Help Needed: 1.9 Gti Rattle From Cam/inlet Valve

[chicargo 0]

hi, im new to this forum and was hopeing sombody could give me some advice.

ive just bought a 1988 1.9 205 gti, its done 134,000 miles and has been stood for 8 years in a lockup,

the problem im having is this, when i start it, it starts/runs and sounds mint on tick over or when you rev it slowly (no knocks/rattles/ticks) but when you blip the accelerator or put your foot down when driving it makes this faily loud rattling noise from the inlet valve/cam lobe area on the end cylinder(nearest to dizzy), ive had people listen to it and they all agree that its definatley coming from the cam/valve area rather than the little end bearing end. ive had the rocker cover off and all seems fine and very clean with no obvious signs of wear/damage, could this be a weak/broken inlet valve spring/guide ???. i was thinking maybe stale petrol ?? but the rattle sounds a bit to loud for that, any help/advice would be very welcomed, cheers in advance. si

[Galifrey 1]

Detonation due to stale fuel is a likelihood

[chicargo 0]

Detonation due to stale fuel is a likelihood

 

i prey thats all it is, but would it be so loud a rattle ????, prob the easyist thing to try first though,you never know i might just drop lucky. i'll try draining the petrol tomorrow night and put some fresh in and update this post to let you know if it sorts it out. cheers for the advice, all the best, si

[Galifrey 1]

i prey thats all it is, but would it be so loud a rattle ????,

 

It is very loud yes, sounds like the engine is shaking itself to pieces. Think diesel.

[chicargo 0]

It is very loud yes, sounds like the engine is shaking itself to pieces. Think diesel.

 

your prob right, but would the rattle only be coming from the one inlet valve/came lobe if it was detonation ??,

[Baz 421]

Could well be as above, or it could just need re-shimming.

[Anthony 1,003]

Definitely not just a cracked exhaust manifold? Very common on 8v's, and that'll make a ticking/rattling sort of sound that sounds like it's coming from the top end and that's worse under load.

[Galifrey 1]

I went for the easiest potential test due to the 8 year old fuel.

 

Just an old rule of thumb, look for the simplest explanation first.

[Baz 421]

I went for the easiest potential test due to the 8 year old fuel.

 

Just an old rule of thumb, look for the simplest explanation first.

 

Yep, good shout. Get some nice fresh fuel in it!

[chicargo 0]

Definitely not just a cracked exhaust manifold? Very common on 8v's, and that'll make a ticking/rattling sort of sound that sounds like it's coming from the top end and that's worse under load.

 

its kind of a heavyish rattley sound, it sounds just like the tappet is flying around wildly from side to side and up and down, but when i had a look at it, it seemed to be a nice smug fit ???

[chicargo 0]

Could well be as above, or it could just need re-shimming.

just hope its not little end bearing

[chicargo 0]

I went for the easiest potential test due to the 8 year old fuel.

 

Just an old rule of thumb, look for the simplest explanation first.

cheers, i'll definatley try that first

[chicargo 0]

Yep, good shout. Get some nice fresh fuel in it!

that would be so cool if thats all it is, fingers crossed, cheers

[chicargo 0]

im loggin off now, but i'll try the fresh petrol tomorrow night and let you all know how it goes. cheers for all the advice, much apprieciated guys. all the best. si

[welshpug 1,657]

my 309 wouldn't idle for toffee on old fuel, had to get 3 gallons through there till it behaved properly too!

[chicargo 0]

UPDATE ::: hi, ive now drained the petrol and filled with fresh (thank god for electric fuel pumps), flushed the engine out with flushing oil, changed the oil/oil filter, and its still making the bl**dy rattling noise, but ive had another listen to the noise and it might be coming from the dizzy (bottom half of dizzy body), ive took the dizzy off and im about to strip it down in the kitchen, im thinking maybe it could be the centrifugal weights loose causing them to smack on the wall of the dizzy ???. the dizzy does make a clanking sound when you spin the shaft in the opposite direction of rotation, and clanks a bit when you spin it in the right direction, if anybodys got any thoughts i be really greatfull. cheers, si

[Galifrey 1]

UPDATE ::: hi, ive now drained the petrol and filled with fresh (thank god for electric fuel pumps), flushed the engine out with flushing oil, changed the oil/oil filter, and its still making the bl**dy rattling noise, but ive had another listen to the noise and it might be coming from the dizzy (bottom half of dizzy body), ive took the dizzy off and im about to strip it down in the kitchen, im thinking maybe it could be the centrifugal weights loose causing them to smack on the wall of the dizzy ???. the dizzy does make a clanking sound when you spin the shaft in the opposite direction of rotation, and clanks a bit when you spin it in the right direction, if anybodys got any thoughts i be really greatfull. cheers, si

 

If the distributor is worn then yes that is a possibility, will need replacing.

[luke1987 5]

Is there no marks on the dizzy wall?

[chicargo 0]

If the distributor is worn then yes that is a possibility, will need replacing.

hi, just hope i can get to the bottom of the problem, its driving me craaaaazzzyyy

[chicargo 0]

Is there no marks on the dizzy wall?

honestly, i truley am hoping i find some marks or somthing obviously wrong when i open it. ive been looking at this post with photos of the internals and it im sure it could be the weights, http://forum.205gtidrivers.com/index.php?s...rifugal+weights, very handy post as it gives you an idea what the dizzy looks like inside, nice one

[welshpug 1,657]

should be easy enough to find a replacement, I only know of one part number for the 1.9 Distibutor on the Jetronic injection.

[chicargo 0]

should be easy enough to find a replacement, I only know of one part number for the 1.9 Distibutor on the Jetronic injection.

probably a lot easier than finding a decent interior, ive been looking for one fairly close to manchester and there like hens teeth.

[chicargo 0]

UPDATE: hi again, i tried stripping the dizzy last night, i got as far as lifting the magnetic coil out but chickened out as the two springs that hold it in looked really difficult to take off and put back on without breaking them, i did notice while it was semi dismantled that the two centrifugal weights had a lot of movement in them (about half an inch), i realize they are supposed to move in and out but this movement was up and down on the none pivot end of the weights if that makes any sense. anyway i put it back together and it dosnt seem to be making the clunking noise when you spin the shaft, it also seems to be spining a lot more freely now, so with a bit of luck it might of accidently fixed it. im going to put it back on and try it sometime today and will update this post to let you know how it goes. take it easy folks. si

[DamirGTI 342]

Id try measuring valve clearances

 

As for the dizzy , yes the bob weights are supposed to move so that's fine , just check that the both springs are attached on the stop pegs and that the nylon peg caps are in good nick (cos if they break/fall apart the spring will slide off and then the ignition timing will be f**..)

 

Damir

[chicargo 0]

Id try measuring valve clearances

 

As for the dizzy , yes the bob weights are supposed to move so that's fine , just check that the both springs are attached on the stop pegs and that the nylon peg caps are in good nick (cos if they break/fall apart the spring will slide off and then the ignition timing will be f**..)

 

Damir

cheers.

i put the dizzy back in and...... it was still bl**dy rattling , i sat there completely pi**ed off at the prospect of having to take the head off, but then i thought i might as well try turning the dizzy while running just to see if it got rid of the rattle, and hey presto no rattle, its completely gone , man what a relief, what i cant understand is that it ran started and ticked over so well with the timming well and truely out ???, the timming is now set at tdc with number 2 cylinder firring, is that right, i had a look in my haynes manual but it wasnt 100% clear, i guess it must be because when its set to it the rattles completely gone. anyway i would just like to thank everbody who took the time to respond to this post, much appreiciated guys, cheers, si