Tapping noise from my 1.6 gti

Hi all,
    Had my mk1 a couple of weeks now. I got it out the other night and noticed a tapping noise when I started the engine. It sounded like it just needed to warm up and get some oil through but after about a 20 -30 min drive, the noise didnt stop  I could still hear it tapping at 30 and 40 mph.

I am no mechanic but this noise is very familiar to me, on previous cars the noise has always gone after a few mins.  Tappets are they called?

I figure an engine flush and some fancy oil may help?
Any advice would be much appreciated.

Would be interested to know what would be involved in repairing whatever is worn? and whether I am going to do it any more damage by driving it.
Thanks in advance
Dom (a newbie

I wouldnt put "fancy" oil in it. Old engines were designed to work with "normal" oils. If you havent changed the oil yet it wouldnt be a bad idea anyway

Could be a tappet or possibly a leak on the exhaust manifold.

Dont put engine flush in your engine...It can totally screw the engine by removing all the deposits and dumping them in oilways.

Thanks for the advice so far.
Ive done some research and it seems the engine flush would have been unlikely to work anyway as i dont think mine will have hydraulic tappets.

 I will check my exhaust manifold too.

Far as i can tell hydraulic tappets can be stripped/ cleaned/ replaced but a valve adjustment may be necessary on mine?

Had it out today and it was still making the tapping noise, still had a nice drive though.  ah sundays …

I've got a tapping noise to mate, is'nt really there when engine is cold but more and more as she warms up, I guess because the oil thins when hot. I had a mechanic friend check my solid lifter tappets too, but were all in good shape. so don't don't get to pissed if it is'nt that. I haven't a clue what mine is, as it REALLY does sound like what i'd imagine tappets to sound like.

Does yours sound like a couple of small bearings wizzing round and increases/dcreases with engine speed?

Tappet noise is a tapping noise,not a whizz
Yes yours should have solid tappets
The solid tappets are adjustable using shims that sit in the top of the tappets
There is a special tool that allows you to change the shims without removing the camshaft(just the cover needs removal)
The shims come in different sizes.

Camshaft could be worn.

Definitely look at the exhaust manifold though where it bolts to the head

yeah its definately tapping rather than a bearing kind of noise. The noise is more noticeable when accelerating.

Ill will check exhaust manifold.
Do you think the Camshaft could be worn at
85 000?

 i found this

http://www.driversfound.com/scirocco/techtips/engine/valveadjustment/

Could be tempted to give this a go, even if it turns out to be a dead end i am intrigued by the process

Like the Bill Hicks picture Boom

Hicks was the man… he still is.
Flushing the engine wont help if you have solid lifters as theres not really anything for the oil to get stuck in/ gummed up to make them stick.
What size engine and what year car do you have? so we know if you have hydrlic or solid lifters.

As I said, I re-shimmed my engine last week and all the clearences between shims were fine, also my camshaft was fine. So was'nt that.
But if you havent done yours you should anyway, really they should be checked each year. but every other  i think would do.

To elaborate on the sound I have coming from mine. as, 'a bearing whizzing round' was'nt very accurate, it is like a ticking sound, that gets faster and louder with engine speed. obivoulsy something engine/ shaft related.

To be honest I've had it since I've had the car and so it can't be an immediate problem otherwise i'd of known about it.
I tell myself everythings going to be fine, and that soon i'll start putting my 2.0 conversion together so it does'nt matter.
the lies we tell ourselves.

Dom, Also.

Engine as per title

No 85k unlikely to have too much wear

My mates 8v had tapping noise. It was very small leak where manifold bolts to head.
He reckons it sounded just like a duff tappet

Boom its a 1600 gti  x reg. Solid lifters yeah.
Mine may be a similar thing to yours then, by your description.


How should i check for an exhaust leak at the manifold then? I tried using a flood light to illuminate any exhaust that came out but there was nothing visible. Could your friend actually see exhaust or is there a fancy way of testing for leaks?

 Am i right in thinking i can just take the valve cover off and measure the openings in the valves with a feeler gague?  By checking the numbers are within tolerance i should know if they need adjusting or not, right? or is it more complicated than this?

