New sound from bottom of engine after oil change, 5.9L gas
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01-23-2018, 03:58 AM
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New sound from bottom of engine after oil change, 5.9L gas
Hey there gents, I’ve got a new problem I’m hoping someone will be able to give me some insight into. About a week ago, I bought a 2000 Ram 1500 with the 5.9 magnum, auto transmission. I changed the oil today with the manual-recommended 10w-30, conventional (not sure what was in there to begin with), and a new Napa gold filter. Upon the first start after the oil change I had a new sound develop that was not there before the oil change. Best I can describe, it’s kind of a tapping sound, maybe knocking, (consistent with rpm) which appears to be loudest underneath the truck at the bottom of the engine, towards the rear of the engine where it meets the tranny. It doesn’t happen immediately when the engine starts, only after the engine has been running for a minute or two.
As a bit of a precursor, I didn’t have any intention to change the oil today, however, when I was coming up the hill to my house last night, all of the sudden the engine sounded louder, as if the fan clutch immediately kicked in full strength. I looked at the temp gauge and she seemed a bit warmer than it has been since I bought it, although not alarmingly so. Also, the oil pressure seems to be running a little higher than it has been, about 3/4 between the 40 mark and the next hash mark up, with throttle. Whereas previously, the oil pressure seemed to be a touch over the 40 hash mark, with throttle. I decided to change the oil because it is always good to know there is fresh oil in there, and also to replace the crappy Fram oil filter that was on the truck when I bought it. The engine purred before, minus a slight exhaust leak tick. Previous owner said the engine was replaced with a crate engine 30,000 miles ago. It still runs fine, no misfires. The new sound has me a bit worried though. From my research, the oil pump could be the possible culprit, however the fact that there is plenty of oil pressure doesn’t add up to that. Also, it is strange that it manifested the very first time I started the engine after the oil change. Any suggestions or experience on this issue would be appreciated.
Last edited by HawaiiRambler; 01-23-2018 at 05:00 AM.
#2
01-23-2018, 08:05 AM
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01-23-2018, 02:31 PM
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Thanks for the reply. So, I’ve ruled out an exhaust leak already. The truck DOES have a tiny leak from the drivers side manifold, but gets quieter after it’s warmed up. This noise is much different, more mechanical. Now that I’ve listened to it a bit more, it is less of a tapping/knocking sound, and more of a noisy gear sound, I would now describe it as a “clacking” sound. And the thing about the oil pressure and temperature is that I noticed the difference before I even changed the oil, so something was going on before I decided to do anything. Good point about the flex plate, I’ll take the inspection cover off and see if there is anything obvious. The strange piece of the puzzle to me, is that there was no noise before I changed the oil, only immediately after. I’ve seen a few other folks on the internet with a similar problem, however there’s never any resolution to it. A couple guys have said they get a similar sound after every oil change, but it goes away eventually.
Last edited by HawaiiRambler; 01-23-2018 at 05:08 PM.
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01-23-2018, 06:04 PM
#5
01-25-2018, 08:56 AM
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Since you mention the noise is near the bell housing and is a "noisy gear sound", try shifting the trans through all gears while parked in the driveway. If you have a garage park in it while doing the test as it helps amplify the noise.
At the very least if the noise has no change while shifting into R, N, D etc you'll know its not the trans.
At the very least if the noise has no change while shifting into R, N, D etc you'll know its not the trans.
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01-25-2018, 07:07 PM
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Sorry, I should have mentioned that the noise is present in all ranges of the gear shift lever. Maybe it's torque converter noise? I'm not sure if the TC spins in park and neutral or not. Also, I don't have a mechanics stethoscope, nor have I used one before, so I don't think I would be terribly accurate with it anyway. Might be a good tool to invest in though. I have had a chance to dig into it a bit, however. I pulled the transmission inspection cover off, and everything appeared to be in good shape, no obvious cracks in the flexplate and the bolts all seemed snug. While I had the cover off and I was under the truck, I decided to pull the oil pan and do a visual inspection there as well. I didn't find anything obvious though. There was some sludge in the bottom of the pan, and it appeared to have a small amount of metallic particles in it, but not freshly on top of the sludge. I didn't find any large pieces of metal or bearing material either. There were some small chunks in the bottom, but I'm guessing they were just hard carbon peices, as they were black and disintegrated when crushed between my fingers. One thing I didn't do, and wish I would have, is inspect the cylinder walls while I had the pan off. Oh well.
