slight ticking from the engine

[kyleN20]

not able to hear it at crusing speed, and at a certin point in 1st, and second, at just the right rpm, about 2k, you can hear a ticking, almost a clicking, its not trans because i can dup-a-souund in the driveway, also, when i shut my car off, i get a rattle from the engine, like a shutter, kinda like a diesel might,
any ideas, thanks

Kyle

[Kalevera]

Mine ticks at idle, which has been a hard thing for me to accept. But the fact of it is, there's some ticking inherent in this design -- metal on metal does that kind of thing :). Also, the injectors can get noisy with age.

The first time I pulled the valve cover, I found a banjo bolt sitting in the valley -- not a good sign, but the lobes looked okay.

Likely, one (or more) of your valves is out of adjustment. Adjust the valves and check the banjo bolts.

best, whit

[Jon K]

Mine ticks at idle, which has been a hard thing for me to accept. But the fact of it is, there's some ticking inherent in this design -- metal on metal does that kind of thing :). Also, the injectors can get noisy with age.

The first time I pulled the valve cover, I found a banjo bolt sitting in the valley -- not a good sign, but the lobes looked okay.

Likely, one (or more) of your valves is out of adjustment. Adjust the valves and check the banjo bolts.

best, whit


Don't you just love the M30?

[Robin-535im]

not able to hear it at crusing speed, and at a certin point in 1st, and second, at just the right rpm, about 2k, you can hear a ticking, almost a clicking, its not trans because i can dup-a-souund in the driveway, also, when i shut my car off, i get a rattle from the engine, like a shutter, kinda like a diesel might,
any ideas, thanks

Kyle
Ticking at idle is probably the rocker arms. Properly adjusted valves at 0.013 are usually audible above the engine noise, and it's been my experience that setting them tighter can quiet them up a bit, as can getting new eccentrics. New eccentrics really just help you set them all exactly the same... when some are looser than others, they'll be louder and the sound will stand out.

I just did mine back at 0.013, and they're all a little bit loud. If you have a single one that's much louder than the rest, you probably want to adjust them. If you haven't done the valves recently, it's worth it to do them anyway just to be sure. Loud is okay if you're sure they're set properly - "Sewing machine" is the term I've heard for the sound of an M30 at 0.013.

The rattle on shutdown is the dual mass flywheel. Push the clutch in when killing the motor and you won't hear it. That, or get an e28 flywheel!

- Robin

[Kalevera]

Hey Robin - why'd you bring them back up to .013? I set mine to your .010/.012 spec last time around. It's definitely quieter, but I think I lost a bit of power -- seems a bit more sluggish in the 4000+ rpm zone since then.

best, whit

[Robin-535im]

Hey Robin - why'd you bring them back up to .013? I set mine to your .010/.012 spec last time around. It's definitely quieter, but I think I lost a bit of power -- seems a bit more sluggish in the 4000+ rpm zone since then.

best, whit
Well, the truth is I'm entering a period here where I don't want any unexpected repair costs, so I backed them off just to be safe. I really can't tell if there is more power at one setting or another, since it takes a while for the DME to adjust to the new condition and the weather is different every day. Nonetheless, the difference was small enough that I figured I'd err on the side of longevity.

Of course, by saying that, I've jinxed myself and now the tranny is going to fall out or something! I seem to have a valve that gets louder a week or so after I've done the adjustment, yet when I open it up again they all seem fine. I figured I'd loosen them up in the thought that looser = less stress on the engine.

[kyleN20]

thanks alot, and i might get a e28 fly, but i doubt it, just becfause im 18 and senior year is winding down, kinda stressfull as is, but i will push the cluth in from now on. is it hard to do a valve job myself, i am mechanicaly inclined, i got to a vocational school for it, but what do ya think, and what tools will i need?

thanks again
always helpful

Kyle

[Kalevera]

Valves are easy, but I was a bit intimidated the first time around. Check bmwe34.net, Don Gale's page (http://www.nmia.com/~dgnrg/), or bentley's for the procedure. You need an angled feeler gauge, 8 mm box end wrench, and a few other misc tools (10mm on the castle nuts?). The only thing that's tough the first time around is figuring out where the fully closed position is -- the cylinder bank is not perpendicular to the ground, so the angle seems a bit unnatural when you first do it.

I use a coat hanger to activate the remote start - saves me from having to rotate the sucker by hand. It's smarter to build a switch with an inline fuse, and I've been living dangerously without it up until now. Robin did a writeup that's quite good on the procedure a while back.

best, whit

[JonE]

Just to add another good site for all kinds of E34 issues, http://www.bmwe34.net/e34main/maintenance/engine/valve_adjust.htm
Have fun!