timing chain rattle?

[Immortality]

I'd consider doing an oil change and putting in a something heavier than normally recommended. I believe the factory recommended oil for these is a 5w-30 full synthetic but it's my honest opinion this is to light. I've always run a 15w40 semi but you could try a 20w-50 mineral and see what that does.

 

[LatinDancer]

^ Good advice....that is actually what a guy in Repco said just yesterday. I will try that. But I now have the dilemma of what to do with my own VY....which is in better condition generally than my wife's. Perhaps I should permanently change to a heavier oil in it too. It is not LPG.

 

[Immortality]

I have a couple of theories on why Holden recommended the 5w-30 for the ecotec from VT onward when the VS model ecotec had a factory recommended 20W-50. First and foremost, 5w-30 is also the recommended oil for the LS if I'm not mistaken so it was a simple case of stocking one oil type for both engines supplied in the Commodore of that era. The other is that 5w-30 would give an umpteenth increase in economy but I really think this is secondary consideration.

I'd run the same oil in both engines just for simplicities sake.

 

[Lex]

I have a couple of theories on why Holden recommended the 5w-30 for the ecotec from VT onward when the VS model ecotec had a factory recommended 20W-50. First and foremost, 5w-30 is also the recommended oil for the LS if I'm not mistaken so it was a simple case of stocking one oil type for both engines supplied in the Commodore of that era. The other is that 5w-30 would give an umpteenth increase in economy but I really think this is secondary consideration.

I'd run the same oil in both engines just for simplicities sake.

I run 5-30w in my ecotec too.

 

[vs-lover]

I must admit that Ecotecs that have been on LPG for many years always give more problems than the savings add up to.

We've got a high mileage (225K) Petrol only VS that's my sons car and that engine purs like a kitten while two of our other VS's that are on LPG have both suffered from engines becoming rattly buckets of **** that are noisy and eventually have been replaced with "petrol only" engines from other vehicles that have been write offs. We've now just about given up on LPG as the savings just aren't worth the consequences they create and when the systems eventually break down they will be removed and a boot will be returned with some good space again.

 

[Immortality]

I run 5-30w in my ecotec too.

It's an interesting conundrum. I think if you have a car with a good service history than it'll be fine but then we are also talking about an engine which was designed some 30 odd years ago and evolved into what we know as the ecotec that still carries over some of the flaws inherent to that engine design of which one is questionable machining practices in the block (something that GM was clearly still struggling with during the production of the LS3 engines). Other things to consider along with service history is vehicle use, it's not uncommon to see Commodore taxi's or fleet vehicles with many hundreds of thousands of kilometres on the clock and still running like a charm on the other hand a mistreated vehicle of the same era be dead with only just over 100,000km? It's interesting to note that car manufacturers consider short trip, stop/start type use as hard use and recommend much sooner service intervals these days.

I must admit that Ecotecs that have been on LPG for many years always give more problems than the savings add up to.

We've got a high mileage (225K) Petrol only VS that's my sons car and that engine purs like a kitten while two of our other VS's that are on LPG have both suffered from engines becoming rattly buckets of **** that are noisy and eventually have been replaced with "petrol only" engines from other vehicles that have been write offs. We've now just about given up on LPG as the savings just aren't worth the consequences they create and when the systems eventually break down they will be removed and a boot will be returned with some good space again.

I don't have a lot of experience with LPG so it's not something I can really comment on.

 

[Lex]

It's interesting to note that car manufacturers consider short trip, stop/start type use as hard use and recommend much sooner service intervals these days.

Most of my driving is to the supermarket & home (round trip 6 km). Once or twice a year l go to Wagga Wagga NSW. About 1000 km round trip.
I generally change the oil & filter every 5000 km.

 

[Immortality]

Most of my driving is to the supermarket & home (round trip 6 km). Once or twice a year l go to Wagga Wagga NSW. About 1000 km round trip.
I generally change the oil & filter every 5000 km.

That's perfect really.

Our L67 Calais does a 36km round trip everyday in peak hour traffic plus what ever else you do during the week so I'm 10,000km oil changes in less than 6 months. It's just had it's 230,000km service and it purrs like a kitten with fresh oil in it, I'm using a 15w-40 but I do beat on it running double the factory boost level (the trans hates me)

 

[LatinDancer]

Well, I put in some new oil which is thicker....Valvolene 15-40 Engine Armour, semi-synthetic. But it hasn't affected the noise at all.

It really sounds like the timing chain rattling in my old Peugeot, so I am assuming it is not the balance shaft.
It rattles on acceleration only.
The odd thing is that it disappears when the engine becomes hot. There must be a clue there. Wouldn't it still rattle when hot if it was the timing chain ?

I seem to remember from older cars that they would ping if there was a slight air leak in the intake manifold somewhere (like one of he small rubber tubes coming off). Or is my memory misleading me ? Maybe it's pinging ? But then we come back to the fact that it disappears when the engine is hot....

 

[losh1971]

If you think it is pinging then try a tank of 98 and see if that helps. You're less likely to get ping on hi octane fuels. Rattle noises can travel so it could sound like TC but still be balance shaft. A new chain is a fairly economical job on the V6 but before going down that line leave it with a mech overnight and have him listen to a cold engine.