hello i own a 2001 chevy impala 3.8 and i recently had a good friend of mine whos going to school as a mechanic install a manifold gasket upper and lower but now i am hearing this loud tick tick tick sound for about 2-3 min every time i start my car in the morning and then the noise goes away and its normal it never made this noise before is it harmfull and break my engine or is it okay to just leave it any suggestions whats the problem? thanks
It’s probably a sticky hydraulic valve lifter. You can try some “miracle” oil additives like Rislone Engine Treament, Marvel Mystery Oil or some others mentioned in this thread:
I also owned a Chevy with that type of engine. Normally as a car ages the hydraulic valve lifters wear and oil drains out of them overnight. The then next morning you get the ticking noise until the hydraulic pressure builds up an takes up the clearance. This does not men your engine is going to fail.
However, installing a manifold gasket should not affect how the car sounds in the morning. Others here will no doubt have some comments on this as well.
Some oil filters have a anti-drainback valve which is supposed to keep oil in the filter after the engine is shut down. Upon re-start you (supposed) have oil from the filter circulating immediately and not waiting for the oil to be scavenged from the bottom of the engine (oil pan). Some folks feel that this may have something to do with start-up ticking, no oil in the lifters due to the “wrong” oil filter. Did you have you oil changed at the same time as the manifold gasket was replaced? Rocketman
no i have not had my oil changed while getting my manifold gasket changed but i will try as jesmed1 suggested and buy some miracle oils and see what the outcome is thanks
It may get worse in the winter. Switching to synthetic should help. It’s not a big deal unless it fails to go away after driving a bit.
hello i have done what jesmed1 stated i have bought some rislone oil and it did not work i let thebcar run for about 30min to let it circulate and the problem still persist any other suggestions? thanks
Try changing oil filters to a good-quality filter with an anti-drainback check valve. Also have a mechanic check your oil pressure.
My guess is one of the gaskets the mechanic changed out was part of the exhaust system, like for the exhaust manifold. If it leaks even a little it could cause a ticking sound as the exhaust gas sweeps through the leak. This can go away as the engine heats up and the exhaust manifold dimensions expand due to temperature.
Mechanics can usually identify this problem using a stethoscope tool and by the exact sound it makes; to the layman it sounds like a “tick”, but to the experienced mechanic is sounds more like pfft pfft pfft. A leak in a head gasket or intake manifold gasket might cause this too, although much less likely. Since this all started after some manifold gaskets were replaced, that would be where I’d start. You might just need the bolts re-torqued.
I’m with George on this one.
Also check the manifold for cracks.
thank you everbody for your help
Hold a rag on the tailpipe to restrict exhaust flow upon start-up. Listen for the exhaust leak around the engine compartment. Don’t do this too long, the exhaust will get hot. Rocketman