don't know if valve lash is a common problem with high-mileage Miata engines, so maybe somebody could clear that up.

The reason it doesn't make any noise within the first few minutes is probably because your oil is cold, thicker, and thus is softening the valvetrain impacts. Once it warms up it thins out, and then that softening goes away and the sound comes through. An oil with a thicker high-temp weight, like 5W-40, would probably mask valvetrain sounds but obviously won't fix the problem.
 
#8 ·
I run 10w40 and it completely rids me of cold and hot tick. You hear a bit of ticking when you first start the car, but that's about it. The only main concern I have is that I sometimes have some ticking after a hard run, or after I've driven the car for quite a while and have turned it off and on multiple times...
 
#9 ·
This might be thinking waaaay outside the engine bay, but how's your speedo cable doing? They will make nasty noises when they're on the way out. Mine is usually frisky between 3200 and 4500 rpm.
 
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