96 Ford CV is knocking

Maintenance/Repairs
1

I recently started having a very loud knocking noise in my engine and I can’t place it. Mostly due to my lack of car knowledge I can only trouble shoot so far.
The following conditions are what I can really only go from and hopefully someone can tell me where to start.
-when I’m in park or neutral the knocking happens in about 5 beats per second.

  • while idleing in gear it almost goes away.
  • while driving it increases in frequency and intensity the higher the rpms, until it switches gears, then its dull until I get closer to topping out another gear.
  • No real functionality of the car has changed.
    -I tried doing a mild brake torque, in both drive and reverse, and the engine did not move.
  • the knock is pretty hard to locate exactly but seems to come from the passenger side.

I appreciate anyone taking the time to read this. I’m hoping it’s not to serious because I just filled the gas tank.

2

Just to clarify . . .

When you say “Ford CV” do you mean Ford Crown Victoria . . . ?

Or do you mean constant velocity . . . ?

I’m guessing Crown Vic . . .

3

Just from what is stated, I would guess a rod bearing. If this is the case, the amount you spent on the fuel is the least of your problems.

4

Have someone check the torque converter to flex-plate mounting hardware between the engine/transmission.

If this hardware loosens up, it can cause the vanes within the torque converter to start hitting each other and make a knocking noise.

Tester

5

I’m going with the rod bearing… however it needs to be looked at hands-on. It’s impossible to tell what it is from here. The only thing we can do is determine with absolute certainty that it’s coming from the engine. Your description of the symptoms makes that pretty clear.

6

Your mechanic could use a mechanic’s stethoscope to narrow down where the noise source is. I’ve use a length of garden hose to do this.