I had the hood up and I noticed a ticking sound this morning from my engine. I took a video and it sounds like this: (ignore the dirty engine bay)


Thinking it may be a cold engine thing, I drove around for 20-30 min to let everything warm up and when I got back it sounded about the same, only with the whine of the radiator fan going:


My roommate is still asleep (yes, it's 11:45 am...) so I can't check to see if the sound varies with engine speed; even though our cars are small, they're not small enough for me to push the gas pedal and record.

Is this normal? I don't notice it while in the car, only when infront of the front wheels (with hood up or down). I still have a few months left in the warranty but I'd rather not drive the hour to a dealer, wait for them to look at it, and drive back, wasting 2.5+ hrs just to be told it's normal.

 

I have a similar noise, if not the same, on my MCS. It sounds like a very small leak (air) coming from the engine somewhere. I've checked my header, and have heard what it sounds like with a leak at the head. So it is definitely not that. It sounds to be somewhere buried under my intercooler maybe. Either way, I don't see it as an issue, I think i may just be paranoid, it's always done it, so I just going to say it is a noise that it makes.

 

i had similar . it was a torn o ring on my # 1 injector .

 

Is the oil level ok? It sounds a bit like lifter noise.

 

on the side that connects to the engine, fuel line, or wiring? I can't imagine the torn ring would help performance.

I've made a note to call the dealer on Monday. Even if it's a "normal" noise maybe they know some way to quiet it down.

 

That's what I thought as well at first, but oil level's ok.

 

it was where the injector pushes in at the intake/injector base . lifters can stick and can bleed down . these on these cars are extremely small and are out on the followers. i've seen pictures here on nam of them smashed due to high revs . do a search .

 

Dude, save yourself some money and take it in. *** it now or possibly pay big later.

 

Called the dealer this morning; I'm going in tomorrow to have them look at it.

 

yuck! i hope its ok. i thought my engine made some bad noises but after that i feel way better about my car.

sorry bout yours tho

 

Went to the dealership this morning and pointed out the noise. The tech says that's normal - it's the injectors. Apparently they make this noise b/c of the high pressure the fuel system is running at. He says the newer cars are even louder than mine (higher fuel pressure). He also said if someone's having a problem they listen for that sound first to make sure the injectors are working.

Looks like I was being over paranoid.

 

Good to hear. Makes me feel a little more at ease.
I'll check for that torn O-ring though when I change out to 380s.

 

hmm injector noise huh? well thats a new one. if they say so i'm fine with it... i'm also going to check for problems when i switch to 380's.