Hi guys so my car has been making a weird ticking noise that matches rpm
i read about the fuel damper causing this but im not forsure how can i determine that it really is the fuel damper casuing the problem? i took my car to one shop and he is charging me 1900$$ he said hes was gonna change the valves and the head gasket and all kinds of stuff. I just need the Z communitys advise before i get played by a shop thanks guys

 

need more info.
Did you have a compression test done? Why is he changing the head gasket and the valves? Do you have bent valves or something? Sounds like a gip

Step one: describe the symptom in more detail and tell us what exactly you did, what tests were run. Power loss, etc.

Step two: Run a compression test. Have it done by a reputable shop that'll show you the results

Step three: if compression fails, need to do a leak down test to figure out WHERE the leak is coming from. This will tell you if it's a valve or ring or something else. Only then will a reputable mechanic tell you to replace or do some head work.

 

change the valves and headgasket? why? if your valves are ticking abnormally (i think they will always make noise, but excessive noise is bad...someone with more experience chime in!) they probably need to be adjusted, but not replaced. i believe the VQ uses a shim under bucket system, and clearances will need to be measured, and shims changed to get clearances correct. but no valve changing...

also, headgaskets should be fine unless they blow, so no need to change those. if you overheat, have coolant/oil mixing, or are losing coolant and you dont know where (maybe you see it out the exhaust but my altima didnt even show that sign...haha!) then you probably need to change them.

in my opinion (not expert) youll be getting ripped off. sounds like they just want to throw parts at it and charge you for it. go somewhere else!

oh and i see youre in sacramento...my old hometown. nice

 

no tests were done guys. the car drives fine the only real problem is a tickling noise. I took it to his shop he did no test just looked at the engine i have no clue about the valves he just asked for my vin number and 30 mins later called me telling me this is what i should do and what i should replace. i just want the ticking nose gone lol @soc monki where did you move to? no over heating or nothing on the car just that ticking

 

Anyone know a good shop in sacramento? tired of all these shops trying to get extra money from me just because i dont know much about the cars. i will have a compression test done and a leak down test

 

That guy doesn't know wtf he's talking about. You can't know what the problem is until you do some testing and troubleshooting. Why anyone would suggest a $1900 job right off the bat is beyond me. Well not really, he's trying to pull a fast one.

Get some testing done and have it narrowed down and you'll have a better idea of what needs to be done.

I had a sneaky mechanic tell me i needed to replace my head gasket a couple of years ago. Didn't know much about cars back then but luckily I got a second opinion and another shop changed out the thermostat and the car worked fine.

 

Find a better shop. This guy is just trying to quick make money off of you.

 

MattZ garage is a good place to go, really good guy to work with and a very reputable shop here in the area.

http://www.mattzgarage.com/

 

i called that number and the guy said MattZ garage has been closed for a while now lol

 

Seems legit.

 

i moved to Mississippi with the family way back in the 90s. my dad worked at Aerojet, and they built a new plant out here so they could build the new rocket motors for the space shuttle. of course they shut the program down and we stayed here. its not too bad...i miss the weather, but not much else. things are more laid back here. haha!

and someone here should be able to point you to a good shop. checking a VIN is no way to know what a car needs done to it. anyone who would tell me what my car needs just after running the VIN would get an earful. its hard to find a good, trustworthy place. i just do most work on my vehicles myself, although i know a few good mechanics and friends who can help me with things that are out of my range, so its a good learning experience when i have to call on them.

good luck man...there has to be some members near you here that can get you fixed up.

 

Oh wow, well there goes to show you how long ive been out of the local scene hahahaha. Thats too bad, from what i heard it was a good shop.

I havent taken any of my cars to a shop in 10+ years, i do all the work myself. I will ask around though and let you know. The best thing is to just make some phone calls and get multiple opinions.

 

Drivenauthority in Rancho Cordova is good, I've done a dyno there; there is another place that specializes in Z's around Howe and 50 I forget the name of it, but keep us updated and run from that other mechanic.

 

howe and 50? anymore info on that shop i live close to howe then i do to rancho. Ill tryto keep you guys updated tryna to bring my baby to a goodshop where they wont try to pull a fast one on me.

 

Update just took it to driven A.. told me i had a bad lifter.Tried to bleed it with a new oil change hopefully it goes away soon if not i gotta dish out around 1500 just for labour.. anyone had a bad lifter problem??? is it worth to change or should i just sell the car??

 

DrivenAuthority and MattZ Garage = same shop from my understanding lol.

MattZ was off of alpine right where Power Inn turns into How when you go over 50.

I guess he moved his shop to Rancho then, thats odd considering the website is still up and not even updated...Confusing haha

Well hopefully it works out for OP.

 

Do you know what tests they did to come to the conclusion of bad lifter?

 

well they just looked and did a new oil change hoping it will bleed it out but its ticking no other test done other then that. If i do get the lifters done i hope its guaranteed to get rid of the noise

 

Thanks bro! I hope it works out also. I rather speed that 1500 on coils but i guess ill have to spend it on the lifters ='(

 

They should be able to use a stethoscope to be able to be more sure it is a lifter; you can also remove valve covers and push on the lifters to test them which would of course be quite a lot easier than going straight to replacing them.