Ticking sound on cold start

[Shoeless]

I took the 987 for 2 very short trips this am. Car never got warm. I started it this afternoon and heard a ticking sound from the drivers side engine on a cold start. Drove the car on the highway and it warmed to 175. Stopped to listen and ticking was gone. Put in garage and the ticking was gone. Any ideas?

[jdraupp]

Probably a lifter tap. Not a big deal if it went away.

As a rule of thumb, taking the car on very short trips is not good for it. Make sure you get it warmed up to operating temp or drive something else.

[Shoeless]

Originally Posted by jdraupp

Probably a lifter tap. Not a big deal if it went away.

As a rule of thumb, taking the car on very short trips is not good for it. Make sure you get it warmed up to operating temp or drive something else.

Good advise, it was a one time deal, I'm learning...

[Retroman1969]

Agreed, especially if it sits for periods of time. If the oil hadn't warmed up sufficiently on the last drive and then was parked, it could easily cause a lifter to stick.

[Shoeless]

Originally Posted by Retroman1969

Agreed, especially if it sits for periods of time. If the oil hadn't warmed up sufficiently on the last drive and then was parked, it could easily cause a lifter to stick.

That's exactly what it sounded like.

[Gelbster]

The are several causes of ticking that are not related to lifters but lets assume your situation is the lifters.
If you dismantle an M96 cylinder head and dismantle a lifter you may get a different perspective on this ticking issue.I'll try to explain in non-technical language.If you can pull up a photo or diagram of this lifter it will be easier to follow.
There are several parts to the lifter. The main 2 parts are the 'bucket' and the tappet. The tappet has a some float inside the bucket depending on how much oil has been retained as a cushion. If the oil leaks out, the tappet can get hammered up inside the bucket .The clearance then becomes much larger than spec. This is one cause of ticking. If the tappet regains it's oil cushion ,the noise disappears.
The problem is that dirty oil can lodge in the lifter assy. and block the oilway.That may cause irreversible seizing of the tappet in the bucket. So you may consider an oil+filter change ? Dissect the oil filter to inspect for debris.
If the ticking returns, try to use an electronic stethoscope to precisely locate the source of the noise. It could be a bearing,injector ,exhaust leak for example.

[10/10ths]

...it's Frick & Frack the Tappet Brothers.



Don't drive like my brother...