UNKNOWN ENGINE or EXHAUST TAPPING SOUND?

stangsman

Member
Nov 24, 2003
45
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I have a '95 5.0 with 87K miles all stock motor except for full length headers. This weekend I noticed a clapping/tapping sound coming from the passenger side around the alternator/ oil filler location.
The clapping sound can be heard at idle and does get faster as I rev the motor.
I did check the oil and it was toward the bottom of hatch area of dipstick. I do leak very little oil by the oil drain plug (plug may be stripped or washer worn) but the leak is very very little.
I did add some oil anyway and the noise lessened a bit but still very noticeable.
The sound reminds me of a lawn mower the way the motor "claps" away almost like a tractor would sound.
I only drive the car on weekends and the last tuneup was 4 yrs ago about 8000 miles ago.
Is it my valves sticking or maybe my exhaust header bolts backed away? I had headers installed 3 yrs ago.
Any suggestions, I hope this problem is not a serious one - low on cash.
 
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If it's an exhaust leak, it will get a lot louder when you're driving the car under load. Check the header bolts to start with. There's a slim chance that tightening the bolts could fix the problem, but if you have paper gaskets, the gasket most likely blew out. If you replace them spend the extra $ on copper ones. Copper header gaskets will not leak and are reusable.

If it sounds like it's coming from the front of the engine, it could also be one of your accessories. My smog pump makes noise, but it's more of a knock than a tick. I would pull your belt off and spin all your accessory pulleys to see if any are binding up or making noise. You can also run the engine for a few seconds without the belt to see if the noise goes away, which would point at an accessory. Hope this helps. Good luck.
 
yea always check your header gaskets and bolts first, even your collectors. THen worry about the engine after you dismiss the exhaust system. I have a Jeep Cherokee with the 4.0 for my daily driver lifted on 33s, and i had a crappy tap going in and it ended up being a stuck lifter. SO i did the old school mechanics trick , changed the oil and added 1 quart of ATF to it, left it in for about 200 miles and it took care of it. I changed the oil after that 200 miles. ATF has a lot of detergent in it, so i will loosen any grime up. Just an old skool trick ive seen done a lot.
 
You are right, the header bolts were loose like teeth.
I tighten them up (the ones I can get to) and that helped a lot, but I still hear that clapping sound but a lot less. I think the header gaskets are no good. They're BBK, I thought they were made with reinforced wire.
I will buy Mr. Gasket copper gaskets, hope that will fix it