Knocking normal?
 

Ok so, Ive been searching online and on this forum unsuccessfully for answers, I'm hoping someone can shed some light on this for me. I know this topic has been beaten to death about what oil is best for engine knocking, but I have not found my answer yet. Since I purchased my 370z about 3 weeks ago, I've been hearing a slight engine knocking. Almost sounds like a lifter tap. Ive had my first oil change done and they used Nissan Ester oil. They say its normal, but you never know with the dealer these days. I was under the impression from other posts that supposedly Nissan Ester oil helps with these knocking noises. In my situation it has not.

Couple things:
1. Is knocking normal on our cars?
2. Are there any safe additives out there for reducing engine knocking?
3. Anyone else had good experiences with noise reduction after switching to an Ester based full synthetic like Redline, or Motul?

Sorry if these are silly questions, but this being the first $30000+ car I've ever purchased, I'm a little paranoid about excessive engine noise. Any suggestions are appreciated in advance! :tiphat:

Ticking or knocking? Your description sounds more like ticking. Fuel Injectors are quite noisy and it very well could be them..Not much you can do to quiet them..

I guess you could say its more of a tick, the dealer told me the same thing, that its the injectors on the Z's and the Maximas that are loud like that. if I drive by a wall or a drive-thru or something, you can really hear it. I guess I just have to get a nice exhaust to drown it out.

Do you know if the dealership did in fact use Nissan Ester oil? Most dealerships do not. This can cause a ticking sound in the valves.

I asked them for it specifically and the paperwork says Nissan 5W-30 EP and it was $11.99/ quart which is what I've read that Nissan Ester oil costs. The Nissan part number is 999MP.

Kyle has a good point, as does Modshack, there is also this TSB: Tapping Noise from Dash Area when Engine is Running Ignore applicable years as these can be revised for year.

:iagree: Probably not a knock. But, Modshack is correct... the injectors do make a ticking noise. I haven't noticed this. But when I started my engine after 3 months of storage, there was a slight noise for about a half a second or so. I attribute that to dry start and nothing else.

So just take it in to the dealer and tell them I need a Heater core flush? :confused:

Not necessarily as it might not be the problem, but you can bring up the TSB to your dealer. What grade and brand of fuel are you running? (Please don't tell me COSTCO!)

Never! I dont even shop at costco let alone use their gas. ;) I have always used 91. There is a gas station near my parents that sells race gas 100 octane! I might try that and see if that helps!

O/T nothing wrong with Costco gas or any other off-brand fuel. It all comes from the same refineries.

I am going to recommend this before Modshack does...run a bottle Techron Concentrate Plus in your gas tank and see what that does. Also, what vehicle did you have before this as injectors can be very noisy at times and if you are not accustom to the noise then the first time you deal with it is always appears odd.

It may come from the same refineries but it's nowhere near the same specifications or have the additives packages as the name branded products. There can be a huge difference in quality specifications and driveability index between the brands. Company brand reputation is huge in the retail fuel market. No name brands don't worry about their reputation only there costs.

Ever wonder where the gasoline/diesel blending mistakes wind up going to?

Point to ponder: Ever wonder why there are no name branded Jet Fuel distribution companies at airports? It's called liability. The Jet fuel companies are responsible and accountable for their fuel quality they put into a airplane. Reputation, accountability and not to mention lawsuits are powerful motivators.

My last car was a 06 Scion TC, and it never knocked or ticked like this. My car before that was a 93 Mitsubishi 3000GT VR4 and that had lifter problems that sounded very similar to this. That's the reason, when I heard it I was like oh noooo lifter problems again? Should I reset my ecu after I use this Techron stuff? Thanks!

No need to reset your ECU. Also, the Mits 3000GT has very noisy injectors, but that car can run up to 200K miles before any real problems with its engine. The VR4 biggest problem was its AWD with owners that did not service ALL the fluids in a timely fashion. Super cool car though.

Ticking injector noise seems to vary.....You should hear a 1.8T Turbo VW/Audi motor! They are, after all, just electrical solenoids being opened and closed.

Techron is good to keep your fuel gauge senders AND fuel injectors clean. I generally do a bottle at every oil change. No need for a reset.

