Chatter under load, between 2k and 3500 rpm

[92 mtechnic cabrio]

I've tagged every heat sheild and braket connected to the exhaust with a hammer and not so much as a rattle...

doesn't have to be a heat shield

exhaust gas exiting somewhere besides the tail pipe (a leak) would make a sound similar to metal on metal.

my friend's miata has an exhaust leak on the pipe between the cat and the headers and it sounds a lot of valve tick.

[shiftbmw]

Sounds to me like a bad CV-joint if it's isolated to one side of the car. Drum rolling sound would lead me to center support bearing, but you should be able to feel the driveshaft thumping around.

Would a CV-joint only be apparent at certain rpm ranges or would it be constant? Also, would the noise diminish with heat?

I wish I had a better way to describe what it sounded like...rain hitting a tin roof?

[Koony]

Sounds to me like a bad CV-joint if it's isolated to one side of the car. Drum rolling sound would lead me to center support bearing, but you should be able to feel the driveshaft thumping around.

[shiftbmw]

Might be exhaust related if it's only under load.

Might be a leak somewhere, or might be the cat.

I've tagged every heat sheild and braket connected to the exhaust with a hammer and not so much as a rattle...

[92 mtechnic cabrio]

Might be exhaust related if it's only under load.

Might be a leak somewhere, or might be the cat.

[shiftbmw]

Ever think it may have something to do with the clutch? (Throwout bearing or w/e)?

I have thought that, but my symptoms don't seem to point towards any sort of tranny problem. New fluid in the tranny did nothing to lessen the noise, and to my knowledge, there are no bearings that would act up while in gear between certain rpm's...

[shiftbmw]

is it a ticking? if so could be your valves out of adjustment. If it is more of a grindy grindy, I would check the entire drivetrain.

It's not the valves, the sound doesn't exist unless I'm in gear(you'd hear valves out of gear).

It's a chatter, not a grind. Imagine taking 2 coat hangers and drumrolling on a piece of sheetmetal...

[porsche gt1]

is it a ticking? if so could be your valves out of adjustment. If it is more of a grindy grindy, I would check the entire drivetrain.

[b*saint]

Ever think it may have something to do with the clutch? (Throwout bearing or w/e)?

[shiftbmw]

does it happen in every gear?

It happens in every gear, but it's minimal(95% of the time it's completely inaudible) in 1st. It's audible 100% of the time in all other gears.


Correct me if I'm wrong, but a timing chain chatter will reveal itself most when the chain itself is accelerating the hardest because the tensioner "can't keep up." By this logic, if it was chain chatter, I should be able to induce it most easily while reving in neutral because that is when the chain will be accelerating hardest, right?

[shiftbmw]

what does it sound like?
ticking, metal to metal,

It is a metal on metal sound...its almost reminiscent of timing chain chatter.

[browntown]

does it happen in every gear?

[NC325iC]

what does it sound like?
ticking, metal to metal,

[shiftbmw]

It's definately not the guibo. It is a distinctly metal on metal sound.

To clarify, it's not a vibration I can feel...I can only hear it.

What's the best way to check the center support bearing?

[DaN]

Could be driveshaft center support bearing, the rubber centering bushing in the driveshaft at the flex disc, or the flexdisc itself.