Hi all, name is Josh, I've been a big fan of this forum for years as I love the z32 and always dreamed of owning one....This year I had the opportunity of owning one and I did....As I wanted the look not really the high end performance I bought a 92 300zx NA aus spec, she is everything I dreamed of, but I have the very common problem of noisy inlet cam gears while the car is warming up then goes away....I have searched through the forum and I'm confused on what to do with my Z....Just wanted some fresh advise...should I get new stockies? as designed, should I get BDE gears? will they put pressure on my cams? or should I get adjustable cam gears and get rid of the vtc problem? (loss of low end power not really a problem for me as I just wanted to cruize)... Any advise or help will be greatly appreciated....
Hmm, I'm guessing the noise you're actually hearing is lifter tick, rather than the slightly more 'rattly' sound than vct gears make. Does your engine sound like this?? (15 second mark & onwards)
Hi, Intake gear failure most often occurs when upgrading cams and fitting heavy duty valve springs. A noise from the driveline is more likely lifter tick as Ryan suggested. How many kms on the car? Last oil change? Has it had a front of motor service that you know of?
Yes it sounds similar but sounds more rattly, its weard as it completely goes away when the engine warms up....I had the car at the mechanics to get the timing belts changed a few weeks back, he claims to be an ex-nissan mechanic and he said the noise sounds like its coming from the vtc gear and because its only doing it when warming up, he seams to think its because oil is not getting up there quickly enough... I'm getting it pressure tested today as he advised, to make sure its not the pump...
thx for the reply guys, The car was sitting in someones back yard for about two years rearly driven, I got it about two months ago, suprisingly when I got it started it was very smooth not lumpy at all but needed some tlc..The car has nearly 290,000.... Since i've had it i've had abit of work done in the engine bay, like a new stater, brake cylinder, water pump and hoses, timing belts and pulleys, fuel filter, oil change etc....The car is running great but now i want to tackle that start up noise....The first time I changed the oil it was black as night but very clean no lumpsor white stuff.. Since then i've changed the oil 3 times with synthetic oil mainly to clean the engine inside...also as the mechanic suggested there might be a slight blockage going to the inlet gear to try and unblock that slowly....but noise is still there when warming up...
Ryan, do you recommend using some kind of hydrolic lifter treatment just in case, as seen in the video....
This is what noisy vct gears sound like. If the noise goes away once the engine is warm, I'd say it's very highly unlikely to be vct noise, as oil pressure actually decreases once the engine warms up. As for lifter tick, it's fairly common on start up, especially if the car has been sitting for a while as the lifters drain out. How long have you run the car for? It can take 30 min - 1 hour for them to completely quieten down in some cases. I wouldn't bother with any of those snake oil products, but I guess it can't really hurt to try. What grade oil are you running? Considering the kms on your engine, I wouldn't be too worried if they are a little bit noisy (most zeds are). If you're really worried about it post up a video for us to see?
If your mechanic claims to be an ex-nissan mechanic & is giving you wrong advice, then maybe try elsewhere? Whereabouts in VIC are you located? There are a few local zedders that are very handy & know their stuff when it comes to zeds. There is Tektrader (Graham) & Wildzx (Noel) if he isnt busy. Plus there is also zshop but ive never been there & the reviews ive heard are mixed but they seem to be popular amonst the long time members so maybe even try them. Abraham
woops RX, Castrol RX Super http://www.aus300zx.com/forum/showthread.php?t=311406&highlight=castrol+super
I'll post a video on in as soon as possible, the rattle goes away after about 5 mins when the car reaches operating temp.... The Z is at the mechanics getting oil pressure test, as soon as I heard him talk about low oil pressure, slow flow and maybe a blockage I didn't want to risk it if it was the pump... I put in thinner oil(valvoline synthetic 5/40) to help flow and to try and clean inside abit, but made no real difference except car is alot more responsive.. Mechanic called me yesterday pump and flow is all OK, so that takes away my main concern of doing her any major harm, the noise I can live with till I can get it rebuilt one day...hopefully I get her back today was waiting for new heater hoses(they are so hard to get)...
I'm in the western suburb which sux's as a Z owner....All the especialists seem to all be on the east side....Anything major looks like i'll have to make a trip....Thx for the advise abz300...
thx warren300, I'll be looking at that at next change....I've hear its mainly for diesel engines but it's a higher grade of oil....Won't hurt to try, right..... I'll see what you guys say after I posted a video, but i'm tending to think from all your advise that it's a sticky lifter as the car was rearly driven for the past 2 years and just needs time to clean and sort itself out or even have them replaced when I can afford a re-build....
Josh I'm in the northern suburbs & i do the trip everytime i need something done...Noel is in Hoppers Crossing & Graham is in Berwick, then there is also Alex in Keilor...so there are quite a few knowledgable members around. There is the Goldfields cruise coming up as well as the tech day...check the coming events section. The events in VIC arent that common so whenever there are events most of the regular members show up & we have a good time talking crap & bagging Alex's height lol so feel free to join us Abraham
Thx abraham, I checked it out it's for a good cause, plus I'll get to see some Z's...My car isn't much to look at yet, but will love to come....
Dont worry, a zed is a zed...doesnt matter how good it looks as every zed is different & looks good in their own way if your coming then add your name to the list & hope to see you there. Plus if you free for the tech day come past aswell, because if you want anything done there will be a few of us there that can help where needed Abraham
I was going to make my own thread, but since this came up I'll pop this here. Does this sound like a VCT rattle to you guys? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDlr1tNC-8Q&feature=youtube_gdata_player That's my car. One piece of the cloth covered pieces of wiring at the very back of the engine wiere the commection plugs in is severed, well I am about 75% sure it is severed. If this VCT cord is severed and it's not working, could that cause the noise in the video and is there any harm in driving the car?
Lifter tick right there. If you have a conzult you can connect it up and manually trigger the vct. By unplugging one side's connector you can test to make sure that each individual vct solenoid is engaging.
For what it's worth I have seen several standard VG30DE (& TT) with inlet cam gear noise, higher KMs and poor servicing seems to be the root cause. I've seen plenty of high KM Z32s with no issues but when you start letting the oil turn to tar before you do a service it's all over - cam gear noise here we come! The VG30DE I put in my Kingcab has subtle cam gear noise for the first 10mins or so and then it's fine, it has high KMs and I had to replace the big end bearings not long after fitting it. Oil grade and quality will make no significant difference at all - been there, done that, if it has the rattle you are either going to have to live with it or go about a repair. Ultimately to get rid of it you are up for an engine rebuild to clean everything and check camshaft clearances etc.
