And another hemi with a tick…lifters or something else?

[CNC99]

As the title states I have a “tick.” I thought it was just the exhaust manifolds as they were cracked. While that did fix the obnoxious startup tick, this one has persisted. In any videos I have captured it is hard to hear clearly. But in person it is pretty easy to pickup. Even with my carven exhaust system screaming I can hear the tick walking up to it from the sides or sitting in the drive through with a wall to echo off of. Under the hood it is surprisingly not as noticeable as the injectors pulsing is the most prominent sound there. But slide under the truck and you can hear it no problem, I’ve more or less pin pointed it to under the truck right around the oil pan.

Any suggestions on other things to check. I kind of gave up tracking it down for awhile but I’m at 55k miles and if it is a lifter issue or a rod or another mechanical issue I’d like to get it addressed before my warranty is up. I’m no expert but from my general understanding usually ticks heard from up top are lifters and down low is a rod. Attached are a few videos I tried capturing, all 3 videos the truck is fully warmed up and has been driven for 30+ minutes at operating temperature. I wish the camera would pick it up how it is in person, but hopefully y’all are able to make it out over all the other noises.

 

[6of36]

Of course a video is different than being there, but it does not sound like a rod knock to me. Even being able to see where the phone is in relationship to the vehicle, you can't tell which direction the sound comes from in a video. It seems to be right at the rear of the motor, so it could be something like the flex plate. You really have to have somebody check it out in person.

 

[CNC99]

Of course a video is different than being there, but it does not sound like a rod knock to me. Even being able to see where the phone is in relationship to the vehicle, you can't tell which direction the sound comes from in a video. It seems to be right at the rear of the motor, so it could be something like the flex plate. You really have to have somebody check it out in person.

I appreciate the response. Hadn’t even thought about the flex plate/torque converter. I forgot to add that I have a tick not sure if it is the same source or not. That is extremely noticeable under acceleration which pushed me to think more of a lifter. But like I said I could have two different sources of noise, seems like the sound under acceleration got slightly quieter with he last oil change. But that could just be a placebo thing, regardless it is mostly definitely still there when accelerating.

However I will keep the flex plate in mind and see if I can’t get it checked out.

 

[Ram8472]

my 2013 BH 5.7 Hemi 68K mi , driving along at about 15 mph , and all of a sudden a tick\knock.
sounded just like a rod knock and most of the other video's you hear on the board
- checked for possible pine cone in fan ( we have squirrels )
- pulled brace \cover off front transmission to check flex plate
- pulled rocker cover, and found the problem
Two part fix
#1 was a new cam and lifters , #3 non MDS lifters roller broken.
all the rest of lifters looked really good
#2 was a new 2022 Big Horn to replace it.

 

[CNC99]

my 2013 BH 5.7 Hemi 68K mi , driving along at about 15 mph , and all of a sudden a tick\knock.
sounded just like a rod knock and most of the other video's you hear on the board
- checked for possible pine cone in fan ( we have squirrels )
- pulled brace \cover off front transmission to check flex plate
- pulled rocker cover, and found the problem
Two part fix
#1 was a new cam and lifters , #3 non MDS lifters roller broken.
all the rest of lifters looked really good
#2 was a 2022 Big Horn to replace it.





View attachment 161343

I appreciate the input, this is what I suspected originally. But I will inspect the few things I can to try and rule them out before making a trip to the dealership, they are a pretty decent drive one way. They have always done right by me in the past, but I just want to have my ducks in a row if I can before taking it to them. My #4 cylinder logs some misfires every time I drive. Not enough to throw a code, but the truck does log the misfires. All things combined push me to believe there’s a bad lifter(s) somewhere.

 

[BowDown]

That's not a cam lifter failed or a rod knock. Sounds to me that there's still an exhaust leak and that intermittent light knock/thud sounds like the belt tensioner on the front of the engine. All that said, you can easily determine if its a internal engine issue by cutting an oil filter open

 

[CNC99]

That's not a cam lifter failed or a rod knock. Sounds to me that there's still an exhaust leak and that intermittent light knock/thud sounds like the belt tensioner on the front of the engine. All that said, you can easily determine if its a internal engine issue by cutting an oil filter open

I thought it still had an exhaust leak as well. But we have pressurized the exhaust system while it is cold and searched everywhere for a leak and nothing showed up and just to cover everything we got it hot and checked everywhere again and no leaks can be found. The other thing leading me to believe it is not an exhaust leak is that once the truck is hot the sound is worse. Generally leaks go away once it’s hot assuming it’s not a massive leak, but if that was the case then we would have easily found that in our search.

I will double check the tensioner, but it doesn’t appear to have any noises coming from the front end aside from the expected injector noise and fan. Using a stethoscope it appears there is definitely a ticking internally. As someone said before it could be a flex plate, but that generally goes away or gets at least quieter once it’s in gear whereas this doesn’t change regardless of gear and it has the rather obnoxious ticking sound when the engine is loaded up accelerating.

