I8ABMR

Many of us have this loud valve ticking noise from our motors. I am not going to dive into the intricacies of engine design , valve clearances, etc. This is something I have simply noticed with my car and would like to pass on my experience.

I recently switched to AMS oil 5w30 to protect the engine further in the AZ heat as well as during the repeated track events in the heat. The standard oil usually runs me $55-$60 if I buy the oil at Walmart ( minus filter ). I read up on this AMS oil and it seems like it's the real deal. 10 qts with filter was $122 for the AMS Signature series ( top tier oil from AMS). Immediately after having the oil changed I noticed that the engine was quieter but didn't want to report. Figured I was just jumping the gun. It's now been more than 3 weeks and I no longer notice the obvious ticking noise. It's there but has been greatly reduced and seems to be more rhythmic. Meaning it sounds like the direct injection, whereas before it has a random kind of pattern. Anyways figured I'd give you guys a heads up. Trying it out will not cost much more and you will have the peace of mind to know you are running literally the best motor oil you can drop in a street car. All of these full synthetics that many of us thought was 100% synthetic is not in fact.
I spent the $10 to get preferred pricing and it brought the vice down from $12 to $8 a quart

KSLAM

My engines been ticking too. Been wondering from what but I may try the AMS oil on my next change.

flowrider

iTrader: (9)

I guess I'm fortunate to never have had a ticking engine. However, in 2008, I bought my F along with my wife's ES350. Her engine had a ticking sound. I live in AZ, there it's hot in the summer and very seldom reaches freezing, and then only in the dead of the night. Don't recall any frost last winter. However, because I live here, I use 10w30. And I have been using Pennzoil Ultra Platinum. When I changed the ES over to the Pennzoil, the ticking went away. Ultra Platinum is Full Synthetic and has been working very well for me. I also use it in my Silverado.

Lou

lobuxracer

iTrader: (2)

It's not the valves. If it were, mine would not have gone away after I changed the seals between the valve covers and the OCV for the exhaust cam, AND I would have found valves out of spec when I checked them.

I suspect the random clattering in mine when cold is oil related, meaning the exhaust cam sprocket isn't fully pressurized when the engine is cold. As soon as it warms up - no more noise. When it is making the noise, it gets significantly louder if I remove the oil fill cap which makes me pretty confident it isn't something external like an exhaust header leak which we know to be common in older IS Fs. My 2006 IS350 made rattling noises on start up from the cam sprockets not locking down as they were intended to on start. It was one of the reasons I sold my IS350 - after four redesigns on the cam drive sprockets, there were still reports of cam sprocket noise on this forum.

A friend of mine who was a Lexus service manager once told me about his GS 430 that randomly had acceleration and power issues. He was running Mobil 1. He was so frustrated with the randomness of the engine's power output he decided to get rid of the car. Before he did, he put the Toyota 5w-30 in it, and the engine performed perfectly. This isn't to say all the issues we hear could be resolved by running the Toyota brand oil, but it definitely worked for him.

I haven't change oil brands simply because I like the availability of Mobil 1, but it would seem there may be oils that would not make these noises when the engine is cold. FWIW, my engine never makes any weird noises when it is at normal operating temperature.

jat0223

iTrader: (1)

I wrote about this before and mentioned that the ticking was oil related somehow. My isf engine's ticking noise is more pronounced with new oil. It settles in about 500 miles or so with the new oil.

BTW, my LX also has the same noise. I just changed the oil and it's more pronounced. Specially now that i switched to mobile 1 from the toyota oil. I'm waiting to see if it also settles after a few miles. I might give amsoil a try to see if it resolves the ticking.

JPxMODz

iTrader: (3)

Amsoil is also great for rear diff

SoulFreak

iTrader: (1)

Thanks for sharing Tammer! As a matter of fact I've gotten the same results with Redline. Ever since I made switch, the engine idles smoother and quieter. I also used Redline on my differential. Very happy with results! I still change oil every 5k. Happy Motoring!

jdmSW20

iTrader: (12)

Yeah in this vegas desert heat I was debating running a 10w-30 but I just stick with eneos 5w-40. I don't usualy notice a ticking sound when the car is at operating temp like stated above but when its cold, I kind of notice it if I listen hard enough. On my old is350, the ticking was loud whether it was cold or operating temp

danielTRLK

You guys are on the money about the noise, but confused as to why. Think fluid dynamics, oil can change the acostics emitted by the engine. Different oils can actually quiet up the operation of your engine, y'all are not crazy. I guy I know who works at Timken's spends 40 hours a week on trying to reduce NVH and acostics from their bearings. No need to run a 10W, you will gum up that engine and strain the snot out of it.

isfvss

Its the same thing on the GM LS forums for years the debate goes on, which oil works to make the valve train quite ( or piston slap) what ever works for you stick to it simple.

danielTRLK

well there's more to it and that and it's not to do with the piston slap, it's literally fluid dynamics. think sub hunting.......sound travels differently through different fluids. It's how the noise is carried through the oil that is what you're hearing or for this matter, not hearing.

jat0223

iTrader: (1)

I just switched from Mobil 1 to redline in the LX. The Mobil 1 oil made the LX tick noticeably. I was actually getting worried. Now with redline the ticking is completely gone. The isf oil change is coming up and I have the redline oil ready to go in. Hopefully the redline oil also eliminates the ticking on the isf.

2013FSport

iTrader: (2)

I ride a Yamaha street bike and me 5 others noticed Mobil1 full synthetic (motorcycle) made shifting more notchy, valve train noise louder, and the engine simply did not rev freely as it did when the oil was installed fresh. Like at 1200mi and something was wrong. Dumped it at 1500mi in favor of Amsoil (4stroke motorcycle for wet clutch). Night and day difference. Smoother idle, engine quiet from idle to 14k, shifts direct no notchy feeling and the engine revs freely.

I fully endorse Amsoil. ATM the 350 is on Vavoline dyno fluids. And dumping whatever crap the dealer put in it was night and day. The VVTI is a controlled oil leak and the fresh oil has the damned right right spinning at nearly every sharp turn. Im just saying not all oils are equal.

isfvss

Do you know how many LS motors were recalled due to piston slap and redesigned pistons and ring were put in thousands..

danielTRLK

As I have said before, different oils have different acoustic properties. Just because an oil makes more noise than an other means nothing. Thousands of UOA and hundreds of studies have proven noise has little bearing on wear or performance. In fact some of the oils that perform the best have a poor acoustic property.

By the logic of less noise equals less wear, using a 20W50 or a straight 60 weight, would leave that engine dead quiet and probably dead pretty soon.