Lifter noise only when startups below 50 degrees

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Ive got a 3.0 montero Sport 2001,about 135k on it.
The valve train is only recently louder than usual at start up when the ambient temp is below 50 degrees. After running for 2 min, the noise quiets way down to "normal" . When its above 50 degrees, theres never excessive noise.
..
For the last 20K miles I have been using 5-30 "high mileage" oil My next move might be to something lower than 5 to see if that reduces noise when below 50 degrees for morning starts.
Anyone had this issue and solved it with oils or even"snake oil" additives?
Until then Ive put a lightbulb next to lifter cover over night when nights are expected to be,below 55 so and that does eliminate the start up lifter racket .



Any suggestions other than trying an oil less than 5/30 or using the light bulb?
Anyone had this issue and solved it with any additives?
 
Don't worry, FRAM isn't related to Purolator. I have faith in Jay(Motorking) and FRAM quality
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Have you cleaned the Idle Air Control Valve lately? Might as well do the throttle body as well. Replace the PCV valve if it hasn't been done in the last 60k miles with an oem one preferably.

Use a quiet running oil like Castrol Magnatec 5w30.
 
No...havent tried any. Ill give the cleaning suggestions a try. I did it once years ago,because disconnecting my battery made it idle irratically and cleaning it fixed it. How that fixed the idle problem I have no idea.BTW I dont recall what to clean with,do you know off hand?..was it acetone?.thx
 
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I second SatinSilver's idea of using Castrol Magnatec. Sometime a engine just does not like a particular oil. Do the cleaning as well.
 
I wonder how similar your engine is to the 3.0 V6 that was in my 3000GT? It didn't "like" synthetic oil. I tried Syntec in it after I got it and every cool or cold morning it would stick like crazy on first starts of the day,but wouldn't ever do it with dino. Try an oil change with one of the legendary "quiet oils",PYB or QSGB.
 
Since it's temperature related, maybe your noisy lifter is worn just enough that when the metal contracts in the cold it is able to rattle around.

Maybe you have an oil pathway that's partially clogged.

Try a flush. This is an interesting one.
 
Originally Posted By: aquariuscsm
I wonder how similar your engine is to the 3.0 V6 that was in my 3000GT? It didn't "like" synthetic oil. I tried Syntec in it after I got it and every cool or cold morning it would stick like crazy on first starts of the day,but wouldn't ever do it with dino. Try an oil change with one of the legendary "quiet oils",PYB or QSGB.


*every cool or cold morning it would "tick" like crazy on first starts of the day*

^^Fixed my typo. I waited to late to edit my post.
 
Originally Posted By: aquariuscsm
Originally Posted By: aquariuscsm
I wonder how similar your engine is to the 3.0 V6 that was in my 3000GT? It didn't "like" synthetic oil. I tried Syntec in it after I got it and every cool or cold morning it would stick like crazy on first starts of the day,but wouldn't ever do it with dino. Try an oil change with one of the legendary "quiet oils",PYB or QSGB.


*every cool or cold morning it would "tick" like crazy on first starts of the day*

^^Fixed my typo. I waited to late to edit my post.



Interesting thought. I think the blocks were the same but there may have been differences in the heads. That 3.0 was the bread and butter for Mitsubishi.

In mine, I used Regular M1 synthetic at the time and GTX in another Mitsu we had. One time I purchased Syntec for the 3.0
and got a similar response like yours. Valve train noise was up. I dumped it and went back to M1 and it was quieter.

Would leaking valve seals be the cause here? The OP has enough miles onboard to consider that.
 
Originally Posted By: PimTac
Originally Posted By: aquariuscsm
Originally Posted By: aquariuscsm
I wonder how similar your engine is to the 3.0 V6 that was in my 3000GT? It didn't "like" synthetic oil. I tried Syntec in it after I got it and every cool or cold morning it would stick like crazy on first starts of the day,but wouldn't ever do it with dino. Try an oil change with one of the legendary "quiet oils",PYB or QSGB.


*every cool or cold morning it would "tick" like crazy on first starts of the day*

^^Fixed my typo. I waited to late to edit my post.



Interesting thought. I think the blocks were the same but there may have been differences in the heads. That 3.0 was the bread and butter for Mitsubishi.

In mine, I used Regular M1 synthetic at the time and GTX in another Mitsu we had. One time I purchased Syntec for the 3.0
and got a similar response like yours. Valve train noise was up. I dumped it and went back to M1 and it was quieter.

Would leaking valve seals be the cause here? The OP has enough miles onboard to consider that.


Mine had around 40,000 miles on it. Ran soooooo smooth and quiet until I put Syntec in it. Soon as I heard that noise I freaked!! It literally sounded like I started it up with no oil in it. I can't remember what I replaced it with (maybe VWB or GTX) but no more startup tick ever again.
 
It would be great if the OP would have a friend to start it up while he is tracking the sound. It really could be anything. Loose spark plug? Timing belt or tensioner? Has the timing belt been changed?

