
Originally Posted by
chrisSC750iL
How's it goig? I recently bought a 1996 740i and when I started the car on the lot, I heard the same thing. The ticking wasn't a "hard" ticking, just a light tic,tic,tic.....that got on my nerves. It too had been sitting for a while, started ever so often but hadn't been driven in a while. When I drove the car off the lot I went straight to the nearest autobahn. I got it on the autobahn, put the pedal on the floor and drove for a while. When I got home, a let the car idle and I didn't hear the ticking noise anymore. I know, that in my situation, the oil just needed to be circulated through the engine. Once the oil got to the lifters, the noise stopped.
Try driving it around and see if the noise stops.
On the other hand, if the noise is a loud tapping, then you may need to have your valves looked at.
chris750iL