Steering Wheel Noise (tic tic tic) - any ideas????
 

I bought my 370Z 3 yeas ago. I have ~20k miles on it and about a couple of months ago I started hearing this "ticking" noise (tic tic tic tic) apparently below the steering wheel. The noise happens as I start taking off (kind of fast; the faster the more it will tic) or when I start accelerating from a constant speed or when I am going 70+ mph. At constant high speeds the ticking is more consistent. The ticking sounds like an electronic component (actuator, solenoid, relay, etc.) that triggers and releases really fast.

First I though that it had something to do with some type of steering wheel speed sensitive control but I don't think the 370Z has that... if I am not mistaken they just have a "Vehicle-speed-sensitive power steering" which I don't think it is the same thing.

My car is at the dealer and they can't figure it out so I am asking anybody if this has happen to you or if you know what it is all about. They will call Nissan to get some input but that is pretty much as far as they will go.

bomb in ur car.lol

Got this fixed long time ago but didnt get a chance to update. Apparently this is something common for some Z's.... the ticking was caused by silicone pieces inside one of the heater hoses that is "in front" of the steering wheel. On some Z's this silicone wears over time. At RPMS >3000 (constant high speed or take off) the motor vibrates enough so the silicone pieces vibrate and make the ticking noise "underneath" the steering wheel.
To fix... drain the heater. Hope this doesnt happen to anyone but your dealer will need to call Nissan for specific instructions on how to fix this.

My Z is in the shop right now for the same problem. It's really annoying... and not cheap.

Mine is doing it now. Freaked me out I thought there was something wrong with the engine . It did not sound like engine though, but ticked after I got to 4k RPMs. I thought my cam timing was screwed almost drove straight to the dealer, but they don't open for 2 hours. Once I read this I turned on my AC and then revel to 4k no more noise.

Sounds like a balancing problem on the motor or flywheel if it can make the car parts tick to the rpm.

Another thing to add to my fix list for the dealer.

See NTB08-053b, dated March 23, 2009. IIRC, there is a copy on this site.

I had a ticking noise surface in my 2010 Z this week (15,000 miles on it), and this sounds like the same issue. It starts at about 3500 RPM and doesn't go away all the way to redline. Anything below 3500 RPM, no noise. Sounds like a tick from behind the steering wheel or in the instrument panel somewhere. It will make the noise when sitting still and revving or driving around, so it is definitely engine vibration induced and not road or speed induced.

I thought it was a long shot to search the forums for this issue, but this is why I love the forum! I'll check out the bulletin and probably take it to the dealer to repair.

For those that had this fixed, how much did you pay??

Well I had this issue fixed at the dealership last week. There was a silicon piece in the heater core making all that noise. It cost about $200 since they had to drain/refill the coolant and flush the heater core multiple times to get the piece out. But it fixed the noise 100%.

http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z...ne%20Piece.jpg

there's a tsb on this... release back in 2009 or something.

Yeah I had that TSB and brought it for the tech. It was very helpful for him. Thanks!