Knocking / Ticking noise on the V6 1.8?

mmmx3 · Post by **mmmx3** » June 28th, 2006, 3:22 am

Hi guys, I read that it's common our V6 1.8 will develop some noise and burn some oil after it reaches certain miles.

My 93 GS has about 102K now. It's been good to me and never gives me a lot of problems. I recently did the oil change again and used some oil treatment stuff. I noticed my knocking/ticking noise has been getting louder. How do I determine which is my actual problem? I read it could be the camshaft friction gear? Valve? Lifters? Is there any way I can determine what is the actual problem?

If I keep driving, what will be the worst thing to happen? The engine seems okay and is pretty smooth when I even accelerated all the way to 7krpm.

Can I just drive it without fixing it? I don't have a big budget to pay the shop to do this. My engine burns maybe about 1 qt for every 1000miles or more. Is that happen to you guys too?

Thanks.

jamestakay · Post by **jamestakay** » June 28th, 2006, 10:54 am

your motor should be fine. mine started ticking when it was like 87,000 and i have like 145,000 now and still running it strong. i don't see why it should be that big of a problem, but then again, i'm swapping it out shortly for bigger horse gains!

CLPCLD · Post by **CLPCLD** » June 28th, 2006, 1:16 pm

As the other post says if its just a slight noise and you change your oil every 3000 you shouldnt have problems depending on what it is. I assume you use premium only on the K8, the same as the KL requires. If you had a timing belt done and the tensioner wasnt replaced that can also be a likely cause. Lifters can go bad also, but its less common than some people say. I'm pretty sure I've never heard of the camshaft having a problem like you mentioned, but then again I haven't heard of everything. Also, I would recommend not using oil treatment myself. It is expensive at times and has little effect (and motor flush is the devil). In short, if you run premium and arent low on oil, then try to listen if the noise is coming from where the timing tensioner is and if its not, then most likely a lifter or possibly a valve (although if you have a valve problem at 100k, then your engine is an odd one unless its been run rediculously hard). Just make sure you keep oil in it and itll most likely keep going for a long time.

jschrauwen · Post by **jschrauwen** » June 28th, 2006, 2:32 pm

As CLPCLD said, the usual cause is the lifters (HLA's). The oil galeries are quite small and less thean top quality oil or additives will actually worsen things, ie, make them louder. Also the lash adjuster is also a prime candidate for making a ticking noise. I do however dissagree with CLPCLD when it comes to engine oil flushes. Had my first one done (professionally) a few months back and what a difference it made. It's like giving the whole internal oil sections an enema. It'll clean out the possible clogs in the HLA's and make things overall a fair bit quieter. On completion of the engine flush, I switched over to a full synthetic oil. Royal Purple is the choice at present until I can find a viable source for Motul oil. Try a search for "Motul" in the "V6 Performance" forum and you'll see why. There's always going to be a trade off as far as how much you're willing to maintain a healthy maintenance regime. The more one scrimps or cuts corners the more likely they are going to encounter problems of reliability and performance. The more one is proactive and is willing to spend the extra buck when needed is where the reliability issues pay off. Touch wood, I have yet to have my MX fail me enroute anywhere in the last 11 years of ownership and through numerous crossings of the continent (with motorcycle on trailer in tow I might add) too. You can always try your own hand at doing an engine flush and there are members here who have done that. I opted for the professional job since it's done in a controlled environment and under pressurized parameters. And don't be stingy on the quality of oil filters either, oem Mazda quality at least for me.

Post by **Custommx3** » June 28th, 2006, 3:39 pm

I had a bad HLA issue with my RS which were ticking quite badly. I ran a few cans of Seafoam through the vaccume of the intake, a little to the oil, and a little to the fuel system, and the tick went away! Be prepared for LOTS of smoke, and I just "sipped it" with some vaccume line, and reving as it passed through. It didnt fix my issue with the engine, but its VERY quiet now. Id suggest chaning your oil soon after if you add to your oil.

ariesdude · Post by **ariesdude** » June 28th, 2006, 5:49 pm

A bit of caution about adding seafoam to oil - it will work great and remove lot of gunk - engine would feel smooth and great and everything - BUT - be prepared for an oil leak through one of the worn gaskets. I added sea foam and within 3 hours my oil pan gasket started leaking.

CLPCLD · Post by **CLPCLD** » June 28th, 2006, 10:50 pm

jschrauwen wrote:As CLPCLD said, the usual cause is the lifters (HLA's). The oil galeries are quite small and less thean top quality oil or additives will actually worsen things, ie, make them louder. Also the lash adjuster is also a prime candidate for making a ticking noise. I do however dissagree with CLPCLD when it comes to engine oil flushes. Had my first one done (professionally) a few months back and what a difference it made. It's like giving the whole internal oil sections an enema. It'll clean out the possible clogs in the HLA's and make things overall a fair bit quieter. On completion of the engine flush, I switched over to a full synthetic oil. Royal Purple is the choice at present until I can find a viable source for Motul oil. Try a search for "Motul" in the "V6 Performance" forum and you'll see why. There's always going to be a trade off as far as how much you're willing to maintain a healthy maintenance regime. The more one scrimps or cuts corners the more likely they are going to encounter problems of reliability and performance. The more one is proactive and is willing to spend the extra buck when needed is where the reliability issues pay off. Touch wood, I have yet to have my MX fail me enroute anywhere in the last 11 years of ownership and through numerous crossings of the continent (with motorcycle on trailer in tow I might add) too. You can always try your own hand at doing an engine flush and there are members here who have done that. I opted for the professional job since it's done in a controlled environment and under pressurized parameters. And don't be stingy on the quality of oil filters either, oem Mazda quality at least for me.