But like I said I am trying to cover all possibilities before I take it to the dealer and start paying labor fee’s just for a “cannot reproduce” outcome.

 

[BowDown]

I thought it still had an exhaust leak as well. But we have pressurized the exhaust system while it is cold and searched everywhere for a leak and nothing showed up and just to cover everything we got it hot and checked everywhere again and no leaks can be found. The other thing leading me to believe it is not an exhaust leak is that once the truck is hot the sound is worse. Generally leaks go away once it’s hot assuming it’s not a massive leak, but if that was the case then we would have easily found that in our search.

I will double check the tensioner, but it doesn’t appear to have any noises coming from the front end aside from the expected injector noise and fan. Using a stethoscope it appears there is definitely a ticking internally. As someone said before it could be a flex plate, but that generally goes away or gets at least quieter once it’s in gear whereas this doesn’t change regardless of gear and it has the rather obnoxious ticking sound when the engine is loaded up accelerating.

But like I said I am trying to cover all possibilities before I take it to the dealer and start paying labor fee’s just for a “cannot reproduce” outcome.

My exhaust manifolds were just replaced, mine was the normal loud on start up but did quieten down ..some but I could still easily here it when hot so your is still likely leaking.

Secondly, I'm not sure I'm a believer in still bolted on manifold pressure testing, you're still going to have valves open so unless a crap ton of air is being pumped in, I'd think this would not be a 100% test.

A bad lifter isn't going to get less noisy after warm up and is going to let you know somethings not happy pretty quick. If it's a lifter, there will be parts in the oil pan, drain the oil and check for needle bearings or pieces of the trunion. Also cut open an oil filter and look at the filter media.

Just FYI, an engine with a failed lifter isn't going to last long, that cam will be torn up quickly which will make for an extremely noisy rocker arm that's going to hammer the valve tip relentlessly. That's going to create an undeniable amount of noise on the top side of the engine under a valve cover. It'll literally sound like a hammer hitting the valve cover.

In your last video, that sound is too inconsistent for valve train noise and too faint but is the best video for the noise. You can try taking your serp belt off and see if the noise continues to check the tensioner pulley but it sounds like you still have an exhaust leak and a noisy tensioner.

 

[BowDown]

Here's a failed lifter

 

[CNC99]

Well update, seems to me like it is getting worse. So I took it to the dealer today. Tech said he replaces the manifolds all day and it definitely doesn’t sound like the exhaust and that it sounded like some lifter noise. The master tech ended up wanting to see it, so pulled it into his bay and not sure what all he did…but he did some stuff out there and took it for a drive and said it sounds like injectors…I didn’t have time to stick around and deal with them and ask for an explanation on how that would make any sense given the symptoms of it getting louder under acceleration, the noise is primarily heard under the engine where the injector noise is hardly audible, plus if you listen to the injectors they all sound normal not to mention injectors don’t get louder under throttle they just pulse faster…also not to mention you shouldn’t hear it when you are walking up behind the truck with a catback exhaust that is relatively loud. Both me and the other tech could hear it as we were walking up behind the truck.

Anyways if anyone has any input on what to try I’d appreciate it. They told me it sounds normal I’ll attach a few new videos to see if you can hear it. The sound now has a much more pronounced tick/tap.

 

[Louhound88]

Well update, seems to me like it is getting worse. So I took it to the dealer today. Tech said he replaces the manifolds all day and it definitely doesn’t sound like the exhaust and that it sounded like some lifter noise. The master tech ended up wanting to see it, so pulled it into his bay and not sure what all he did…but he did some stuff out there and took it for a drive and said it sounds like injectors…I didn’t have time to stick around and deal with them and ask for an explanation on how that would make any sense given the symptoms of it getting louder under acceleration, the noise is primarily heard under the engine where the injector noise is hardly audible, plus if you listen to the injectors they all sound normal not to mention injectors don’t get louder under throttle they just pulse faster…also not to mention you shouldn’t hear it when you are walking up behind the truck with a catback exhaust that is relatively loud. Both me and the other tech could hear it as we were walking up behind the truck.

Anyways if anyone has any input on what to try I’d appreciate it. They told me it sounds normal I’ll attach a few new videos to see if you can hear it. The sound now has a much more pronounced tick/tap.

My truck somewhat sounds like this. I hear the noise mostly on my drivers side and it seems to quiet down after the engine has warmed up. But my truck has always sounded this way and I'm pushing 47k miles.

What I have noticed is that if I use 87 gas its louder. Using 89 and it's much quieter. I've heard manifold leak and it's pretty noticeable from like 20 feet away, whereas my noise is really only heard a few feet away. How loud is it and how far away can you hear it?

 

[CNC99]

My truck somewhat sounds like this. I hear the noise mostly on my drivers side and it seems to quiet down after the engine has warmed up. But my truck has always sounded this way and I'm pushing 47k miles.

