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Old Oct 12, 2009 | 10:01 AM
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Default How much noise

can an injector make? When i start the car up, there is a loud erratic clacking coming from the engine. It isnt a knock. I have gotten a stethoscope and checked the rocker covers and everything sounds normal.
The clacking goes away after about a couple of miles. Is it possible that i am loosing fuel pressure at one or two injectors and that is the sound i am hearing?
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Old Oct 12, 2009 | 10:09 AM
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Originally Posted by dadsturn
can an injector make? When i start the car up, there is a loud erratic clacking coming from the engine. It isnt a knock. I have gotten a stethoscope and checked the rocker covers and everything sounds normal.
The clacking goes away after about a couple of miles. Is it possible that i am loosing fuel pressure at one or two injectors and that is the sound i am hearing?
How would you loose fuel pressure at one injector, unless it was stuck open?

You've got the stethoscope....did you isolate the noise to an injector?
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Old Oct 12, 2009 | 10:19 AM
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Standard fare LS piston slap.
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Old Oct 12, 2009 | 10:19 AM
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More info.....did this just start (the noise) or has it been doing it for a while? How is the oil pressure? Any codes?
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Old Oct 12, 2009 | 10:30 AM
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It's your lifters draining down. Mine does the same thing.

(Yes, I know what piston slap sounds like, this is not piston slap, it sounds nothing like piston slap, don't tell me it's piston slap)

I've heard a number of people here describe the same thing with their engines. I've also personally heard a friend's Z06 make the same noise after he swore up and down it didn't. It's a very common topic on LSX boards as well. Soooo take it for it is. Which is to say a minor annoyance. If it keeps tapping after a mile or two then I'd start to worry.

I know at least one guy on this forum claims his startup tapping went away when he switched to Wix oil filters because supposedly they're better at suspending oil in the engine. So I got a couple of those on hand for the next oil change. I'm also going to switch to Castrol Edge oil. We'll see!
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Old Oct 12, 2009 | 10:49 AM
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Originally Posted by wcsinx
It's your lifters draining down. Mine does the same thing.

(Yes, I know what piston slap sounds like, this is not piston slap, it sounds nothing like piston slap, don't tell me it's piston slap)

I've heard a number of people here describe the same thing with their engines. I've also personally heard a friend's Z06 make the same noise after he swore up and down it didn't. It's a very common topic on LSX boards as well. Soooo take it for it is. Which is to say a minor annoyance. If it keeps tapping after a mile or two then I'd start to worry.

I know at least one guy on this forum claims his startup tapping went away when he switched to Wix oil filters because supposedly they're better at suspending oil in the engine. So I got a couple of those on hand for the next oil change. I'm also going to switch to Castrol Edge oil. We'll see!
it has been doing this for about the last 3 months. And it doesnt do it all of the time. I have listened to the lifters through the cover and i have always been able to tell in the past, but they dont sound any different. And the other poster is right, it feeds from a common manifold

And it is NOT piston slap. But just how loud can the injectors be, and would they be loud then finally have the noise go away? I was going to check these tonight after work and thought i would ask.

My oil pressure runs 55 at idle and 80 at 2500 and up, no, nogo there.
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Old Oct 12, 2009 | 10:57 AM
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Originally Posted by dadsturn
it has been doing this for about the last 3 months. And it doesnt do it all of the time. I have listened to the lifters through the cover and i have always been able to tell in the past, but they dont sound any different. And the other poster is right, it feeds from a common manifold
Yeah, I've done the same thing. When I put a stethoscope to the rocker covers, everything sounds fine. I don't have any unusual sounds/loudness at any rocker. It's just when I start up I get a clackity clack for 1 or 2 minutes until they pump up. It's worse from hot starts than cold, and it doesn't happen to me everytime either. It seems to depend mostly on how long it's been sitting.

But just how loud can the injectors be, and would they be loud then finally have the noise go away?
They make some noise, and it's actually somewhat similar to a valve clacking noise, but it doesn't really make sense that injector noise would diminish after awhile. I'm still going with it's your lifters.

Last edited by wcsinx; Oct 12, 2009 at 12:59 PM.
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Old Oct 12, 2009 | 11:10 AM
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Check all the spark plug wires are on the coil and plugs tightly too. You can pull the electrical plug off one injector at a time to help identify if one is louder then the rest.
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Old Oct 12, 2009 | 12:16 PM
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Originally Posted by dadsturn
My oil pressure runs 55 at idle and 80 at 2500 and up, no, nogo there.
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Old Oct 12, 2009 | 01:12 PM
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Originally Posted by wcsinx
It's your lifters draining down. Mine does the same thing.

