Ticking under the valve cover at idle

[misnomer]

I assume it's a timing chain issue, I don't know what else under there would be causing it. The motor rattles/ticks at idle, but smooths out when given a little gas. I can hold it at 1000 rpms and don't hear anything.

Is this a serious enough problem that I should deal with it immediately, or ever? :P I've heard about this before, so figure it's a fairly common issue. Are the upper timing chain guides all that need to be replaced, or do I need to pull the entire front cover off of the engine?

[Kreator]

It might also be valve tapping. Check where it's coming from. If it's from the front of the valve cover, than it's you chain. Removing guides doesn't really help. At least it didn't when we were doing it on a friend's car... Check your tensioner though (will have to take the timing chain cover off for that) it might be loose, or threaded.... you might need to replace that.

[mrmephistopheles]

Go ahead and pull your valve cover to see if there's still an upper chain guide on your motor. It's an L shaped bracket that goes right over the top of the upper timing chain. It's a non-essential item that tends to break. 2 14mm bolts later, and it's gone. This piece tends to break off and rest on top of the chain.

[Phlip]

Originally posted by mrmephistopheles
Go ahead and pull your valve cover to see if there's still an upper chain guide on your motor. It's an L shaped bracket that goes right over the top of the upper timing chain. It's a non-essential item that tends to break. 2 14mm bolts later, and it's gone. This piece tends to break off and rest on top of the chain.
Happened to me... 25.00 fix, all I needed was a new valve cover gasket afte I removed it...

[turbo240sx]

second that, timing chain.

[Fresh 240SX]

Have the same problem too but the ticking is hella loud and it only happined after an overheat during the summer on the highway (Traffic).... car was dead silent before that happined.... i got like all but one of my valve cover bolts off to check it out but it was so damn cold the other day i had to retreat from the garage..:p

[240Driver39]

Yeah, if removing just the upper timing chain guide doesnt solve the noise, there is also a lower guide for the upper chain that u can remove, this requires a little more work ~takin the upper front cover off. while in there u can inspect the tensioner for the upper chain.

[Cheng]

hey man that happen to me to but i blew my because i raced it after it happen to. Soo just don't drive it hard and have it check out before you do anything.

[misnomer]

Sorry, I meant the tensioners. I pulled the upper timing chain guide out last summer (it was broken and resting on top of the chain. I'll see if I can better determine where under the cover it's coming from.

[halyoder]

couldn't that noise also be the injectors cause i believe my sr20det makes that noise to and so do my buddys sr20det's

[misnomer]

This is more of a rattling noise. If I'm correct, the injectors make a higher pitched, sharper ticking noise. Less moving mass :: sharper, quieter noise.