200 series ticking noise (1 Viewer)

[jay96318]

I have a 200 series with 98,000 miles and for the last eight or nine months I’ve been noticing a ticking noise when the engine first is turned on and is idling. After running the engine for 10 minutes or so and it comes up to temp the ticking noise goes away. I’ve changed the oil every 5000 miles and after changing the last time the noise went away for about a week. It has started to come back again only faintly. I took it into Toyota because I’m not that handy and they wanted to pull the valve covers I declined because that was awfully expensive but they did tell me they found some metal shavings in the pan. They didn’t send me a picture.

I don’t have any other issues with the vehicle, but I’m concerned that the noise could be symptomatic of an expensive repair. I’m trying to make a decision whether to hang onto the vehicle. And would appreciate any advice.

In the video below, this is about as bad as it gets. I’ve driven 5000 miles since taking this video and it hasn’t been this bad since this was on a cold day.



The second video is how the engine sounds right now. I’ll be at I’ve been driving around for a bit and the engine is warm.

 

[jay96318]

Here is the second video

 

[Sandroad]

Hmmmm.........metal shavings in the pan are not good. Is this a dealer you trust? The noise could be related to the metal shavings. There are reports on here of broken valve springs. Run a search for that and see if anyone else has an audio post for that issue.

 

[Zill]

That doesn’t sound normal. The 3UR is inherently a little noisy engine, but this is metal on metal.

For the sound, can you isolate where it’s coming from with a mechanics stethoscope? I’m wondering if it’s a VVTI solenoid on the fritz or a primary timing chain tensioner going bad if it’s the front of the engine. Let’s hope it’s not a bottom end knock, but this sounds more top end to me.

Also, is the tick on only one side of the engine?

 

[jay96318]

Hmmmm.........metal shavings in the pan are not good. Is this a dealer you trust? The noise could be related to the metal shavings. There are reports on here of broken valve springs. Run a search for that and see if anyone else has an audio post for that issue.

I don’t really trust the dealer. Thanks for the tip on the valve spring. Did the second video sound right?

 

[mcgaskins]

I have a 200 series with 98,000 miles and for the last eight or nine months I’ve been noticing a ticking noise when the engine first is turned on and is idling. After running the engine for 10 minutes or so and it comes up to temp the ticking noise goes away. I’ve changed the oil every 5000 miles and after changing the last time the noise went away for about a week. It has started to come back again only faintly. I took it into Toyota because I’m not that handy and they wanted to pull the valve covers I declined because that was awfully expensive but they did tell me they found some metal shavings in the pan. They didn’t send me a picture.

I don’t have any other issues with the vehicle, but I’m concerned that the noise could be symptomatic of an expensive repair. I’m trying to make a decision whether to hang onto the vehicle. And would appreciate any advice.

In the video below, this is about as bad as it gets. I’ve driven 5000 miles since taking this video and it hasn’t been this bad since this was on a cold day.



The second video is how the engine sounds right now. I’ll be at I’ve been driving around for a bit and the engine is warm.

Sounds very similar to the timing chain tensioner I experienced. Video clip and repair details are here in my build thread post 198 if it doesn’t link straight to it:

Builds - mcgaskins' 2013 build thread - Palladium

Thank you! Wow that's funny, and yes that's us. It's a small world! I'll have to come checkout your setup someday! My truck has very little done to it, but hoping to start getting some more stuff done this year.

forum.ih8mud.com

 

[jay96318]

That doesn’t sound normal. The 3UR is inherently a little noisy engine inherently, but this is metal on metal.

For the sound, can you isolate where it’s coming from with a mechanics stereoscope? I’m wondering if it’s a VVTI solenoid on the fritz or a primary timing chain tensioner going bad if it’s the front of the engine. Let’s hope it’s not a bottom end knock, but this sounds more top end to me.

Also, is the tick on only one side of the engine?

Thank you so much. I hear it most near the driver wheel well. Were you able to hear the second video? Did that sound right? The first video is about as bad as it ever has been or gets.

Is the timing chain tensioner expensive to replace? I had seen another video on a tundra that sounded exactly like mine and this is what they said it was. Again, I’m not handy enough to do this myself.

 

[jay96318]

Sounds very similar to the timing chain tensioner I experienced. Video clip and repair details are here in my build thread post 198 if it doesn’t link straight to it:

Builds - mcgaskins' 2013 build thread - Palladium

Thank you! Wow that's funny, and yes that's us. It's a small world! I'll have to come checkout your setup someday! My truck has very little done to it, but hoping to start getting some more stuff done this year.

forum.ih8mud.com

Thanks. Was yours sporadic too? Not every time but often during startup and idle?

 

[bloc]

This is 2023. They need to get some evidence when they say “metal shavings” are in the pan.