Yeah, I agree a professional (an actual professional, not like Dobbs or wal-mart or something along those lines) doing it may be different, I've just always heard bad stuff about flush like the post above for example (not that seafoam is flush, but a cleaner is still along the same lines), but I definitely agree with most of that.

I also forgot before, does the car smoke or leak or what exactly? You said it burned but that could be an indicator of your actual problem or maybe not. Also, it will eventually cause the cat to fail if you drive around with oil going through the exhaust, so you might keep that in mind if you have emissions testing in your area.

mmmx3 · Post by **mmmx3** » June 29th, 2006, 5:37 am

Thanks for you guys' responses. After making my GS V6 1.8 better, I'm going to love my lil car more.

I don't know man, that could be a several reasons on that ticking/knocking noise. It's getting louder after this oil change and it's getting my concern. I hope to be able to find out what is the actual noise from....but I ain't sure.

I had my timing belt, drive belts and water pump changed about 10K ago. The tensioners weren't not changed because my mechanic told me they looked okay. At that time, my lil V6 1.8 was already making the tick-tick-tick noise. It was also burning some oil at that time.

I don't see any oil leak from anywhere of the engine. My engine looks pretty clean (not oil or grease) but dusty. I think the oil is getting less from the exhaust pipe. I have noticed sometimes I started my car and I can see some smoke from the tailpipe in the morning. Not alot but just depends. I know that whenever I pushed it to like 5, 6 or near 7Krpm ... I think my tail is smoking because I can see my own smoke(seem white to me) from the other cars' headlights in the dark, but that's only I pushed it hard but I don't usually ridiculously push my car that hard. ( I am even worrying to take her to AutoX ) But even with the ticking noise, the engine sounds sweet and very eager to rev all the times. Oh yeah, I always keep an eye on my oil level, I check on my oil stick on every other two or three tanks I visit to the gas station.

PS: Must we use Premium gas on our V6??

PSS: Where can I get sea foam? I never heard of that.

Thanks for your opinions....this lil MX-3 has been pretty reliable to me. The 5 spd makes it more fun to drive. I never have any electrical issues and I have amp, woofer in my car. Never has any starting problems. I think the exhaust pipe is still original from 93 hahaha. ( I got my car used ) Maybe that's because it's burning a lil bit so the exhaust won't get rusted easily....lol Almost every thousands miles, my oil gets low about one qt, but my mechanic friend said there's normal for the miles but I know that some new cars burn more than my car.

jschrauwen · Post by **jschrauwen** » June 29th, 2006, 10:34 am

mmmx3 wrote: I don't know man, that could be a several reasons on that ticking/knocking noise. It's getting louder after this oil change and it's getting my concern. I hope to be able to find out what is the actual noise from....but I ain't sure.
PS: Must we use Premium gas on our V6??
PSS: Where can I get sea foam? I never heard of that.

You may be right, but about more than 90% of the time it's from the HLA's. Think of it this way. Perhaps previous owner was not the most critical with the selection of oil used during oil changes. Add to the fact that the oil galleries in the HLA's aren't that big/large. Rehaps the previous owner never did an engine flush (under pressurized parameters). Now take the occasional time that you or the previous owner has introduced an oil additive to the mix or stayed off an oil change too long (more than once or twice). In time you will get that tick. A professional flush will do wonders for your engine and regardless of the actual source of the loudest tick, it will help quiten down the HLA's. Another possible source for the tick would be the cam friction gear. Again, the flush could help quieten down that too. The other remote possibility would be that the valve cover gaskets of are the old vintage or that they've been torqued down too far and there is actual contact being made from within the inside of the valve cover. This was a problem observed on the 92's and was Mazda's responsibility to replace the valve cover gaskets with slightly larger/thicker ones. Something that I think was remedied by the release of the 93's but not quite sure on that.
Prremium gas??? => I always used 94 octane with my K8 and ZE.
Seafoam acquisition?? => I imagine from one of your more popular automotive suppliers. It has been posted before.
http://www.mx-3.com/phpbb2/viewtopic.ph ... ht=seafoam
http://www.mx-3.com/phpbb2/viewtopic.ph ... ht=seafoam
http://www.mx-3.com/phpbb2/viewtopic.ph ... ht=seafoam
http://www.mx-3.com/phpbb2/viewtopic.ph ... ht=seafoam
http://www.mx-3.com/phpbb2/viewtopic.ph ... ht=seafoam
http://www.mx-3.com/phpbb2/viewtopic.ph ... ht=seafoam
http://www.mx-3.com/phpbb2/viewtopic.ph ... ht=seafoam
http://www.mx-3.com/phpbb2/viewtopic.ph ... ht=seafoam
Once the flush is done, than it's straight to full synthetic oil of the highest caliber.