Hi All

New the the forum. Just have this problem with my engine. It makes an ever increasingly annoying "clicking" noise from the engine while in neutral and then when i shift into gear and go the clicking becomes faster. Any idea what this could be. It pretty loud and has heads turing when im parked in traffic.

Thanks
Grimes

welcome to the forum, im no expert but i just had my headgasket replaced my engine sounded different until i got a new one but wait till a bit l8r on all these peeps on the forum will tell you or recomed what the problem is an tell u the best advise to go about the prob

I am no mechanic, but think it has something to do with gearbox or clutch slave cylinder.

does the ticking increase in speed if you rev the car in neutral, by that i mean at higher revs (such as 5000rpm) is the clicking fater than at idle in both neutral and when in gear. if that is the case i suggest you check the tappets (ironic name or what) and oil pump. if the noise sound like it is cominf from the top of the engine it is likely to be tappets. open the bonnet and have a listen

thanks lads, yeah Jug thats exactly whats going on? will it cost much to get a professional to fix or will i be able to do it myself?

if its the tappets they are easily accessible and not difficult to change. dont expect all 4 to need changing, its more likely that one fo them has worn due to dirt ingress or a lack of oil. if the 1.2 engine has hydraulic tappets then they do not need to be adjusted to set valve clearance, if they arent hydraulic they you will need to set the valve clearance using a feeler gauge during fitting, in fact if they arent hydraulic then all you may need to do is adjust the valve clearances and the noise may dissapear. a haynes manual will make this an easy job. not sur ebaour prices, in the past i've paid from £30-80 per tappet, it depends on the car and where you get the part from. i dont suggest fiat, but get a price from them so you can see how much money you've saved going elsewhere.

forgot to mention, you can access the tappets by removing the rocker cover, thats the lid to the engine, on top of the head. you need a new rocker gasket to use when refitting the cover, they are usually made of cork and cost £3.

does anyone know of the 1.2 has hydraulic tappets or not? i would expect it to since its a relatively recent engine.

The 1.2 does have hydraulic tappets.

If u ask me it is the problem with hydraulic valves....You said that the sound is increasing with rpm...So the camshaft is turning faster the sounds are more together because the valves are opening and closing faster..So under the cam shaft there are hydraulic little leadings instead of classic springs....When these leading are worn out they dont make an oil film inside so there is the metal sound in the engine....Espacially when the engine is cold also the oil more viscosity so it cannot make the pressure in this hydraulic leadings...

I THINK hehe

forgot to mention, when im not sure if its really the tappets to blame i add 2 cans of engine flush to the oil and keep it at high idle (2000rpm) for 10 mins, this thins the oil which makes the tapping less noisey. if adding engine flush does reduce the tapping noise its a good sign that the tappets are to blame. either way, you cant leave the flush in your oil or engine damage can occur. you'll need to drain the oil and refill with fresh. if it did reduce the noise you can always go to a scrapyard and get a set of tappets, try swapping them with yours and hopefully you'll be sorted for not much money at all.

You should also check the oil pressure is what it's supposed to be because I am thinking that a low oil pressure (i.e. worn/lazy oil pump) can cause the tappets to tap. I think this is the problem on my 1.4, I haven't checked my pressure yet but I know a new oil pump is about £130. I know it's not the tappets that are worn as they are brand new.

Dan89 said:

You should also check the oil pressure is what it's supposed to be because I am thinking that a low oil pressure (i.e. worn/lazy oil pump) can cause the tappets to tap. I think this is the problem on my 1.4, I haven't checked my pressure yet but I know a new oil pump is about £130. I know it's not the tappets that are worn as they are brand new.

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you have a 1.4 so its probably the same as all the other 1.4's, poor oil circulation in the head due to oilway blockages and a dodgy oil flinger. also camshaft wear due to oil starvation. i think changing the oil pump would be a waste of money, its the head thats the problem on the 1.4's.

jug said:

you have a 1.4 so its probably the same as all the other 1.4's, poor oil circulation in the head due to oilway blockages and a dodgy oil flinger. also camshaft wear due to oil starvation. i think changing the oil pump would be a waste of money, its the head thats the problem on the 1.4's.

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I know what you mean but the thing is I have a new cam, followers, tappets and oil spray bar. I have turned the engine over without the cam cover to see that all cam lobes are being lubricated. I'll check the pressure anyway as I know it should be 1 bar at idle and 4 bar at 4000 rpm. If it's rather low then I'll know it could be causing the problems.