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MG MGF Technical - tick tick tick........................

from a cold start the engine has a ticking noise,which speeds up as i drive. When the oil temp starts to rise the ticking disapears and all is as new again !! something must be amiss.any ideas ,thanks mel..
m e johnson

Hi Mel,

Sounds like oil isn't reaching something until it becomes warm enough (i.e. less viscous). Partially restricted oilway in the head maybe, causing a hydraulic tappet to not get enough oil pressure to fill properly?

If you run the car until its thoroughly warm & then turn off and leave for 30 mins, i.e. long enough for oil to drain down but not lose all its heat, do you get the noise again in a similar timeframe?

When was the last oil change? Definitely the right rating used? If the claims on the tin are to be believed, this is the kind of symptom oil flushes are supposed to sort out - might be worth trying one.

I'm assuming of course it's not the exhaust manifold gasket leaking while cold, sealing up as the temperature rises. Does it get louder if you accelerate harder?
Mike Hankin

My Elise used to do the same, almost definitely a cam follower. If it disappears pretty quickly I wouldn't worry about it too much. Like Mike says, an oil change might sort it.

When I rebuilt the engine in the F it sounded god awful when I first started it up with all 16 of them ticking away, but 2 miles later it was quiet as a mouse again.
Alex T

Had exactly the same as Alex after my cambelt change this winter. For some reason it seemed that aligning the cams by moving them slowly back and forward let out some amounts of oil from the followers. Took some time to fill them up again and get silent at first re-start. A bit disturbing when I was listening for all kind of noises that could be a sign of faulty tension,waterpump etc. etc ! All was fine again when oil was up to temperature. Have this to some extent at startup when the car has been standing in the garage for some time, I dont really worry as it seems rather common. With 16 followers I assume that at least one or two gets into an akward position at engine halt and will leak some oil.. / Carl.
Carl

This has been a known trait of all hydraulic tappet engines in general and the K series in particular - as stated if it goes away when the engine is warm don't worry too much.

I have heard that use of a fully synthetic oil - such as Mobil 1 - can exacerbate the problem as this oil drains away more freely from the cylinder head. But I do agree an oil change can help.

Ted
Ted Newman

thanks mike and all,when had a good run and warm it is ok 3 or 4 minutes and it is fine. it is due for a service in august although as i only use the car at weekends it has only done 2,000 miles since last service. to think about it the noise is less obvious when i use the car more often. As i use the car not very much what sort of oil would anyone suggest to use this time.IT was a brand name the garage used but to be honest for what price it was 15.00 it was not a top class oil. also would the wynns engine flush be a good idea incase the oilway is blocked as mike pointed out.
m e johnson

Castrol GTX Magnatec is the benchmark, as Ted pointed out the fully synthetic oils aren't necessarily better in practice, probably only worth paying the extra if you spend a lot of time nudging the rev limiter.

I'd say it is worth doing a flush as well as oil & filter change, Wynn products have been around long enough to suggest they certainly don't do any damage...
The car not being run every day may give more opportunity for sludge and swarf deposits to build up on surfaces.

Maybe an mgs-on-track event is what your engine really needs ;-)
Mike Hankin

Thanks again Mike ,that is what i,ll do ,cheers for putting my mind at rest!!!! a mgs track day now theres a thought...........
m e johnson

This thread was discussed between 06/06/2005 and 08/06/2005

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