O/T Ya that car was a dream, I could drop clutch it at like 6800 PRM and it was gonzo! I ended up dropping the tranny after about 138000 miles, replaced it and still sold it for $14000, mind you I bought it off my ex girls mom for $11,000 and it had 56,000 miles on it. It handled like no car Ive ever driven (except of course my Z :icon17: ) it was so nice to say :gtfo2: to my scion!!!

Thanks everyone for your feedback, I just wanted to make sure its nothing to be worried about, I can now enjoy this beauty!

I did hear it when i bought the car, but it doesn't tick anymore. Weird. Hopefully yours goes away too.

Oh happy day if/when that happens!That's my only real gripe with this car.

I just added a bottle of techron concentrate plus and a full tank of 91 gas.
Thanks SoCal 370 for that recommendation. Lets see if it helps.

If the noise persists and it continues to bug you feel free to drop by the shop and I can have one of my tech's listen to it and give you a quick answer. We're just by John Wayne airport so it's pretty close to you in Irvine.

That's very cool of you Kyle, Rep added! :excited: When are you guys open until today? I would just like to have a quick answer for peace of mind you know? :excited:

Has anyone successfully rid the tapping noise after completing the TSB for the Heater core flush?

AVGas???
BPAir??
Shell??

My car still has a valve tap like crazy. Took the car to the dealer and listened to another 2010 Z with the parts and service manger, and it sounded somewhat similar, but my engine def sounded louder and more tappy. He is having a field service engineer come out on monday or tuesday to listen to it. So help me god if he tells me it sounds normal. I'm gonna try and record it see if anybody else has similar sounds. :shakes head:

maybe it is from the race gas you are running... i wouldn't tell the dealership you put that in your car.

Ticking can also be attributed to oil starvation due to the oil plumbing design wormed throughout the rear part of the heads located next to the firewall when reacting to the centrifical forces from acceleration. I haven't ever heard of this on a Z but it has been problematic in other car models.

This is why I like doing my own oil changes. Half the time you don't know what the dealer/quick-lube is filling with. I don't trust most service managers\techs at dealers, so even if they told me they filled with the requested oil I would still be questioning their trustworthiness.

It was happening before i put race gas in, and my dealership doesn't care I used race gas, it has nothing to do with warranty.

Ya I just purchased my Rhino ramps, and all my tools so I can start doing my own changes. I should have sharpeed the oil filter before my first oil change. Especially since my first one was free, I'm assuming they didn't use Ester oil or change my oil filter since I went in at 856 miles. Well I didn't mean to turn this into another oil thread, but I'm switching to Redline after 5000 miles. I had the tapping before, went in, they tell me ester oil will rid it completely, and it obviously did nothing.

So I finally was able to get time to post a video of what I am experiencing. I hope that this will in fact go away with time or a couple more oil changes as I have been informed, but none of the other Z's I've heard sound this way. Any knowledge would be really appreciated. So normal sound or not? Doesn't sound so normal to me... Oil temp is sitting right at 200.


IMG_0144.flv video by mmaislife - Photobucket

Anyone?

Sounds normal.

Yea, I'm pretty sure last time I had the hood open the ticking from the vvel was the same.

I have an appointment on Wednesday with a Nissan field service engineer. Hopefully he tells me some good news. Double hopefull that my F1 exhaust will cover up the noise. Thanks for the responses guys!

I have learned not to buy something just because its name brand. If anyone really wants to know why they should choose say Chevron over Arco have their gas tested to see whats in it. That is the only way. Otherwise I have a chip for sale that will boost your car 24mpg only 19.95 plus S&H.

The only thing that makes a brand of gas different from another is the additives they pour in them (Nitrogen, Techron, etc.) Otherwise...

I'm using ester oil and i really notice the noise level change. It sounds alot smoother as well!

Well, I haven't noticed any difference from the Ester oil, if that's what they even used my last oil change... I'm switching to Redline this week, hopefully that makes a difference.

i cant tell on your video with the noise but i think i have a similar issue. but my knock is like every 3 seconds or so... if i put my hand on top of my engine i can feel the knock every 3 seconds.