"Ping" sound from engine when cold

[ryanjl]

Did a cold startup on my 2012 yesterday morning and heard a "ping" sound coming from somewhere near the top or front of the engine, repeating at around a 1-second cadence.

It was about 15 degrees out. I let the engine idle and it gradually got quieter, then stopped when the engine warmed up.

Any guesses?

This was the morning after I realized my battery has probably given up the ghost, but it seems as if the problems are unrelated.

 

[Pfunk951]

Hmmm.. Maybe a sticky valve? I'm not an expert on the timing chain issue, but this doesn't sound like that.. A repetitive "ping" makes me think something was being struck, like a cam lobe slapping a valve, and once it was moving/lubricated/a little warmer it went away.. I have a mechanic's stethoscope if you need to track it down..

Let us know if it keeps happening..

Mike

 

[ryanjl]

The first I heard the pinging sound was on Sunday morning, after having parked outside overnight. Let it warm up, drove about 20 minutes, parked it for about 3 hours, and then drove it again for about 3 hours. Did not hear the pinging sound on the second startup, but it had risen to around 25 or 30 degrees out by then.

Did not drive it yesterday as I knew it needed a new battery and the stores were closed.

Picked up a new battery today, then started it up this afternoon. The pinging sound was back. It was around 15 degrees out again. It's actually at a frequency faster than one ping per second, but does not seem tied to the cadence of the belt. Goes away after I let the engine run for a few minutes. Drove 2.7 hours home.

I'll call the dealership tomorrow and probably bring it in. It's supposed to be cold here for the next 10 days, so hopefully they'll be able to replicate the sound, and hopefully whatever it is falls under my CPO warranty.

I have not checked any codes, but the CEL has not turned on.

Strange that it started the same time as my battery issue, but that's also the same time that the arctic cold-front came in.

The sound seems to "sharp" to be coming from inside the engine. Could be a solenoid or something, but I really have no idea. Placing my ear to a metal rod which was itself placed on different parts of the engine did not reveal where the sound was coming from.

 

[ryanjl]

Crazy. A google search just turned up this video from February of this year:

That is exactly what I am hearing, but there is no diagnosis in the comments.

 

[Pfunk951]

Hmmmm. It's rhythmic, but seems too slow to be directly attached to the crankshaft/camshaft (600rpm would be 10 times a second on the crank, 5 on the cams).. I can't think of anything mechanical in the engine that would cycle 1/5th of that. But it is metallic. Could it be those HP Fuel Pump Cam followers?

I'm at a loss, let us know what they find..

Mike

EDIT: Check this thread out and listen to the sound in the first video- this might be it:
http://www.landroverworld.org/threads/lr4-clicking-noise-from-engine.28819/

 

[ryanjl]

Yeah, that sounds the same. Funny that I commented in that thread.

We'll see when I take it in.

 

[aakempvt]

I’ve had the same sound on very cold mornings. I’m fairly certain it’s related to the fan clutch. There was a thread a while ago and it was the fan clutch. Also if you lookup ticking fan clutch on YouTube you’ll find various makes and models with the same noise.

 

[ryanjl]

This morning was the coldest yet (5 degrees), but there was no ticking/pinging sound upon startup.

A fan clutch sounds like it could be it because the sound seems very sharp and external; sometimes it even sounds like it's coming out the front of the radiator.

 

[ryanjl]

I checked on my lunch break today and there are no fault codes being thrown. No sound again upon startup, but it had only been a few hours since I drove into work.

I'll see if it makes the sound again tomorrow morning. I'm afraid that if there are no codes and the sound isn't currently occurring, the dealer won't do anything.

 

[churious]

I have the same sound on mine and I'm pretty sure its the clutch fan. Yet to tackle it though.