And I thought everything was just peachy before I started reading this BBS.

There's a lot of discussion about piston slap, but does anyone have an audio clip of what it actually sounds like? The reason I ask is my Terzo's engine is significantly noisier when cold, but is nice and quiet once warmed up.

I am by no means a mechanic, so I don't know if the noise level and sounds I'm hearing are normal. The engine sounds quite "clackety", but then one man's clack is another man's tick.

Can anyone help dispel some of my ignorance?

You have mail.

I have heard the sound file... i think.

And i think my car sounds like it... its a MY99 UK car... september registered.

Is it a problem on my car too?

The bit i am most worried about is the 'grrung' sound when the throttle is bliped when cold (not there when warm).
Like my old astra diesil used to make.

Is this the sound that is the sound of the piston slap?

Hard to reproduce for the dealers as its usually warm by then.
Thinking of mentioning it at next service (45k in 4k miles time).

i have the same sound i think when cold but canges when warm - can someone send me the sound file


cheers

So far there haven't been (to my knowledge) any cases of piston slap on MY99/00 cars - it's always proved to be either the cambelt tensioner, or (in my case) ticking tappets in cold weather. This supposedly can be fixed by putting different oil in (e.g. Silkolene 10W/30 ?) but they recommended not worrying about it unless it gets worse.

The worst for piston slap seems to be the MY98 cars...

Hope this helps
Richard

I have had it on an MY98 and it sounded like a Ford Granada with 130,000 miles on the clock. Sound went within 5 minutes, most noticeable around 2500rpm by blipping/setting off but not so much on idle.

Good luck


Otis.

my car can get intermitently quite loud and tappety even when warm and driving steady. is legay turbo, but same engine as impreza.
could it be piston slap, i suspect it is the tappets though, although has just turned 68000, so not much for a legacy.
any way of checking the cambelt tensioner?

thanks

ian ;)

Don't know about Legacies, sorry! Only going by what the Subaru guy said on my MY00...

Richard

Ticking tappets? I thought the phase 2 engine had solid (i.e. not hydraulic) tappets? Why would these tick?

How does one diagnose a duff cambelt tensioner?

It's only on MY98 (and possibly earlier which perhaps the Legacy engine is?) and not on the MY99/00 as this model has the newer Phase II block.

Someone posted a sound file a while back with the noise but I've no idea when that thread was or who did it.

Matt :)

It was Alan Leslie who did the sound file. I had saved the thread and kept posting the link to the site on here. Now the page on that link has changed. This was it.

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/alan.leslie/

Cheers,

Wrexy.

same problem, sounds like a diesel when cold, i let it carefully warm the oil up before giving any pasty, and the car has covered 112k miles, so i aint too worried. A local garage suggested sticking pistons?? dont know, i think i must be due for a cam belt at 120k, is this right?

Ok, so the engine is noisy when cold - but does piston slap actually do any (more) damage? Once the engine is warm the knocking sound goes, (because the piston/bore sizes match when at operating temperature), and so no damage is occuring.

Therefore, piston slap is only occuring for a few minutes each time the engine is cold (and being driven gently anyway). Does it get to the point where the piston could sieze in the bore? Or is piston slap just an anoyance?