Knocking KA24De :newbie:

[veritas161]

Hey guys whats up, Ive been searching around and really cant get a down right answer. My new car that I picked up which is a 91 has a pretty loud ticking noise and it sounds like its right under the valve cover. So I did what everybody said to do and checked the upper timing chain guide and that looks like its been removed already. So I checked cams and it seems like the cams aren't really oiled but I've never really taken a valve cover off before so I'm not sure how wet they are supposed to be. The oil stupid light is on and stays on and the whole underbody of this car has oil everywhere but the oil is at the full mark. If someone can steer me in the right direction. Also the guy I got it from said he did the 2 exhaust cams upgrade or whatever it is. Sorry that Im a noob but you gotta learn somewhere lol. Thanks Guys

[240boi115]

its probably your timing chain knocking against the cover.. when you took the valve cover off did you notice any scarring on the underside where the chain would be at? if so youll need a new one you can get at frsport or the nismoshop. it could also be your water pump(the same thing happened to my engine and it ended up needing a new water pump and the sound vanished after it was installed. lol as for the oil everywhere its not uncommon for a 20 year old car to have grease and oil all around the engine bay unless its been babied and very well taken care of if, the oil seems quite fresh and new you might have a engine seal thats bad... well thats my take on things hope it helps a bit

[veritas161]

its probably your timing chain knocking against the cover.. when you took the valve cover off did you notice any scarring on the underside where the chain would be at? if so youll need a new one you can get at frsport or the nismoshop. it could also be your water pump(the same thing happened to my engine and it ended up needing a new water pump and the sound vanished after it was installed. lol as for the oil everywhere its not uncommon for a 20 year old car to have grease and oil all around the engine bay unless its been babied and very well taken care of if, the oil seems quite fresh and new you might have a engine seal thats bad... well thats my take on things hope it helps a bit

Thanks I appreciate it, Im thinking its the timing chain. I did the old listen through the screwdriver test and it sound like the chain for sure. Im getting ready to deploy in a few weeks so Ill prob just leave it alone till I get back but my dad needs to move it to mow the lawn by the barn so Im thinking it should be good unless hes drifting in the back yard which wouldnt surprise me lol. Yea the oil looked fresh underneath but it was full on the stick. Im tearing the engine out to rebuild when I get back. Thanks for the info and will be lurkin the forums while im overseas.

[veritas161]

Ok one more question, so I think that this motor might have more problems then I thought. I took off the oil filter and there was no oil in the thing. So I started the bitch up without one on there and had my dad looking to see if there was any oil. Nothing came out with the filter off. Well do I get a new oil pump or just worry about it when I get back. Again my dad is going to have to move it time to time like a few feet.

[240boi115]

Ok one more question, so I think that this motor might have more problems then I thought. I took off the oil filter and there was no oil in the thing. So I started the bitch up without one on there and had my dad looking to see if there was any oil. Nothing came out with the filter off. Well do I get a new oil pump or just worry about it when I get back. Again my dad is going to have to move it time to time like a few feet.

it seems there may be deeper problems with the motor.. if you are limited on time i would wait till i got back and just tear down the motor and rebuild it.. that way any issues that arise you can fix with no stress on time and itll make it easier for your dad to move a whole car and not one thats in pieces everywhere...noone wants to rush a rebuild unless youre a pro that does that shit blindfolded perfect.. hahaha

[S14Driftr91]

Take a video if you can. When my Ka starting making noises it was because I slipped a connecting rod bearing. If your oil pump or the pickup isnt working properly, the motor have have oil starvation and that would cause your knocking sounds.

[veritas161]

it seems there may be deeper problems with the motor.. if you are limited on time i would wait till i got back and just tear down the motor and rebuild it.. that way any issues that arise you can fix with no stress on time and itll make it easier for your dad to move a whole car and not one thats in pieces everywhere...noone wants to rush a rebuild unless youre a pro that does that shit blindfolded perfect.. hahaha

Yeah I totally agree with you. I just hope it doesnt blow up while I gone but f it. Its getting total rebuilt for a turbo set-up so as long as I can find a good machine shop and this thing didnt get to jacked up Ill be fine. This is def gonna be a long time build cause Im getting a house when I get back so itll be 2 projects at once lol.

And drift im gonna say 99% its timing chain noise. The body is in good condition so if I have to just ditch the motor and do another KA im fine with that. I dont want to do the normal SR swap. So a turbo ka in the future for sure. Thanks guys for the info and not bashing my "noobiness" lol.

[In The Works]

I had a similar issue on mine.. Noise was my timing chain tensioner went out.....The lack of oil pressure can point at the oil pump, or if someone has been into the motor and didn't put the seal back between the lower cover and block you would be losing pressure there. I didn't replace the seal on mine(i know dumb move) and I had 0 oil pressure when I went to start the motor.. Replaced that seal and have great oil pressure. I wouldn't risk starting it up too many more times if you're saying you have 0 oil pressure. you may damage it beyond repair, unless you just intend to source another KA when you return. Be safe on your deployment!

[veritas161]

I had a similar issue on mine.. Noise was my timing chain tensioner went out.....The lack of oil pressure can point at the oil pump, or if someone has been into the motor and didn't put the seal back between the lower cover and block you would be losing pressure there. I didn't replace the seal on mine(i know dumb move) and I had 0 oil pressure when I went to start the motor.. Replaced that seal and have great oil pressure. I wouldn't risk starting it up too many more times if you're saying you have 0 oil pressure. you may damage it beyond repair, unless you just intend to source another KA when you return. Be safe on your deployment!

Thanks, yeah I was pointing towards the tensioner or guides for sure. Im thinking that Ill just leave it the way it is. Its only going to get moved a few feet like once a week just so the grass can get mowed under it and when i get back Ill crack her open and see if this engine is toast or if can be rebuilt and machined. Either way, in ohio there are plenty of KAs for sale cause everyone does a SR around here so Im just being my different self lol. Yeah Ill def check that seal too. I read a few posts on people doing that. Im not sure how much this guy did to this car because the engine was a DOHC swap and it has cams so how deep he got into it not sure. Thanks, Ill def be safe on this deployment. I have a 240 I need to work on so I plan on coming back lol.

[daily missile]

i had a knocking motor once... drove down the road and floored it. threw the rod then drove home on 3 cyl and no oil with a piston hanging out. broke the girdle too.

then 5 months later motor was knocking and then seized. but it was knocking for a month or so