Hey guys, i know some have mention that the ticking noise is normal and its due to the direct injection on the 2GR. But they only mention it happening on start ups. Well i notice that when i start up the car cold its a bit loud which is normal but there is barely any ticking sound i hear. Once the car is warmed up that is where you can hear the idle ticking noise which is a bit loud and the ticking noise you can hear while its in D mode when you stick your hear our the window while waiting at the light. Here is a video i took, where you can hear the tick noise from the sides of wheels to the front of the engine bay.
Please let me know if this is completely normal, compare to my benz which is quiet as hell.

 

Sounds perfectly normal to me. Funny when I first got my car delivered I thought there was something messed up with my car because of how it sounded. I had a LS430 which is very quiet and also a inline6 BMW which was quiet too. I made a video myself and posted if it was normal and indeed it was. These engines are alot louder than I was used to with the ticking, some people even say they sounded like a diesel. How long have you owned the car?

 

Sounds pretty normal to me. It's a bit off-putting hearing those DI injectors so loud, but imagine the pressure they must withstand during combustion. It takes some serious mechanical power to open and close those things.

 

its not just during start up when you will hear the ticking... you will hear it many different times while the engine is running with no relation to what gear you are in and its also not so much the injectors that is loud its the fuel pump. it is a mechanical fuel pump that run off of the cams of the motor.

 

Like everyone said...Direct Inject motor are louder. The "ticking" is completely normal. The sound will vary depending on what the timing of the motor is. Sometimes you'll hear it, other times you won't. Temperature of the motor will definitely have a direct affect on the sound.

I've owned 4 DI motors now and they all have the "ticking" sound.

 

Normal. Don't sweat it. I was concerned before too the first day I picked up the car and heard it after a long highway run on the off-ramp, but it's very normal with the direct injection.

 

Mine sounds identical at 55,000 mi.

As stated the injectors are one sound while the pump on the valve cover has a noise of its own. The deep thumper...

At idle take a long screwdriver and poke around touching various parts with the handle in your ear. Get ready for that cam driven pump it is loud.

Last little bit - oil quality matters as the VVT-i is a controlled oil leak. Warm start up noise can be louder as the oil breaks down. If this concerns you, try a better grade of oil or reduce oci...

 

Thanks for the reply, what a relieve to hear its normal LOL. I owned the car for about a month now.

 

what is reduce OCI?

 

Thanks for everyone's reply, glad everything is normal.

 

Saw this thread and got curious, so I drove home for lunch today and observed the following:

• The DI ticking is more noticeable when the car's still cold.
• It appears that it's only noticeable when either off-throttle or idling, or if there's a decent load on the engine.
  • I am guessing it switches to port injection at very light loads, such as maintaining speed while cruising. Possibly during braking as well, but hard to say.
• When the car is warmer, the engine is overall quieter when at low RPMs.

Just wanted to sum up my throughts, since I already drove home and didn't do it for nothing! Honestly I kinda like the ticking sound in a way, but that's just me being a nerd I guess.

 

is it normal to hear clicking noises when the car is warmed up and driving under load ?

if Im stopped and hit the gas pedal harder then normal, i hear a bunch of rattles from the engine.

 

I'd be careful of "a bunch of rattles"... If you rev the engine slowly, does the noise follow the engine rpm? I mean I am pretty sure what you've described is normal.

 

I can never duplicate the noise if I am in park or Neutral. It only happens in drive under load.

 

Oh, you mean when you are taking off from a stop. Yeah that seems odd, may want to post a video of it. If anything I feel I notice noises less during acceleration.