whats this noise?

andy88

Ex. Club Member
ok micra gurus need a bit of help on idle the cars got a bit of a knocking type sound.

i first thought it was the water pump as the noise was coming from around that area, ive just changed the pump for a new one and the noise is still there, so i dont know what it is.

anyone got any ideas?

got a vid you will hear it aound 6 second mark
 
Could be Timing chain coming from that area. What sort of mileage has the vehicle done. Does it get worse with more revs?

Joe.
 
Its defy no the clutch, not coming from that area.

The car has only done 47k, you can only hear it when its idling as soon as you rev it or driving along you can't hear it.

Don't chains rattle when there on the way out cause this is a different sound.
 
Its the timing chain .... mine makes the same noise and gets quieter when the engines hot .... Has done it since 39000 miles when we bought it and still doing it at 56000 miles
 
gonna take the belts off and see if the noise is still there just to make sure, really hope its not the chain.

if its the chain then how hard is it to fit or how much roughly will a garage charge to fit one?

seen a few chain kits on ebay for £100-140 which seems an ok price.
 
All the micras i have ever heard have that same "chain rubbing noise" ... as i say it usually quietens as the engine warms..... I dont think it needs replacing......
 
you can still hear it when its warm though and only on idle, plus it idles very low when warm but dont know if this is related or not
 
Sounds like chains, and then belts aswell. just check everything over, the belts are cheap to replace.
The chain is a pain. :down:
 
cant see it being the belts, there all tensioned up right and look fairly new, the only other thing i think might be making this noise is the pas pump as the sound was coming from around water pump area and the pas is next to it. just need to get these belts off just to confirm, wish these hurricane winds would go then i could check.
 
You're asking for help then telling us all what it is anyway haha.
That sounds like the chain to me also.
 
had the belts off today and started her up and couldnt hear the noise but i dont know if this is because the engine was cold and the revs were abit high cause of the choke and i didnt want to run it too long with out water pump runnig.

so im still none of the wiser:(

whats an easy way of checking the chain so i can rule it out?
 
so is it a cam cover off and the top cover to check the chain, can you see both chains with the top cover off and does the engine mount have to come off again.

what is it im looking for on the tensioners, how do i know if there worn?
 
so is it a cam cover off and the top cover to check the chain, can you see both chains with the top cover off and does the engine mount have to come off again.

what is it im looking for on the tensioners, how do i know if there worn?

you would also need to remove the side cover to view the lower chain andy, and you can only see the upper tensioner (2 x 1mm deep skidmarks on the nylon face is normal)
 
cheers frank

is there anything i need to remove to get the lower chain cover off?

lost me haynes manual:suspect:
 
ooooo fingers crossed its the upper chain then if it is.

if its the lower chain, the car will be up for sale, havent got the skills to take the head off and garages up here charge a fortune
 
If you own a socket set and have a head on your shoulders you can take a head off. Just do it methodically and slowly.
I can strip and re-build gearboxes for god sake haha.
 
If you own a socket set and have a head on your shoulders you can take a head off. Just do it methodically and slowly.
I can strip and re-build gearboxes for god sake haha.

i could probably manage if i had a garage to work in and take my time but having to do it out on the street and being 5 min walk away from the beach, i get a face full of sand every few mins when working on the car

all chained engines are rattly, noisy and make funny noises, never as quiet as belt!
the primera i had before it was written off was a chain and had done 80k mile and was completely silent like new

i could live with a slight rattle at start up this is constant, very noticable and bugs the hell out of me lol
 
Before you mess about with the chain which imho sounds "normal" ......... get some wd40 and spray it on the pulleys and around the belt areas etc .... this will often quieten down the pulleys and belts for a short period .....

Also has your oil been changed recently as i have just done mine and the chain is much quieter when warm now ..... still makes a noise cold... so its just the lil engine telling you off for leaving the oil too long :p
 
lol you must be deaf, its louder in person than in that vid, might try a bit of wd40 on the pas pulley, see if shuts up a bit
 
i could probably manage if i had a garage to work in and take my time but having to do it out on the street and being 5 min walk away from the beach, i get a face full of sand every few mins when working on the car

Sorry to sound mean but, don't be a wuss!! I did my camshafts in the pouring rain on the street covering myself and the engine pay with a jacket. I did my clutch lying down in the street with nothing to hold the car but bricks... lol. I suppose its all motivation i can totally understand not wanting to do it haha.
 
been out took the cam cover off and upper chain cover off. not to sure what im looking for to know if the tensioner is ok for the upper chain. so if anyone can have a look at the pics and see what you think.

IMG00537-20111021-1543.jpg

IMG00549-20111021-1556.jpg

IMG00543-20111021-1550.jpg


also does the chain look to slack?
IMG00538-20111021-1544.jpg

IMG00539-20111021-1544.jpg

IMG00540-20111021-1544.jpg


oh and one for frank, in one of the threads you said 3 notches on the crank means the chain is healthy and 5 is knackered, well im not sure if this counts as 3 or 4 when moving the crank with the cam still.

it started at the dot furthest away from yellow dot, bottom dot on plulley in pic and this is where it went too
IMG00551-20111021-1600.jpg

then move crank back other way it went to here
IMG00553-20111021-1601.jpg
 
looks fine to me andy (Y) you have to use some force to expel the oil from the tensioners eh (they are sprung and hydraulic)
 
so what about the bottom chain or am i gonna have to go out again and try and get the lower cover or, or do you think both chains are ok.

seriously confused now as to what the noise is, if the chains are looking ok
 
so what about the bottom chain or am i gonna have to go out again and try and get the lower cover or, or do you think both chains are ok.

seriously confused now as to what the noise is, if the chains are looking ok

just give the engine a full turn andy, the lower cover is a sump off/head off job :eek: my old super s had 1 really bad link on the top chain @ 100k, and the lower chain was still fine after 130k
 
ah right, why didnt i think to keep turning it over to check every link in the both chains, whilst i had it off.

now i need to take it apart again anyway to find out what ive done, as when i started it after putting everything back the eml light is on and it stutters after reving it:(
 
yea refitted it, wonder it a bit of crap has got in the plug.

does the car start with the cam sensor unplugged, sure last time i left it unplugged the car wouldnt start.
 
yea refitted it, wonder it a bit of crap has got in the plug.

does the car start with the cam sensor unplugged, sure last time i left it unplugged the car wouldnt start.

i,ve not worked on a coilpack k11 tbh andy, any faultcodes ?
 
there will be a code but i dont have a code reader for the micra, only got one that does vauxhalls only:blush:

will have to find a cheap one quick, need this running as its not my car lol
 
does the paper clip trick work with these, where if you bridge 2 pins in the odbii port the elm light will flash the code at you
 
Where are you? One of us may be nearby and a lot of us have basic code readers :).
 
wouldn't worry about chain rattle, when engine stops, just change an engine, half day work, been there, done it, just ignore rattles, maybe get thicker oil.
 
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