hello again
my barchetta ownership seams to be going from bad to worse!

not only have i just rolled into my punto on the drive and dented the front panel, ive noticed a tappety noise at about 2000rpm, its coming from the cam area, the car has 130000kms has had a variator but do these go again?

anybody help??

thanks
phill

Well of course it could go again as could any "consumable" How long ago was it fitted and at what mileage? Does it quieten down when warm?? There are other things it could be of course like a weakening hydraulic tappet, you would be surprised that even a change of oil could shut that up!!

hi

the variator was done at about 90000 kms, the noise does quieten down when warm, it also quitens down over 3000rpm.

noticed it just after changing the oil, ?

Unless you went for a significantly thinner oil then that shouldnt matter?

i used 10/40 semi sinthetic

That absolutely fine.
As you are aware, it is rather difficult trying to diagnose via the web!!
Let's hope it isnt the variator and just a lazy hydraulic lifter that may sort itself out within a day or two, it has been known!

thanks

if it is a lifter problem how do i find this and what can be done to fix it?

IF it is a lifter problem then it's a camshaft off job so you need to make sure before any work is started. \even though I have rebuilt one of these engines before, I am struggling to picture it in my mind (old age).
The hydraulic lifters on the Bravo engines for example are prone to failure and if I was doing those then I would replace all 16 of them however, a cheaper option is to take them all out and put them in a vice to gradually drain them of oil and then if you can squeeze it between your fingers then it needs replacing otherwise it is fine to place it back in the engine. When you put them back in and restart the engine, they will all be noisy until they have refilled with oil, this can take up to half an hour in my experience.
Another thing that can happen with a weak lifter is if your vehicle has been stood for a while then the weak lifter can slowly drain of oil and be noisy on start-up.
As I mentioned in a previous post earlier this evening, if you can get hold of a mechanics stethoscope you may be able to pinpoint where the tapping is coming from if you place the 'scope over each area of the cam cover whilst the engine is running. These stethoscopes are easily available on ebay.You will be surprised how effective these 'scopes can be in pinpointing the noise, at around a fiver to get hold of one it may be worth it in the long run.

:yeahthat: I am with S/S on the advice however had a similar issue on a BMW 318is a few years ago, I used a hydraulic tappet flush and then changed the oil and hey presto the issue disappeared - might cost you £30 - £40 for a flush, filter and oil but could fix the issue...........

Dear k222pjr,
The noise is coming from the exhaust heat shield.
Look it up in other posts