Hi all, I really hope you help me out. I've already had my first expense - 4 new tyres.

 

I now have things starting to go wrong already I think, and was wondering if you could shed some light on what the problem(s) might be. I'll do my best to answer any questions you have to find out what the problem(s) are.

 

1. There is an awful whining noise coming from the gearbox I think in 1st and second. Any gear after that is fine, no noise. It's getting progressively worse.

 

2. The engine is starting to sound like those old Ford engines, the ones that go "tap-tap-tap-tap". It sounds like it's coming from inside the block itself.

 

3. I have a new whiney noise, I think it's coming from the turbos but I can't be sure. It's hard to tell over the noise from the gearbox...

 

4. Vibrations. When I first got the car it was really smooth, now I'm getting vibrations through the steering wheel... I thought the tyres would fix this but it seems not...

 

If anyone could come and take a look or if anyone knows what these things could be so I have some idea of how bad it is then please let me know... I've been careful starting it and not booting it from cold etc. I've checked the oil it seems okay. But I don't really know what I'm doing and feel a bit lost. And upset that my precious new car is on the verge of blowing up :(

 

Any questions you have I will answer to help you find out what's wrong

Hi all, I really hope you help me out. I've already had my first expense - 4 new tyres.

 

I now have things starting to go wrong already I think, and was wondering if you could shed some light on what the problem(s) might be. I'll do my best to answer any questions you have to find out what the problem(s) are.

 

1. There is an awful whining noise coming from the gearbox I think in 1st and second. Any gear after that is fine, no noise. It's getting progressively worse.

 

2. The engine is starting to sound like those old Ford engines, the ones that go "tap-tap-tap-tap". It sounds like it's coming from inside the block itself.

 

3. I have a new whiney noise, I think it's coming from the turbos but I can't be sure. It's hard to tell over the noise from the gearbox...

 

4. Vibrations. When I first got the car it was really smooth, now I'm getting vibrations through the steering wheel... I thought the tyres would fix this but it seems not...

If anyone could come and take a look or if anyone knows what these things could be so I have some idea of how bad it is then please let me know... I've been careful starting it and not booting it from cold etc. I've checked the oil it seems okay. But I don't really know what I'm doing and feel a bit lost. And upset that my precious new car is on the verge of blowing up :(

 

Any questions you have I will answer to help you find out what's wrong

 

 

vibrations commonly point to warped discs or and seized callipers doesent sound like your having much luck looking at the above list :rolleyes:

 

tapping from engine could be hydralic tappets/followers try a thicker grade of oil should quiten them down.... high/low meilage?

 

is your gearbox auto/manual? if manual the rubber dust boot was ripped on mine causing a whining/whooshing noise in the cabin replaced boot,problem solved if auto then i dont know

 

greg

Thanks for the quick reply Greg, mine is a Manual. The mileage is 53,000...

 

Which grade oil do you recommend?

I have had a lot of experience of Z's going wrong and sometimes you have nothing to worry about things can sound a lot worse than they actually are. I am not a mechanic so I will not try and diagnose your problems. I am sure sooner later someone like Andy Duff will come across this thread and will be able to advise you correctly what to do. I know that Duffer is from up North but I am not sure if he is East or West but someone of that calibre will be able to look at your car and immediately tell you what is wrong. Good Luck Kay...

Thanks for the quick reply Greg, mine is a Manual. The mileage is 53,000...

 

Which grade oil do you recommend?

 

 

castrol RS 10w/60 good oil my engine seems to sound smoother with this

 

guarantee the noise is that culprit rubber boot remove centre console theres 2 rubber boots one will probably be loose 1st gear noisy then 2nd 3rd noise dissapears because directly underneath the gearbox is the road put a bit of locktite around the boot so no air can whoosh up problem cured :) then you can see if the turbos are whistling

:D

 

1) Rubber boot on shifter will indeed cause this - sometimes its simply that its become dislodged rather than torn so maybe zero expense there.

 

2) Depends on the sound as to what it could be. If its ticking then lifters, if its knocking then it could be anything from the VVT springs in the intake cams, little ends or big ends. Need a better description

 

3) Quite possibly a boost leak. Check the hoses to the throttle bodies etc and make sure the clamps are tight. A common one here is the metal hose where it joins to the turbo outlet - need small hands to get to this tho

 

4) Does indeed sound like a brake disk issue. Also check the tension rods for leaking although this will show up more under higher speed braking.

 

Hope thats of some kind of help...

 

CheerZ,

 

Andy

the chap above knows all about zeds :bow: i mearly help with things i have had issues with :)

 

i had brake judder :rolleyes:

 

i had rubber boot syndrome :rolleyes:

 

i had dead battery :rolleyes:

 

i had leaky fuel lines :rolleyes:

 

i had a blocked air filter :rolleyes:

 

all resolved now and without the wealth of knowledge on this site it would be hard to look after a zed :bow:

 

do all the things yourself you feel knowledable enough to do save money from garages who charge what you can do for free :cool:

I've had the lot :D From seized brake calipers, to seized turbos, to holed pistons :D Shit happens but you'll fix it :)

Thankyou so much for the help, I will check those boots on under the centre console ASAP. :) The noise is definately a gentle ticking rather than a knocking sound... very regular and quickens with higher revs. I have noticed the car has lost power since all this, and I'm sure a boost leak would do this am I right? I mean in 1st the rear wheels used to break traction quite easily on full power, now they do not even with the pedal fully down. (It lost traction with the new tyres as well). Just seems not as powerful as before this ticking sound and whining noise. I hope thats a better description Andy. Any help to you?

Yeah a boost leak will reduce performance :)

 

Also - re the vibrations - have you had the tracking checked, and the wheels balanced?

 

Pete

Yeah the wheels were balanced, not been tracked though as far as I know... It doesn't veer off to one side really when you let go of the wheel unless you're on a camber of course. I might have to get the tracking done though definately.

Get the tracking checked for what it will cost you you'll be amazed what kind of probs it can cause you.

:D

 

 

2) Depends on the sound as to what it could be. If its ticking then lifters, if its knocking then it could be anything from the VVT springs in the intake cams, little ends or big ends. Need a better description

 

3) Quite possibly a boost leak. Check the hoses to the throttle bodies etc and make sure the clamps are tight. A common one here is the metal hose where it joins to the turbo outlet - need small hands to get to this tho

 

 

 

Hope thats of some kind of help...

 

CheerZ,

 

Andy

 

That's great help Andy, in respect of point no.3 can you direct me to where these are found?

 

In regards to point no.2 it's definately a gentle "ticking" sound. Any ideas on how to get this diagnosed and fixed?

The hoses Andy refers to are the 4 biiig ones you can see at the front of the engine bay.

 

Ticking lifters I think is a common thing, people just live with it as it does no harm. I have heard oil flushing can help but oil flushing has its own dangers on older engines... best do a search on this :)

If the lifter tick really does piss you off then you can try adding a few capfulls of automatic transmission fluid to the oil. IMO DO NOT flush the oil, you'll more than likely end up with more problems than you started with. Basicaly oil can gunk up a leaking seal and prevent it from leaking, flush the oil and you remove the deposits etc etc. Hope that makes some sense. You also stand the risk of a bit of debris from the turbo oil feeds finding their way to the turbo journals=seized turbo so just not worth the risk IMO.

 

As Pete says, the 4 BIG hoses at the front of the engine bay, either side of the fan. Also, follow the outer 2 hoses backwards and down where they meet the turbo outlets - these are quite common for coming loose ;)