 I wish it didnt bother me so much but noises and rattles drive me crazy! especially when the rest of the car rides so nice and still looks so pretty all polished up

Thanks

a bit of tissue paper wafted about will highlight any blows

Yeah you'v prity much sussd checking the shims. Use this.
http://www.driversfound.com/scirocco/techtips/engine/valveadjustment/

Im just the same mate, any little noise and i go abit mental. I will try & check the manifold as suggested, but I will be pleasently surprised if a Manilfold can make that noise.  its also a pain in arss to get near especially when it burns you evrytime you go near it. could try some soapy water, as I use this at work to find gas leaks. But an exhaust leak is probably to aggressive to blow bubbles.
The Noise is deffernatly helping inspire me into sorting my 2.0 conversion though  

BoomBip said

. I will try & check the manifold as suggested, but I will be pleasently surprised if a Manilfold can make that noise.

well I'll be the son of a monkey man Volvo S40 1.9t Exhaust Manifold Leak - YouTube

Timmy Turtle might just have it spot on.

What golf do you have Boom? A 2.0 surely must be frightning! Dont forget to do the brakes, lol.  They make an awsome noise though  

Had a look after work, couldnt find it if there is a leak in the manifold. Getting tempted to fork out and let someone with the skills take a look at it.

Might try the Forum for finding mechanics on this site..

Where do you live Telejmp? There might be someone from the forum local to you who could help?

Might not be a bad idea Tele, I changed over my Manifold Gasket today, and put my new 4-2-1 in,
 only took 8 Hours!
and now the Inlet has a leak. Got to remove so much to just change that one gasket.
Unless you really want to do it or can't afford to pay someone. get a mechanic  to do it. Think ive aged about 10yrs after day. got to spend tomorrow trying to torque up the inlet studds one of which I know is cross threaded  :cry:

Atleats the ticking has got quiter so must have been a leaky manifold. 1 problem sorted - another created.
Anyways good luck  with yours. Let us know how you get on.

And thats why you love your golf more than any other car Boom. Even more so in the end with that sodding noise gone. Good luck tightening bolts with sausage fingers in the cold tomorrow  
God i hate winter sometimes. Cant you just put washers under the nuts before you torque or is the ful thing corroded??

Ive had some progress with mine, i asked a mechanic to look at it today…… before he touched it he said it was a manifold leak LOL.

Timmy turtle got it dead on in the first response to this post over a week ago, dont i feel a douche At least i now have a little more understanding of how the cam and valves work
Im not in too much of a rush to do it now i know what it is, ill be less likely to drive it all over the salty roads with that irritating noise . I would like to think ill do it myself but we will see how rich i feel
Any idea how much a garage should be quoting?

My brain still wont believe that that noise is the manifold, really weird noise.

Well I got all the bolts done up on the inlet yesterday, ones threaded and nothing i can do as its rounded off before butting up to the inlet. the others are fecking tight though! Im the same I really could'nt understand how a leaking gasket could make that noise, the noise it still there but is alot quieter now.. so i think putting in a new gasket to seal it good and proper bascialy 'shuts the door' on the noise of an old engine. Thats what my brain is telling me anyway.

If you've got a socket set try and get at nuts yourself and give them a turn. If they are really rusty and you feel they might snap perhaps dont. But a couple nuts may have just worked loose and you may be able to torque them up again.
Plus they're really fun to try and get at  :wink:

Changing the Inlet gasket is'nt a technical job, just a tme consuming one. Time, mechanics and money =    sad face

You may be onto something Boom, i tried my spanner on the visible nuts on either side of the manifold, they were both loose! almost finger tight.
Not tried the others yet.

Ran out of daylight tonight but im going to give them all a little nip up tomorrow afternoon.

Should i be able to get to all of the nuts with the intake manifold still in place? obviously ill need extension bars on my ratchet. I dont think ill get my torque wrench in there but i figure if i use a short ratchet,  i shouldnt be able to overtighten them? hopefully.

Really am hoping this turns out to be a cheap fix

Dom