engine ticking noise

[gooal22]

hey, new here. before you ask me, yes i did do a search. i did find alot of threads about it, but i couldn't find exactly what i wanted.......prolly just cuz im new to this site. so, sorry for those of you who have to read 'bout this stuff again.


anyways, i have a 91 x with the 4.0 liter and when the motor is cold there is a ticking noise. naturally, i thought it was the lifters but from reading through other threads i am not 100% sure. once the vehicle gets warmed up, the ticking sound goes away. my question is, what is the cause of this noise and how can i get rid of it. thanks in advance for your help.


PaT

 

[88vert]

Welcome to the board

What weight oil do you use?

 

[gooal22]

honestly, i couldn't tell ya. i just bought her a little less than a week ago. when i went to drive it/buy it, it was warm. so i had no idea about it until the next day when i started it up. what type and weight of oil do you guys suggest?

PaT

 

[88vert]

I use 5-30W in my ex in the winter and 10-40w in the summer.5-30W is thinner and will get to the top of the motor quicker for those cold starts.What kind of mileage is on your ex?

 

[verlane24]

What kind of oil filter does it have?

I had real bad ticking in my 93 with a fram filter that went away after switching to a plain jane motorcraft filter from wal-mart.

Something cheap to try.....

later
brian

 

[Rodeo Joe]

Could be injectors.

Joe

 

[gooal22]

once again, im not sure of the oil filter, but ill definately be changin the oil soon and ill take your guys advice.

it has 114,000 miles.

"could be injectors" -- how can i tell either way?? is there anything that can be done without putting new ones in to test this?

 

[Rodeo Joe]

They just get noisy at times, nothing to worry about.

Joe

 

[Sandy]

Bring it back and have the Seller replace the lifters, all of them and the Cam also.

Some 4.0s have problems in this area and it is very time consuming for you to take it apart.

Luck,

 

[gooal22]

"Bring it back and have the Seller replace the lifters, all of them and the Cam also."

thanks for the input, but just out of curiousity - does anyone else agree with this? the ticking noise is really driving the crap out of me and i just want it to be gone

 

[SVO42]

If it is the lifters, you might try changing the oil but replace 1 qt of oil with a qt of Rislone. It can help sometimes. FYI, from somethings I've read, the Motorcraft oil filters are really good, but Frams aren't.

Another thing to check is your oil pressure. Get a mechanical gauge and hook it up. Start it up, and watch the gauge as it warms up and listen to the noise. If the noise goes away once it's warm (and the oil's viscosity is up), try a heavier oil. Since it is close to winter, I'd start with some 5W-30 (w/ Rislone), run that for a while and see what it does. If you don't get any improvement, try some 10W-30, 10W-40, 15W-40, etc. Just another good idea to get an idea of the condition of the motor, do a compression test, too.

Also keep in mind that synthetic oil is great for engines, especially at startup, but on a higher-mileage engine, it may clean out sludge and open up some leaks. Ask me how I know!

 

[Billy177]

i would use a motocraft filter and a good dino or high milage 10w-30 5w-30 is probrally gonna be too thin for a 12 year old enine

 

[gooal22]

thanks for all the input.... i really appreciate it

 

[sk1er17]

hmm. i have a tapping comming from the bottom of my engine too when its cold at startup, and it goes away after it gets warm. I asked one of the ASE guys where i work about it and he listened and said it was probably just the lifters.

i use 5-30 syntec blend... but i also us a FRAM... im due for an oil change next week so ill try putting a different oil-filter on. Unless you do yours before then ill let you know if it makes a difference.

*mine isnt annoyingly loud though, but its deffinetally noticable.

 

[gooal22]

yea, let me know if you get yours to go away!! good luck with it.

 

[EBInterceptor]

What about the oil filter would cause the enging to make a tapping noise?

 

[verlane24]

I think it has something to do with how restrictive the filter is.

The "famous" oil filter study found the motorcraft filters to be essentially Puralotor Pure One filters in a different case. It also said that those filters are more "restrictive" and have a larger element than many other filters. Maybe that helps to keep the oil pressure up, making it easier for the oil pump to keep the upper half of the engine lubed. I think it has a better anti-drainback valve too, so maybe that has something to do with it?

But maybe its's the other way around. It would be interesting to see someone test their oil pressure and see if there is a difference in the actual pressure using a fram vs a motorcraft filter.

That's my theory, anyway....

Later
Brian

 

[Toy_to_Force]

verlane-
That's an interesting thought with some real possibilities. Has anyone used the K&N oil filters? I also heard that the Fram's suck!

 

[gilamonster77]

My 93, 4.0L with 110 had a tapping that went away after I replaced fram tg8a with a purolater premium plus. It's been almost two months since the last oil change and the tapping is back at startup, but goes away once it's really good and warmed up. I'm using M1 full synthetic. I'll try the Motorcraft filter on its scheduled 2-month filter change and let you guys know.

 

[wonderer]

Dooms Day Clock

I've had both a '91 Ranger and a 92 Ex, with different engines, and both make ticking sounds. Every time I change oil/ filter, (no matter what make of oil or filter), it fixes the prob for a few hundred miles. I believe that it is just Ford and their designs of engines...

Brother, (and a few friends) had a full-sized ford truck with that 6 cyl. in it, and it never stop clicking and ticking! Those are related to the studs on the heads that were pressed in ,, coming loose with age.

My EX's tick is a little strange though, it ticks and gets a little louder, then all the sudden stops, then slowly builds again to another sudden stop. Don't know what it is but maybe that is why Ford incorporated such a loud stereo in their EX's, turn it up and the noise goes away!

Same problem I bet as the inline 6's. These engines all have a built in "Planned Obsolescence Device" and what you are hearing is the timer that is ticking down to the end of your vehicle's life!

Sorry couldn't resist that poke!