Start up tick driving me crazy.

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Dec 2, 2006
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Location
Cincinnati
Car is a 2001 SS Camaro.
Ok when I first got my car the engine was super quiet Im not sure what oil was in it tho I think it was dino oil and it seemed pretty thick. After a month or so I put GC 0w30 in it and it ticked alot so then I tried amsoil 5w40 and its not soo bad but still ticks at start up. I love everything about my car but this little thing drives me crazy. Here is what I dont get why did it not do it when I bought the car. Also it stops once warmed up but I usually have to take a little drive first then ill idle and its all good.... then say I go in autozone for 5 min come back out and start it up and its ticking again altho she is fully warmed up. My friends bimmer did the same thing and he said when he went to a 10w oil it stopped. I was thinking of trying some 10w30 now but I dunno I just want it to stop I dont care if the gc is still protecting the best this just bothers me so if i can get a decent oil that doesnt tick ill be happy. Im not even sure if its piston slap now or not but all I know is it did not do it with the oil in the car when I purchased it.
 
Well, let's see...you're in Cincinnati so you have to deal with cold weather around half the time....

You could experiment around on short OCI's with a handful of dino oils like Castrol GTX, or Havoline or even MotorCraft oil ( which, I think is technically is a semisynthetic oil). Start off with the 10w30 range and see what happens. I am sure there will be others who will chime in with their favorite dino oils.

If you don't have any luck there, you can start checking out the favorite synthetic oils of this board...Pennzoil Platinum, Valvoline's full synth, M1 or even Supertec full syn might be good.

You'll have to adjust the oils' "W" weight to the coolness of the season, but if you keep at it eventually you'll find an oil this engine likes.

If I may, let me close with a question - what oil filter are you using? Some flow better than others!!! Just a thought....

Cheers and good luck! DV
 
I used both a k&n and a napa gold filter. I dont really drive this car when its too cold cause its in storage so I havnt really driven it a ton yet or experianced a whole lot with different oil.
 
Also what about trying some lucas oil stabilizer? This would keep me from having to buy 6 quarts of oil again and prob let me know to run thicker oil next time right?
 
Quote:


Would that be thinner then the gc 0w30 at start up cause i tried that all ready.




GC 0w30 is thicker than most Xw30s. Yes, I know it's counter intuitive, since it is a 0w30, but the 0w part only applies at -35°C and lower.

I'd try some Pennzoil Platinum 5w30.

Another option is to give it an AutoRX treatment.

But in the end, if the lifters are defective, no oil or additive will rejuvenate them.
 
Quote:


Tear out the heads and intake and replace the lifters.




You would end up with the same problem after doing all that work. The lifter needs oil to enter the inlet for it to pump itself up. The problem is a lack of oil flow to one lifter.

To the OP, I would suggest starting with 8oz of MMO and see how that does. If you still have the tick, then pour in another 8oz. Don't exceed 16oz.
 
Honestly - I have found if a better flowing filter doesn't solve the problem - true oil related start-up ticks will only be moderated to some extent by oil selection.

In MOST cases the best solution is a high flow filter. Put an Amsoil EaO32 in there and see what happens.

If that doesn't help, run Havoline.
 
My wife's PT Cruiser does the same thing with GTX, Havoline, etc. I finally switched to MaxLife and although not completely gone, the ticking is minimized. Same result with my Jeep, except I found TropArtic was the magic potion it preferrred. Try a few short OCI's and you will find a quality oil that your car is fond of. I would also concur with the comment regarding a good AutoRX treatment just to make sure everything is nice and tidy inside....
 
Is is just one lifter, or all of them?
Maybe a lifter has loose clearances, and is bleeding down too fast. Sometimes an adjustment or replacement is necessary. Bad rockers will click and tick, also.
A different brand of oil filter may help.
 
Try adding a quart of rislone. It has a high potency detergent in it and will quickly free up a sticking lifter. Worked like a charm on an old 6 cylinder mercedes I had that developed a ticking noise.
beer2.gif
 
I am assuming that this car has a few miles on it? If that is the case, I would take sprintman's advice on the AutoRX. I had tons of lifter noise on my Harley. After AutoRX it is pretty much gone (if not completely - I think the noise I hear now is the high lift cam causing the valves to slam down harder than a regular Harley). Anyway, if you do go that route - expect the noise to get worse for a little bit and then clear up. At least that is what happened to me. If your HLAs have sludgies than the Autorx will most likely clean it up. As always, YMMV.

Let us know what you did and if it worked. It might help another person someday.

cheers.gif
 
It is typical GM lifter ticking. Just about every 3100 or 3400 V6 has it to some extent or another. It also occurs in some GM V8s as noted above. There is probably no oil or liquid potion that will fix the issue. It is not hurting anything so don't lose any sleep over it.
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I forgot to add that the 3400 in my 2002 has had this issue for quite some time and makes basically the same sound with Mobil 1, MC, MaxLife or my current oil, Havoline.
 
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