(Yes, I know what piston slap sounds like, this is not piston slap, it sounds nothing like piston slap, don't tell me it's piston slap)

I've heard a number of people here describe the same thing with their engines. I've also personally heard a friend's Z06 make the same noise after he swore up and down it didn't. It's a very common topic on LSX boards as well. Soooo take it for it is. Which is to say a minor annoyance. If it keeps tapping after a mile or two then I'd start to worry.

I know at least one guy on this forum claims his startup tapping went away when he switched to Wix oil filters because supposedly they're better at suspending oil in the engine. So I got a couple of those on hand for the next oil change. I'm also going to switch to Castrol Edge oil. We'll see!
OK, I won't tell you it's piston slap I also won't tell you that a change in filters and oil will not make this go away.
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Old Oct 12, 2009 | 01:26 PM
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Originally Posted by capevettes
OK, I won't tell you it's piston slap I also won't tell you that a change in filters and oil will not make this go away.
*shrug* It actually has worked for some. There was another thread which I'm having no luck finding where someone specifically mentioned that combination eliminated his startup clacking. So I have my fingers crossed.
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Old Oct 12, 2009 | 01:30 PM
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Found it. #7 exhaust lifter is making the noise. Couldnt hear it until we put the scope on the header.

Before tearing everything down, im going to seafoam the engine and see
if it frees it up. if not, then ill start the replacement.

Thanks all.
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Old Oct 12, 2009 | 01:36 PM
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Originally Posted by dadsturn
Found it. #7 exhaust lifter is making the noise. Couldnt hear it until we put the scope on the header.

Before tearing everything down, im going to seafoam the engine and see
if it frees it up. if not, then ill start the replacement.

Thanks all.
I'm assuming you mean you're going to dump seafoam in the oil?

Keep us posted on your results. I assure you, you're not the only one with this issue!
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Old Oct 12, 2009 | 01:50 PM
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Originally Posted by wcsinx
I'm assuming you mean you're going to dump seafoam in the oil? yes..in the oil

Keep us posted on your results. I assure you, you're not the only one with this issue!
will do
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Old Oct 12, 2009 | 01:59 PM
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Originally Posted by dadsturn
Found it. #7 exhaust lifter is making the noise. Couldnt hear it until we put the scope on the header.

Before tearing everything down, im going to seafoam the engine and see
if it frees it up. if not, then ill start the replacement.

Thanks all.
Before tearing things down, you might want to swap the rocker and pushrod with a different cylinder. If the noise stays at the same location then lifter is likely. If it switches to the other cylinder then bent pushrod, or rocker with missing roller needles may be at falt.

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Old Oct 12, 2009 | 02:03 PM
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Originally Posted by Eric D
Before tearing things down, you might want to swap the rocker and pushrod with a different cylinder. If the noise stays at the same location then lifter is likely. If it switches to the other cylinder then bent pushrod, or rocker with missing roller needles may be at falt.

Why would the noise of a bent rod or failing rocker diminish after awhile though?
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Old Oct 12, 2009 | 02:14 PM
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Originally Posted by wcsinx
Why would the noise of a bent rod or failing rocker diminish after awhile though?
rockers and hardened pushrods are just fine. First thing we checked. Removed, checked, bore scoped the lifters, assembled and retorqued
to 22ftlbs.
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Old Oct 12, 2009 | 02:16 PM
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Originally Posted by wcsinx
Why would the noise of a bent rod or failing rocker diminish after awhile though?
Good point! None the less it doesn't take much to swap.
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Old Oct 12, 2009 | 02:19 PM
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Originally Posted by dadsturn
rockers and hardened pushrods are just fine. First thing we checked. Removed, checked, bore scoped the lifters, assembled and retorqued to 22ftlbs.
Have the pushrod length been checked?
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Old Oct 21, 2009 | 09:05 PM
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Originally Posted by wcsinx
It's your lifters draining down. Mine does the same thing.

(Yes, I know what piston slap sounds like, this is not piston slap, it sounds nothing like piston slap, don't tell me it's piston slap)

I've heard a number of people here describe the same thing with their engines. I've also personally heard a friend's Z06 make the same noise after he swore up and down it didn't. It's a very common topic on LSX boards as well. Soooo take it for it is. Which is to say a minor annoyance. If it keeps tapping after a mile or two then I'd start to worry.

I know at least one guy on this forum claims his startup tapping went away when he switched to Wix oil filters because supposedly they're better at suspending oil in the engine. So I got a couple of those on hand for the next oil change. I'm also going to switch to Castrol Edge oil. We'll see!
If it is the lifters draining down, will this condition get worse and does it have potential to damage other parts of the motor. Mine is fairly loud when cold started and after 2-3 minutes the noise goes away. Only my 2nd day as a C5 owner so I'm hoping it is not a serious problem.
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