Hello,

I have a 2003 LS430. I've noticed a ticking or clicking noise under the hood. It's usually noisier when I first start it up. From inside the car I can't hear anything. I have no driveability issues or DTC codes.

Today I put an automotive stethoscope all over the engine bay. First on the valve covers near each cylinder and then the cam timing covers and didn't really hear anything out of the ordinary. When I put it near the injectors I can hear the clicking / ticking. Some of them are louder than the others.

Has anyone else observed this? Are the injectors of the LS somewhat noisy and this would be considered normal? Would a cleaning help to quiet them down? If so can anyone recommend a good product?

Thanks,

 

Clicking/Ticking sound is a tale-tell sign that the injector is working. When the ticking stops, the injector is either stuck or clogged. A failing injector is usually detected by the diagnostic system as a misfire for the specific cylinder. Injector cleaner will help the spray pattern, but I don't necessarily think you have an injector problem, yet.

 

Check exhaust manifolds for leaks? I had ticking like that in an 02 due to exhaust manifold leak

 

Good call. Maybe I'm panicking for nothing. To be honest since I've had my car I haven't had the hood open with the engine running that much so it's hard for me to get a reference. Inside the car I don't hear a thing and the idle is steady and it still has lots of power. I'll try some injector cleaner to see if it does anything. Otherwise I'll wait until there's a problem.

 

Good point. When I put headers on my old pickup they gave me shi**y paper gaskets that blew out. It made a ticking sound shortly after I install them as well. I replaced them with high quality Felpro gaskets and it went away and never returned.

Next time I'm in the garage I'll check for a leak on the exhaust manifold. Thanks for the suggestion.

 

Do you know where the leak was on the exhaust manifold? Was it a gasket issue or a crack on the manifold? I'd like to see if I can see a problem in the same area.