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Ticking sound when accelerating? UPDATED

14K views 19 replies 11 participants last post by  ohiocowboy1277 
#1 ·
So a couple of weeks ago my 1989 ramcharger with the 360 started acting up again. Whenever I accelerate, there is a light ticking sound. It wont do it past a certain rpm or at idle and if i were to guess it only ticks between 1500 and 2500 rpm. The odd thing is that it wont do it when the engine is cold, only when it is heated up. It will make the same noise when in park or neutral as it does in drive. Its not really loud, just loud enough to annoy you when your going down the road. I had someone press the accelerator while I was outside with the hood open, and I can only tell that the sound is coming from the engine area, and not from the interior. It will do it with ac on and off, and it gets quieter with the heater on hi. any help on where to start would be greatly appreciated, because I have absolutely no idea. Thanks
 
#3 ·
Do some more listening under the hood.  A solid rod (long prybar works well) with one end on suspected engine part and other end at your ear works great for finding what the "tick" is behind.  I would start with the valve covers.  Could be a lifter, that finally gets enough pressure after 2500 rpm to pump up, but it could be many more things.  Try the prybar/rod trick and see if you can get a better idea where the sound is comming from.
 
#11 ·
KThaxton said:
From now on, I'm blaming my 8-year-old any time I post wrong info. ;D
Who do i get to blame it on? :p

Another vote for Exhaust Leak too, my Duster has a mild "tick" from a small exhaust leak at the Flange on the Passenger Side Manifold. Only Aubible if you're standing in front of the car or have the hood open. Obviously the Rumble you hear inside and outside (340) drowns out the tick unless you're directly in front of the car at an idle.
 
#16 ·
Kenneth Turcotte said:
thats not true hes 21, and he doesnt know as much about automotive stuff as you guru guys do, big deal
The problem is Kenneth, you continue to give extremely inaccurate advise to people who may put some stock in what you're saying as correct. People could wind up chasing their tails or worse, spending unneeded amounts of money.

If you're not absolutely positive on the advise you're giving, don't give it. It's no contest here.
 
G
#17 ·
i agree, what we where getting to is that the oil wasnt getting to the lifters (idk what that has to do about the cold hot oil thing), and there was something down lower in the engine that was causing the oil not to get up to everything like oil pump, but i guess we have our problem fixed on here...

and Hybrid 1Ton I know that,and thats why i don't replay to more threads, cause i don't know anything that would help them, but i am still learning
 
#18 ·
only time the cold oil wil lcome into play is in winter time oil will thicken up as it sits in the pol pan over night more so in the winter and during the summer its just not an issue ...anyhow i have a nice tick in the 1,500 rpm range and i know its a friggin lifter ...i was gooin to replace them and the cam but got shot down and had to put it back together before i could get the cam in ..kind of glad i didnt do it ...might not wanna sell it if i had done it ...i can hear mine just as it hits the passing gear ticking almost sounds a like a bang i dunno might have a slight rod knock maybe lol ...i hope not but never know ...oh and check ur oil galley plugs ..
 
#19 ·
So I have tried a couple of things and I cannot find any exhaust leaks. It could be due to my error, or in what i used to try and find it. I tried putting water on the gasket area of the manifold (when cold of course) and I could not see any bubbling. I also tried looking for burn marks, but I didn't see anything that would be suspicious. When all else failed I also tried to feel where the air was coming from, but no success. Am I not doing the right thing? or is it maby not an exhaust leak?
 
#20 ·
does it still have all the emission crap on it ? if it has an air pump check the tube for that i know some fords are famous for the tubes either cracking or rusting out and making a heck of a tick also check your egr valve i have seen a couple with bad gaskets at the base and they will sound like a manifold leak if possible use a drop light or flash light and mirror to look at the underside of the exhaust manifolds to check for cracks or burn marks along the manifold and heads where the manifold attaches same with the air pump tube if you have or still have it .
    also use a mechanical oil pressure guage to check your oil pressure if the above checks fail to turn up any probs because it could be an internal engine prob . if you dont have an aftermarket oil pressure guage already i would recommend one as dodge guages leave something to be desired when it comes to accuracy . im still leaning towards an exhaust leak but i mentioned the last part just incase to prepare you for the worst as well .
 
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