While I had the oil pan off, I decided to go ahead and replace the oil pump. I know those things are practically bullet-proof, but I just wanted to rule it out as the cause of the noise. It wasn't the cause. However, it was probably a good thing I did replace it, because some goof had decided that it was a good idea to use RTV silicone for the oil pump gasket. Quite a bit had oozed out into the oil channel when they installed it, and I'm not sure if any had broken loose at some point... though I would think the oil filter would catch any of that before it went through the engine. The oil pickup screen also had some debris that got sucked up into it, a couple leaves and some small seeds with a flat papery disc around them. So I cleaned out the pickup screen, installed the new oil pump, cleaned the oil pan really well, and put it pack together. Then I filled it with oil, and primed the pump by pulling the spark and cranking the engine until oil came out of the filter mount on the block. I filled a new oil filter with fresh oil and installed it... although I've never had to do that on an engine before when I've changed the oil, I think I will do it from now on, especially because the oil filter allows it by being mounted more vertically than horizontally. On the plus side, my oil pressure seems to be more consistent while driving than it had been.
I also found that my fan clutch was apparently going out, as there was very little resistance when trying to spin it with the engine cold or marginally warm. Replaced that, and the engine seems to be running a little cooler now, which is always a good thing.
The noise is still there though. I'm starting to think it sounds more like a timing chain noise, the more I listen to it, the more it sounds like a rattling or a clickety-clack sound. Although, the engine only has a little over 30k miles on it, so I kind of don't think the timing chain would have stretched that much in that amount of time. But maybe you are on to something with the "dry start" theory, HeyYou. Or maybe the noise has always been there and the previous owner just used a heavier weight oil to cover it up? Either way, I have an appointment at the stealership this coming monday. Hopefully they are better at diagnosing it than I could be. At least I've ruled a couple things out so far. I appreciate the comments and suggestions, and any other suggestions are obviously welcome.
While I had the oil pan off, I decided to go ahead and replace the oil pump. I know those things are practically bullet-proof, but I just wanted to rule it out as the cause of the noise. It wasn't the cause. However, it was probably a good thing I did replace it, because some goof had decided that it was a good idea to use RTV silicone for the oil pump gasket. Quite a bit had oozed out into the oil channel when they installed it, and I'm not sure if any had broken loose at some point... though I would think the oil filter would catch any of that before it went through the engine. The oil pickup screen also had some debris that got sucked up into it, a couple leaves and some small seeds with a flat papery disc around them. So I cleaned out the pickup screen, installed the new oil pump, cleaned the oil pan really well, and put it pack together. Then I filled it with oil, and primed the pump by pulling the spark and cranking the engine until oil came out of the filter mount on the block. I filled a new oil filter with fresh oil and installed it... although I've never had to do that on an engine before when I've changed the oil, I think I will do it from now on, especially because the oil filter allows it by being mounted more vertically than horizontally. On the plus side, my oil pressure seems to be more consistent while driving than it had been.
I also found that my fan clutch was apparently going out, as there was very little resistance when trying to spin it with the engine cold or marginally warm. Replaced that, and the engine seems to be running a little cooler now, which is always a good thing.
The noise is still there though. I'm starting to think it sounds more like a timing chain noise, the more I listen to it, the more it sounds like a rattling or a clickety-clack sound. Although, the engine only has a little over 30k miles on it, so I kind of don't think the timing chain would have stretched that much in that amount of time. But maybe you are on to something with the "dry start" theory, HeyYou. Or maybe the noise has always been there and the previous owner just used a heavier weight oil to cover it up? Either way, I have an appointment at the stealership this coming monday. Hopefully they are better at diagnosing it than I could be. At least I've ruled a couple things out so far. I appreciate the comments and suggestions, and any other suggestions are obviously welcome.
Last edited by HawaiiRambler; 01-25-2018 at 07:10 PM.