What I have noticed is that if I use 87 gas its louder. Using 89 and it's much quieter. I've heard manifold leak and it's pretty noticeable from like 20 feet away, whereas my noise is really only heard a few feet away. How loud is it and how far away can you hear it?

The new sound that has showed up I can hear a good 20+ feet away. And all of these are at full operating temperature after driving to and from the dealership 45 minutes one way. The other sound that has been around you can hear from a decent distance but it’s not as obvious.

 

[WXman]

To me, the valvetrain tick is noticeable but very normal/minor for these engines. In my case, a quality 5W30 syn oil eliminated that totally. The second issue I hear in your last video from the original post sounds like a little bit of lower end rod knock. I could only hear it in that third video but right around the oil pan with your phone it's audible.

Obviously nobody knows until they crack it open and look. With 5k left on the warranty I'd push real hard to get it inspected I think. You've got nothing to lose at this point.

 

[CNC99]

To me, the valvetrain tick is noticeable but very normal/minor for these engines. In my case, a quality 5W30 syn oil eliminated that totally. The second issue I hear in your last video from the original post sounds like a little bit of lower end rod knock. I could only hear it in that third video but right around the oil pan with your phone it's audible.

Obviously nobody knows until they crack it open and look. With 5k left on the warranty I'd push real hard to get it inspected I think. You've got nothing to lose at this point.

That is what I have thought as well. It’s easier to hear in person. Never had a lower end issue in a vehicle in the past so not entirely what it would sound like. But I have 5 co-workers with 5th gens with hemis and none of them have that noise. Assuming I get nowhere with the dealership and warranty then I will drop the oil pan and take a look at the lower end to make sure there is nothing obviously wrong. But I did plan on RL 5w30 as I have in my previous hemis after the warranties expired.

 

[WXman]

That is what I have thought as well. It’s easier to hear in person. Never had a lower end issue in a vehicle in the past so not entirely what it would sound like. But I have 5 co-workers with 5th gens with hemis and none of them have that noise. Assuming I get nowhere with the dealership and warranty then I will drop the oil pan and take a look at the lower end to make sure there is nothing obviously wrong. But I did plan on RL 5w30 as I have in my previous hemis after the warranties expired.

In the past, I've sometimes had to try 2 or 3 dealerships before finding a good one willing to help me out. Good luck.

 

[BowDown]

That is what I have thought as well. It’s easier to hear in person. Never had a lower end issue in a vehicle in the past so not entirely what it would sound like. But I have 5 co-workers with 5th gens with hemis and none of them have that noise. Assuming I get nowhere with the dealership and warranty then I will drop the oil pan and take a look at the lower end to make sure there is nothing obviously wrong. But I did plan on RL 5w30 as I have in my previous hemis after the warranties expired.

Rather than dropping the pan which really won't tell you anything, why not cut open an oil filter first?
Unless the bearing is physically missing, dropping the pan will not yield anything.
My LSX had an audible knock, pulled the engine and sent it to HPR for a rebuild. With the oil pan off and them physically moving the rods, they didn't then it had a bottom end issue and it still had 49PSI oil pressure at hot idle.






All this damage and the engine still had 49+ PSI oil pressure and no visible loose internals. The clearances are so tight on these modern engines that you will not feel a failed rod bearing by wiggling it much less just looking. Best bet is to cut open an oil filter.

 

[CNC99]

Rather than dropping the pan which really won't tell you anything, why not cut open an oil filter first?
Unless the bearing is physically missing, dropping the pan will not yield anything.
My LSX had an audible knock, pulled the engine and sent it to HPR for a rebuild. With the oil pan off and them physically moving the rods, they didn't then it had a bottom end issue and it still had 49PSI oil pressure at hot idle.

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All this damage and the engine still had 49+ PSI oil pressure and no visible loose internals. The clearances are so tight on these modern engines that you will not feel a failed rod bearing by wiggling it much less just looking. Best bet is to cut open an oil filter.

I will give it a shot on my next oil change. It’s coming up soon anyways. Might change it early just for the sake of cutting open a filter before the warranty is up. If that reveals anything I will keep it and bring it with me to other dealership.

 

[dork17]

Any updates on this OP?

 

[SteveGG]

Here's what I did to eliminate the tick in my JGC.
It worked for me.

Hemi Tick Gone

Bought new, 2011 JGC Limited 5.7. Now 12 yrs. old and 95K miles. Always serviced using Mobil 1 & wix filters. Never had a major problem. I noticed a tick a couple of months ago. Not the exhaust manifold. Heres' what was done to eliminate the tick. Added 7oz. of Seafoam into the crankcase. Ran...

www.jeepforum.com

 

[SteveGG]

Since I did what is in the above post, I changed to Redline 5w30 and engine is still running like butter, with no tick.