You can send an oil sample off to a lab for a health report on the engine.

 

[jay96318]

This is 2023. They need to get some evidence when they say “metal shavings” are in the pan.

You can send an oil sample off to a lab for a health report on the engine.

Thanks. I requested the pictures twice. The fact they didn’t send makes me think they were not significant.

 

[JohnJB]

Thanks. I requested the pictures twice. The fact they didn’t send makes me think they were not significant.

Going to ask a dumb question, did they even change the oil as part of their diagnosis? I read your post to say that you recently changed the oil so I wouldn’t expect the dealer to drain the oil (even a little bit) as they investigated the noise.

Your first video sounds a lot like a tensioner issue. When you get that noise, give the truck just a little gas. Does that make the noise go away as soon as the RPMs come up?

The second video sounds like normal 3UR valvetrain noise.

 

[stonepa]

Does the sound click on and off? I have had a very similar sound for the last 115,000 miles but it goes on and off with a solenoid-like ‘click’ .

 

[jwmNC]

My first guess was going to be exhaust manifold leak as that is a common issue in the 100 series and goes away as the parts warm up and expand to close the gaps. But this doesn’t sound like that exactly, this is a little lower and more metallic sounding. Still worth a check of the exhaust for leaks as that allows evens normal engine noises to be heard easier.

 

[jay96318]

Going to ask a dumb question, did they even change the oil as part of their diagnosis? I read your post to say that you recently changed the oil so I wouldn’t expect the dealer to drain the oil (even a little bit) as they investigated the noise.

Your first video sounds a lot like a tensioner issue. When you get that noise, give the truck just a little gas. Does that make the noise go away as soon as the RPMs come up?

The second video sounds like normal 3UR valvetrain noise.

They did change the oil as part of the diagnosis. The quote I got to repair it is $4k. Would you keep it or trade it in?

I love the truck, but it has 98k and is now 8 years old.

 

[Mrtwooooo]

My LX makes the same noise but only on a cold start and it cycles on and off. Its not cycling with the AC compressor so it know its not related.
Once its warmed up it doesn't make the sound anymore.

I do get a hint that I may have an exhaust leak. When I'm driving I can hear a very faint tick... similar to what i relate and exhaust leak to. I've never seen and threads that talk about exhaust leaks so I'm figuring its not a common issue on the 3UR. Otherwise I feel like my LX runs fine.

I would like to hopefully figure it out.

 

[jay96318]

My LX makes the same noise but only on a cold start and it cycles on and off. Its not cycling with the AC compressor so it know its not related.
Once its warmed up it doesn't make the sound anymore.

I do get a hint that I may have an exhaust leak. When I'm driving I can hear a very faint tick... similar to what i relate and exhaust leak to. I've never seen and threads that talk about exhaust leaks so I'm figuring its not a common issue on the 3UR. Otherwise I feel like my LX runs fine.

I would like to hopefully figure it out.

How long has it made that noise for you? Wondering how quickly it needs to be addressed.

 

[Mrtwooooo]

How long has it made that noise for you? Wondering how quickly it needs to be addressed.

I've had the LX for about 15 months now. It had a tad less than 100K miles on it and I'm at 124K miles now.

It seems like it may be a problem with the tensioner piece. I just don't understand why it sounds like the noise cycles on and off.. And why it clears up once the engine is warmed up.

 

[jay96318]

I've had the LX for about 15 months now. It had a tad less than 100K miles on it and I'm at 124K miles now.

It seems like it may be a problem with the tensioner piece. I just don't understand why it sounds like the noise cycles on and off.. And why it clears up once the engine is warmed up

That’s been my experience too. The rapping cycles at idle and cold temp but then goes away when it warms up. From my research and the comment above, I think it’s a tensioner.

Are you going to hang on to yours? I’m on the fence about whether to put $4k into it or to go get something else.

 

[Mrtwooooo]

That’s been my experience too. The rapping cycles at idle and cold temp but then goes away when it warms up. From my research and the comment above, I think it’s a tensioner.

Are you going to hang on to yours? I’m on the fence about whether to put $4k into it or to go get something else.

Mine isn't going anywhere. Out of all the forums i've read it doesn't sound like there has ever been a failure related to this.

 

[CanadianRockyCruiser]

As mentioned previously, ticking noise when cold can be an exhaust manifold leak sound. It's possible that the sound goes away when the metal warms up and partially seals the crack/hole. This was very common on 100 series land cruisers.

Try to use a stethoscope, or even a tube to isolate if it's happening at a particular cylinder, if so, exhaust leak could be the cause, and new headers/exhaust manifolds could be the cure. If it is an exhaust manifold leak, the sound is really just an annoyance, without the likelihood of causing any damage. If the sound is coming from inside the engine, of course the cause could be more dire.