#7
07-11-2022, 12:59 AM
Sorry, I should have mentioned that the noise is present in all ranges of the gear shift lever. Maybe it's torque converter noise? I'm not sure if the TC spins in park and neutral or not. Also, I don't have a mechanics stethoscope, nor have I used one before, so I don't think I would be terribly accurate with it anyway. Might be a good tool to invest in though. I have had a chance to dig into it a bit, however. I pulled the transmission inspection cover off, and everything appeared to be in good shape, no obvious cracks in the flexplate and the bolts all seemed snug. While I had the cover off and I was under the truck, I decided to pull the oil pan and do a visual inspection there as well. I didn't find anything obvious though. There was some sludge in the bottom of the pan, and it appeared to have a small amount of metallic particles in it, but not freshly on top of the sludge. I didn't find any large pieces of metal or bearing material either. There were some small chunks in the bottom, but I'm guessing they were just hard carbon peices, as they were black and disintegrated when crushed between my fingers. One thing I didn't do, and wish I would have, is inspect the cylinder walls while I had the pan off. Oh well.
While I had the oil pan off, I decided to go ahead and replace the oil pump. I know those things are practically bullet-proof, but I just wanted to rule it out as the cause of the noise. It wasn't the cause. However, it was probably a good thing I did replace it, because some goof had decided that it was a good idea to use RTV silicone for the oil pump gasket. Quite a bit had oozed out into the oil channel when they installed it, and I'm not sure if any had broken loose at some point... though I would think the oil filter would catch any of that before it went through the engine. The oil pickup screen also had some debris that got sucked up into it, a couple leaves and some small seeds with a flat papery disc around them. So I cleaned out the pickup screen, installed the new oil pump, cleaned the oil pan really well, and put it pack together. Then I filled it with oil, and primed the pump by pulling the spark and cranking the engine until oil came out of the filter mount on the block. I filled a new oil filter with fresh oil and installed it... although I've never had to do that on an engine before when I've changed the oil, I think I will do it from now on, especially because the oil filter allows it by being mounted more vertically than horizontally. On the plus side, my oil pressure seems to be more consistent while driving than it had been.
I also found that my fan clutch was apparently going out, as there was very little resistance when trying to spin it with the engine cold or marginally warm. Replaced that, and the engine seems to be running a little cooler now, which is always a good thing.
The noise is still there though. I'm starting to think it sounds more like a timing chain noise, the more I listen to it, the more it sounds like a rattling or a clickety-clack sound. Although, the engine only has a little over 30k miles on it, so I kind of don't think the timing chain would have stretched that much in that amount of time. But maybe you are on to something with the "dry start" theory, HeyYou. Or maybe the noise has always been there and the previous owner just used a heavier weight oil to cover it up? Either way, I have an appointment at the stealership this coming monday. Hopefully they are better at diagnosing it than I could be. At least I've ruled a couple things out so far. I appreciate the comments and suggestions, and any other suggestions are obviously welcome.
While I had the oil pan off, I decided to go ahead and replace the oil pump. I know those things are practically bullet-proof, but I just wanted to rule it out as the cause of the noise. It wasn't the cause. However, it was probably a good thing I did replace it, because some goof had decided that it was a good idea to use RTV silicone for the oil pump gasket. Quite a bit had oozed out into the oil channel when they installed it, and I'm not sure if any had broken loose at some point... though I would think the oil filter would catch any of that before it went through the engine. The oil pickup screen also had some debris that got sucked up into it, a couple leaves and some small seeds with a flat papery disc around them. So I cleaned out the pickup screen, installed the new oil pump, cleaned the oil pan really well, and put it pack together. Then I filled it with oil, and primed the pump by pulling the spark and cranking the engine until oil came out of the filter mount on the block. I filled a new oil filter with fresh oil and installed it... although I've never had to do that on an engine before when I've changed the oil, I think I will do it from now on, especially because the oil filter allows it by being mounted more vertically than horizontally. On the plus side, my oil pressure seems to be more consistent while driving than it had been.
I also found that my fan clutch was apparently going out, as there was very little resistance when trying to spin it with the engine cold or marginally warm. Replaced that, and the engine seems to be running a little cooler now, which is always a good thing.
The noise is still there though. I'm starting to think it sounds more like a timing chain noise, the more I listen to it, the more it sounds like a rattling or a clickety-clack sound. Although, the engine only has a little over 30k miles on it, so I kind of don't think the timing chain would have stretched that much in that amount of time. But maybe you are on to something with the "dry start" theory, HeyYou. Or maybe the noise has always been there and the previous owner just used a heavier weight oil to cover it up? Either way, I have an appointment at the stealership this coming monday. Hopefully they are better at diagnosing it than I could be. At least I've ruled a couple things out so far. I appreciate the comments and suggestions, and any other suggestions are obviously welcome.
