Tick Tick Tick sound!??!!?

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Harms Way

Senior Member
I know what you're thinking... it's the valves opening/closing. I know what that sounds like and it isn't it.

I have a 2000 Integra GSR with 68,000 on it. I have a skunk 2 pro series intake manifold, AEM short ram, DC 4-1 header, 2 1/4 exhaust. I am very meticulous in regards to my cars. I ALWAYS change the oil at 3000-3500 miles with Mobile 1 full synthetic. Also, I only use 91-93 octane fuel.

While driving my car will make a louder than usual ticking sound coming from the engine compartment. However, it only happens between 2000-3000 rpm's and only under load. It doesn't do it at idle and if I am in neutral and rev to (say 4k) it doesn't do it. What do you think it is?

Thanks in advance!
 
No, not like marbles in a can. It sounds like..... it someone had drum sticks hitting the top of my valve cover. Or, the sound of the valves only louder. And, from what I can tell, it's coming from the top of the engine.
 
No, not like marbles in a can. It sounds like..... it someone had drum sticks hitting the top of my valve cover. Or, the sound of the valves only louder. And, from what I can tell, it's coming from the top of the engine.

it still sounds like LMAs to me. any vtec engine is suseptable to it. my B16 needs them replaced. they just stick. unfortunaly, i dont have a video of it for you to hear, nor can it be started right now to make one...
 
Sorry, but what exactly do you mean by LMAs?

Thanks for the input.

that's fine, every time this topic comes up no one seems to have heard of LMAs

Lost Motion Assemblies

they sit behind the vtec rocker arm to cushin it when vtec is not engaged. when the lma sticks closed, the vtec rocker is free to bounce between the lma head and the cam lobe. causing a loud ticking. it can also set off knock sensors.
 
How large of a problem is this? Also, what would I do to go about fixing it? Would I have to replace the LMAs?
 
How large of a problem is this? Also, what would I do to go about fixing it? Would I have to replace the LMAs?

well as blanco said, could be valve lash. adjust your valves first. this only requires you to remove your valve cover. repace a $20 dollar gasket, but not necessary.

LMA's you must remove the cams and rocker assemblies. A full set of LMA's cost $300 OEM honda.
 
I have the same exact problem with my B16 (1st gen), i'll take a video of it tomorrow, very very noticeable although mine have been making the noises for about a year now....doesn't seem to affect how it runs though, still pulls as hard as ever.

I found that H22 LMA's are better to put in as replacements, they are evidently a little stronger and less prone to fail again.
 
Just took this pic for ya, these like I said are the H22 lma's, they fit with a little shim, i'll have to find the link I read to tell you the specifics.

But yeah this is the part # for them, and it wasn't even close to $300, i'm trying to find out if I got them from Majestic or where...

Ok, on majestichonda.com, they are $7.17 each, the product # is 31469....

Really, your best bet would be to call majestic or your local dealer, for me at least, searching through all those parts illustrations is just a big waste of time...majestic is a great dealer to buy from, I do alllll the time.

Majestic Honda - The Internet's #1 Honda Automotive Parts Store
 

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Just took this pic for ya, these like I said are the H22 lma's, they fit with a little shim, i'll have to find the link I read to tell you the specifics.

But yeah this is the part # for them, and it wasn't even close to $300, i'm trying to find out if I got them from Majestic or where...

Ok, on majestichonda.com, they are $7.17 each, the product # is 31469....

Really, your best bet would be to call majestic or your local dealer, for me at least, searching through all those parts illustrations is just a big waste of time...majestic is a great dealer to buy from, I do alllll the time.

Majestic Honda - The Internet's #1 Honda Automotive Parts Store

wow that's a good deal. well my B16 motor is from a '95 del sol, so I looked for that.

yeah cool it's been a few months since I looked for prices. part number 14820-P30-000. majestic honda sells them for 21.09 a pop. you need 8 total. it's recommended you replace all of them at the same time.

$168.72 sweet maybe i'll fix mine sooner than I thought...

......if LMAs are your problem...
 
......if LMAs are your problem...

I don't know why I would/should have problems. Like I said, I only have 68,000 miles on it and have always taken care of it.

I am gonna have a mechanic listen/check it out just to double check. Thanks for the input again guys!
 
Just took this vid for ya, wind was blowing pretty bad so it messed the sound up a lot, you can hear the ticking sound though...I also have an awful exhaust leak, so if you hear something else besides the ticking that doesn't sound normal lol, thats what it is.

 
Have you had the engine its entire life?

No, bought it when it had around 48,000 on it. However, the guy I bought it from gave me every required maintenance report from Acura, etc. And, I know he took good care of it.

Just took this vid for ya, wind was blowing pretty bad so it messed the sound up a lot, you can hear the ticking sound though...I also have an awful exhaust leak, so if you hear something else besides the ticking that doesn't sound normal lol, thats what it is.


Thanks for the video man. However, mine only sounds like that when it's under load and not ALL the time, only from around 2-3000 rpms. It doesn't ALWAYS do it either. Some days it will and some it won't.
 
yeah it's GOT to be your lma's if somedays it does it and some days it doesnt.

LMA's are rebelous. they dont listen to proper maintence. my motor's got 26k on it. there is no maintence procedure to extend the life of an LMA. you could take them out and soak them in motor oil for a month (like calesta has stated in another thread) and still get unsatasfactory results. your best bet is to replace them and hope they dont start sticking again.

again, they will not make your engine run bad or anything like that. they are but cushions! but dont take them for granted, as blanco said, they will wear out the cam lobe and rocker that keeps smacking over time.
 
Searching around here definitely pays off. Wow! YB, Blanco, by answering Harms question you two answered a deep ponderance of mine. I have the same issue on my D16Z6 from 2,000 to 3,000 rpm's. It sounds like someone rolling their R's in my engine bay...or the way Harms described it is probably better. haha Kind of sucks becauuse I JUST swapped this engine in. Let me ask you guys, I most likely will be swapping my Z6 out soon with a B18B until I can get the B18C that I really want, so should I not worry about replacing my LMA's or would it be a good idea either way? In case it matters I have a K&N intake, headers and 2 1/4 exhaust. It's been tempting not to do more to this but I really want to wait until I get exactly what I want, then go crazy on it. :D
 
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