Ok so i start my car today and it sounds perfectly fine. as the rpms go up it starts tapping faster and i can start to hear it more the higher it goes.. rpms go down.. no tapping.. so im thinking something with the cams.. valve train .. whatever whatever... then just for @!#$s and giggles i smell the oil fill cap and it smells like gas.. so im thinking head gasket? i dont know a @!#$ load about engine internals so if anyone could give me their input it would be greatly!!!!! appreciated..
B
Well, we need more info on the car. Year, model, engine, tranny, how many miles. Stuff like that before we can help you. Are you getting any smoke coming out of your exhuast? If so what color? Is it alot of smoke or is it just a little. What are the conditions where you live? Cold, hot, snow, rain, dry. Are you losing oil before your oil changes? How high were the RPMs and how low did it go during the problem? Give us some more info and we can help you a bit better.
The only thing I can come up with at the moment with the info you gave us is. Some how gas might be getting into your oil pan. Probably through the piston rings my guess. Do a compression test to the car, if you have a 2.4 I know the compression should be between 180-210. I'm not sure on the 2.2 or the Eco.
In the planning stage for an all American TRD Cavalier.
Sorry to double post but another thing that you could look into for the tapping is lifters. If the lifter is not getting enough lube they will stick and tap. Check your oil, infact I would go ahead and get an oil change. You will be surprised what an oil change can do for you in the 2.4.
In the planning stage for an all American TRD Cavalier.
2001 2.4L 60,000 miles .. live in las vegas.. 40-60 degrees so not real cold or hot ... umm.. not leaking anything. only mods are full exhaust and intake.. never sprayed or anything like that.. how exactly does one go about doing a compression test?? thanks for your feed back so far
B
i am a lil past my oil change too.. i guess i could do that but i dont really even want to be startin the car really to further damage anything.. i guess ill be doin that myself.. lol
B
Another thing to check is the timing chain tensioner. I have learned the hard way a few times that this little thing can cause a lot of problems. If you caught it quick you may be ok. If it doesn't pop back out then you will hear that tapping and sooner or later you will hear a lot worse.
Oil smells like gas. I am saying....spun main or rod bearing. Gassy oil will take out bearings in no time. Same effect as coolant in oil. Especially since this is a 2.4 and they are known for bearing issues to begin with. And it also makes me make my conclusion when you say it speeds up as the rpms climb. I would probably bet my car on it that he has a bearing issue. Is it using any oil? Past your oil change, that means you probably havent checked it either. 2.4's low on oil=bad day for bearings. There are many things here that are pointing me into a bottom end bearing issue.
SO CHANGE THE OIL AND GO FROM THERE.
Chris
'02 Z-24 Supercharged
13.7 @102.45 MPH Third Place, 2007 GMSC Bash SOLD AS OF 01MAR08
Yeah a bearing can cause alot of problems if you don't change your oil at least every 3000 miles or every 3 months. I personally change my oil every 2500 miles. To do a compression test on your cylinders I know there are a few auto part stores that rent out compression testers. So hit those places up like Autozone ect. Once you get the tester you are going to want to pull all of your spark plugs. The compression tester is a fitting that will screw into the hole your spark plug goes into. There is a guage on the other end, once it is all in place crank the car over about 7 times. Read the gauge, if it is between 180-210 in all of the chambers you have a healthy engine. If it is below 180 like between 175 to lets say 150 then you might start having problems. If it is below 150 then it is probably time for a rebuild. If I'm wrong on the compression #'s please correct me.
In the planning stage for an all American TRD Cavalier.
