I rebuilt my engine 6,000 miles ago with the Howell bottom end kit. I have not had any problems with it thus far. It did have a little piston slap when the engine was cold, but I didn't figure it was a big problem.

In the last few months, it's gotten a little louder and taken longer to go away. I figured it was just because of the colder weather so it takes longer to warm up.

But now the noise doesn't go away. I can drive around for an hour to make SURE that my engine is warmed up, and at idle and low rpms I can still hear that knocking/ticking sound. I'm not sure if it continues at higher rpms because my exhaust is too loud to hear it.

So, first thought is a spun bearing. But would a spun bearing start quietly and slowly get louder as time went on? Wouldn't I notice any type of loss in power? The car still runs fine, pulls strong under boost.

So then I figured that maybe the engine shop messed up and my cylinders aren't bored right. But then wouldn't I see a loss in compression and blow-by from the rings?? My catch can doesn't have any oil in it, and I never see any smoke or oil from the exhaust.

Could it possibly be a bad lifter? Any other ideas? I'm probably going to take it back to the engine shop sometime this week and ask them for their opinion.

If it was a spun bearing the noise would get progressively louder as time went on. Also it would get louder the higher you revved the engine. Are you sure it is comming from the bottom end? Or could it be something in the valve train or maybe even the timing belt cover? Your best bet would be to listen to the engine with the hood open while revving it at the tb so you can listen for it without the exhaust being to loud.
hope this helps

Damn, I really hope it's not a spun bearing. But since the noise was there from the very start and just slowly got louder as I put more miles on the car, that would have to mean the bearing spun immediately after the rebuild. I'm hoping that's not likely.

Just in case.....can you fix a spun bearing without pulling the engine? Can you get to it from underneath?

It's hard to tell exactly where the ticking is coming from. It kinda sounds to me like it's coming from the valve cover, but I'm not sure. I'm gonna do what you said and pop the hood today and listen carefully to see if I can pinpoint the area.

make sure its not a exhaust leak. they can sound simialr. expescially when your worried that something is wrong with the engine.

I listened closer yesterday and it's definitely coming from the engine area and not from the exhaust piping area. So unfortunately, it's probably something more serious.

Someone on another board sent me a link that tells you how to remove the valve cover, then start the car and let it idle to listen for lifter tick? Has anyone else done this? I figure this is easier than pulling the oil pan to see if I spun a bearing, so I'll probably check the lifters first.

I know a few people on this board have spun a bearing. Did you guys replace your crank when this happened? Some people say you can just grind it smooth again, but others have told me that if you grind it down, the smaller diameter creates space that can cause it to spin again. Any thoughts??

i wouldnt worry about the spun rod bearing. if it was, it would get LOUD as your RPM's climbed, and you would hear it over your exhaust, i dont care how loud it is. you can check the lifters without the car started too. take the valve cover off, and try and push on em, if one moves easily, its bad. it could also be something out of spec in the valvetrain, possibly from them taking it apart for the rebuild. it may be as simple as re-tightening something, or replacing a rocker/lifter.



www.TeamKLR.com
1997 Silver RS
12.3@118mph,20psi, race gas(drag radials)
Wiseco 10.5 Pistons
Eagle Rods
Started as a manufactured turbo kit, now its a custom one!
Greddy Exhaust
440cc Injectors

Waiting on the EVOlution!

> i wouldnt worry about the spun rod bearing. if it was, it
>would get LOUD as your RPM's climbed, and you would hear it
>over your exhaust, i dont care how loud it is. you can check
>the lifters without the car started too. take the valve
>cover off, and try and push on em, if one moves easily, its
>bad. it could also be something out of spec in the
>valvetrain, possibly from them taking it apart for the
>rebuild. it may be as simple as re-tightening something, or
>replacing a rocker/lifter.

Well that is definitely good news!! I really hope you're right. Another reason why I doubt it's a spun bearing is because it's pretty loud when my engine is cold, then gets quieter as it warms up. That seems to be the normal behavior for a bad lifter.

When I got the engine rebuilt, I got a 3 angle valve job, new valve seals, and new valve guides. So I would *assume* everything is tightened, but I guess they could have missed something.