I sold mine with around 130k on it. I suspect it's still running somewhere. Those motors were smooth and reliable. They did start to leak out of the freeze plugs after a while but I had the fix done. That was a common issue.
 
Originally Posted By: PalmSpringsSCal
...I've put a lightbulb next to lifter cover over night...

Kinda like a block heater!

Forecast for PS tomorrow anticipates ~108°F/79°F so one can admire your proactive planning.
 
First determine if it is in fact a lifter noise, then address it. If it is a lifter noise. Kreen, MMO, and Rislone, along with idle flushes have helped solve the problem for several members, if the lifter is plugged up but mechanically sound. Most are easily available at WMT and parts stores, and are inexpensive.
 
Originally Posted By: PalmSpringsSCal
Ive got a 3.0 montero Sport 2001,about 135k on it.
The valve train is only recently louder than usual at start up when the ambient temp is below 50 degrees. After running for 2 min, the noise quiets way down to "normal" . When its above 50 degrees, theres never excessive noise.



Just going off of what you've described so far, I'd say you're suffering from normal valvetrain wear on the rocker assemblies. Granted, it may be abnormal when compared to previoius engine's you have owned, but that is normal for some engines out there (to have poorly designed/manufactured parts which wear out prematurely under normal operation).

If that's the case, you can stop searching for a miracle fix for it, as there is not one...except for hardware replacement of course. And the engine would still be fine to drive as you have been for daily commutes, etc. In other words, it should NOT suddenly break down on you or suddenly leave you stranded on the side of the road because this finally "broke".

The rockers slowly eat into the mounting posts on either side of themselves, and gradually get off line from the cam lobe they're following, so there's not going to be a sudden failure of the part, just gradual wearing down and more noise as it goes.



Originally Posted By: PalmSpringsSCal
For the last 20K miles I have been using 5-30 "high mileage" oil

You can continue to use a HM oil if you want, but the things that make an oil HM versus one that is not HM will not affect this issue much either way (better or worse). The HM vs. non-HM ingrediants are more for keeping the seals on the engine in good health (or better health than they were before).
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Originally Posted By: PalmSpringsSCal
My next move might be to something lower than 5 to see if that reduces noise when below 50 degrees for morning starts.

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I understand your thinking there, but you won't get any advantage by doing that. The 0/5W difference is just not applicable in such mild temperatures.

You might see/hear a difference if you were running a 10W-30 and then went to a 5W-30 , but the difference between 5W-30 and 0W-xx won't be utilized until the temps are 20 or 30 degrees BELOW 0F, not 50 degrees ABOVE 0F.


Originally Posted By: PalmSpringsSCal
Anyone had this issue and solved it with oils or even"snake oil" additives?


There are no chemicals you can add or motor oils that you can run to replace the worn hardware. That will be the only way to truly fix the problem.



Originally Posted By: PalmSpringsSCal
Until then Ive put a lightbulb next to lifter cover over night when nights are expected to be,below 55 so and that does eliminate the start up lifter racket .



I commend your creative thinking, but that would NOT have an effect on the ticking at startup. If you truly wanted to mitigate the ticking at startup by pre-heating the engine oil, you would need a block heater or build a small fire under the oil pan before the morning startup takes place.

But even then, depending upon the age and condition of the oil, pre-heating it will have diminishing returns as you go through the OCI. At some point, it would just be more trouble than it was worth I think.



Originally Posted By: PalmSpringsSCal
Any suggestions other than trying an oil less than 5/30 or using the light bulb?
Anyone had this issue and solved it with any additives?



You will have to experiment with different oils, but yes, you can try others to see if the ticking isn't as bad on them.

Different engine oils will absolutely behave differently, and you'll know the ones your engine likes based on the ticking noise. More/louder ticking means don't use that oil in any more OCIs. Less/quieter ticking means you found an oil your engine likes, make a note of it and keep using it!

One more thing, someone mentioned that a synthetic might not be advisable in this case. I would tend to agree, and mostly for the reasons they surmissed in their post. But you can certainly throw in a few synthetics into your experimentational OCIs to see if we're right nor not.
 
Originally Posted By: splinter
Originally Posted By: PalmSpringsSCal
...I've put a lightbulb next to lifter cover over night...

Kinda like a block heater!

Forecast for PS tomorrow anticipates ~108°F/79°F so one can admire your proactive planning.


Wonder how a reptile heat bulb would work?
 
Originally Posted By: PimTac
Sometime a engine just does not like a particular oil. Do the cleaning as well.
Had the same issue. Switched from M1 0w20 to QSUD 0w20, and it completely eliminated engine noise I had with M1.

I'm now using Pennzoil Ultra 0w20....and my engine is still very quiet.
 
Home someone comes up with some technical reasoning behind this M1 noise noise - since PUP tested noisier than M1 in two separate engines of mine (with Db meter) ...
 
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