Very Concerned

[4x4Hunter]

Hey everyone...
I know that this subject has been brought up before but I checked and didn't see anything that really helped answer my question.
I started hearing a ticking sound coming from under the hood when the truck was idling after startup. Its starting to get much colder here and I attribute some of the loudening to that fact. Basically I have a feeling that the lifters are going bad or something to that extent. I also thought perhaps I'm using too thick of an oil currently and that with the cold, the oil just isn't getting up there and thus the sound. I'm using 10 W 30 right now.. If anyone has any ideas let me know asap please!

-4x4Hunter

 

[Ray Lobato]

How many miles does it have on it and do you drive it hard?It shouldn't be the oil weight, 10-30 should be ok, even in cold weather. If it's lifters and have you listened to it with the hood up and perhaps with a long screw driver put on the valve covers and with the handle put up to your ear listened to hear if it is your lifters?

 

[AgExplorer]

If you're using dino 10W30, it is thickening up due to the colder weather. The paraffin (wax) that comes naturally in any petroleum lubricant is the culprit. You may want to consider changing to a synthetic.

 

[4x4Hunter]

Thanks for the reply guys. Ok, I've got 88k on the engine, and I am using 10W30. I really don't drive it hard at all. Most of the time the truck sits in the parking lot. Would this add to my problem sincel it gives the oil time to "settle"? From previous posts I had heard that using Synthetic on an old engine wasn't good, so I thought perhaps I should stay with a natural. I was toying with the idea of dropping to a 5W30 since the weather up here is rather chilly and I have heard that this makes it more difficult for the oil to flow up to that part of the engine.
Ofcourse I would rather not get into replacing the lifters until summer.

 

[Beertime9]

It is your interal engine clock that means it is reaching the end of it's life, quick sell it!!!! Really, pour in a quart of ATF in the oil run it around for about 10 miles, then change your oil. Buy a good oil filter, not Fram, but Wix or NAPA gold and it should fix the problem. The noise is from the oil filter, mine does when I use a cheap fram filter once, the ATF will clean your lifters if they are the culprit,

Good luck

 

[AgExplorer]

If the engine has been well maintained, there is no problem switching to synthetic. We recommend performing a engine flush when you do. Synthetics have a detergent action that is inherent with their chemistry and the oil filter can clog prematurely if the oil does the cleaning. They also cling to engine parts better so you greatly reduce wear when starting.

 

[brandon11]

Originally posted by 4x4Hunter
Thanks for the reply guys. Ok, I've got 88k on the engine, and I am using 10W30. I really don't drive it hard at all. Most of the time the truck sits in the parking lot. Would this add to my problem sincel it gives the oil time to "settle"? From previous posts I had heard that using Synthetic on an old engine wasn't good, so I thought perhaps I should stay with a natural. I was toying with the idea of dropping to a 5W30 since the weather up here is rather chilly and I have heard that this makes it more difficult for the oil to flow up to that part of the engine.
Ofcourse I would rather not get into replacing the lifters until summer.

Mine ticks also,changing to 5w30probably won,t make much of a differance the climate here in New Brunswick Canada is pretty much the same as New York also, a mechanic buddy of mine told me he could change the lifters and probably within 6-8 months the ticking would be back.Try the ATF idea that sounds like something I've some where else.

 

[weebo22]

hmm....after reading all of the posts, I'm not really sure what it could be. Doesn't sound like an oil problem to me.

Only thing I can tell you is to wait until something really noticeable happens and then fix it. With 240,000 miles on my '92, I get worried if it doesn't develop a new tick or rattle on a daily basis.