My 2010 Toyota Corolla LE 1.8L at 127,000 has the dreaded VVT-i cold start rattle on only cold starts. If the car is driven and re-started soon, the rattle does not occur. If I leave it for a couple of hours or overnight, I get the cold start rattle.
This is how it sounds like as the car care nut shows: (start video at :52 seconds and you hear the rattle at about 1:07)
There is a known TSB:
T-SB-0087-09
Brief Engine Knock/Rattle Noise at Cold Startup
So, it's the cam gear assembly and apparently, it's some spring in there that goes bad. Eventually, they say to replace it. However, my mechanic suggested that this would be costly to replace.
Can I just live with the noise, without damaging the engine? The rattle only happens on cold starts. I only drive about 4,000 miles per year.
There was a similar thread on this site, which has been closed and couldn't post.
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This is how it sounds like as the car care nut shows: (start video at :52 seconds and you hear the rattle at about 1:07)
There is a known TSB:
T-SB-0087-09
Brief Engine Knock/Rattle Noise at Cold Startup
So, it's the cam gear assembly and apparently, it's some spring in there that goes bad. Eventually, they say to replace it. However, my mechanic suggested that this would be costly to replace.
Can I just live with the noise, without damaging the engine? The rattle only happens on cold starts. I only drive about 4,000 miles per year.
There was a similar thread on this site, which has been closed and couldn't post.
2ZR-FE 1.8 Startup Rattle in Vibe, Matrix, Corolla
This is a fairly common problem, caused by the timing gear actuator not stopping in the correct position. The gear assembly then rattles loudly for about 1-2 seconds on cold starts. My 2010 Vibe started doing it last summer, out of warranty. My question is, basically, will this damage the...
bobistheoilguy.com
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