Ok so I crunk my car up as usual on Friday Morning to go to work. Left my garage and was on my way. About halfway to work I began hearing a "clicking" sort of shutter coming from the front end of my car. I began shifting things around in my console and everywhere else thinking maybe a pen was clicking or hitting some air freshener or something. Well the more I drove...the louder it got and the faster it "clicked" as I drove. When I left work that evening the noise wasn't there. But once again about halfway home it began again. Saturday morning I crunk the car up again and paid closer attention, and this time it was VERY loud. IT isn't a "clunk" like motor shaking or anything instead like a click...this time it was doing it immediately when the car was crunk and idling. My husband opened the hood, heard it too, and off we went down our driveway to see the outcome. The noise didn't subside this time, yet was louder. We drove down the highway and the noise seems to start at certain speeds. For example when I'm going from 15-20mph on take off it seems to be very noticeable. Then between 40-50 it is there again but not as loud...then once I hit 60 and cruise it seems to go away. We drove the car on to town since there was no noticeable difference in the trans shift..or driving..or anything of that sort. We sat down for lunch, came back, crunk the car and to our amazement... the sound was completely gone... even on our entire 15mile drive back home. Well today is Sunday and not to my surprise.. the sound is back. IT clicked all the way from my house to my mothers for Sunday dinner. It doesn't seem to click when Im sitting still..instead mainly on accerleration. I was planning to get my oil changed tomorrow anyways, and was previously told on my last appointment that both my valve cover gaskets were slowly leaking. They said it would be fine until I brought it back in for my next Synthetic oil change..which I am under my mileage for my change. A few months back I crunk the car and the motor was TAPPING like it was fixing to blow.. this was literally 2-3 after I had my oil changed. My husband added oil to the car and boom, immediately went away. IVe never heard this noise though. I have an 04 g35 sedan..Auto, with about 165k miles. I keep it serviced on the DOT, and planned to have the leaking gasket/valve thingys replaced this time...Had a new radiator put in on my last visit as well...

Has anyone heard or dealt with this before. I don't want to get myself all worked up thinking Im going to have to replace a tranny or anything, when it could simply be low oil..or maybe an exhaust leak or something. My husband did get on the ground and listen to my exhaust and he said it sounded like there was a slight skip he heard.

Someone HELP. I can do simple repairs on my car myself.. but when it comes to the engine and tranny I'm clueless and my husband is in the middle of harvesting blueberries and literally barely has time to even listen to it, let alone tear it apart to work on it.

My girl will be going in the shop first thing in the morning. Just want to have a little insight to what I could possibly be dealing with... the shop knows I pay upfront and they always seem to "suggest" getting a lot of things replaced when they seem to be fine. Always pushing a tranny flush and other sorts of services everytime I take the car alone, but never when my husband is with me. Had the trans fluids flushed and replaced about 30k miles ago.

Let me know what you got. I know there are a lot of great infiniti enthusiast's here, and I hate when my "love of a g" is sick!

Thanks again!

-Traci

 

Hi Traci

i had an 06 RSX-s previously and the injectors were really loud and made the ticking noise you describe. also i got that noise when it needed the valves adjusted. it could also be a bracket that has come loose and is tapping around somewhere. hard to say with out seeing it. are you throwing any codes? Are you turbo'ed or supercharged?

Eric

 

No turbo or Supercharge. I let the car site for 12 hours, checked the oil, WASNT EVEN TOUCHING THE STICK. Apparently my "Slow" leak the mechanics keep describing isn't slow at all. I park on grass alot so it is hard to notice an oil stain. I added (1) quart of Synthetic Mobil 1 and BAM not a sound drove just as pretty as you have ever heard. Left it at the shop today and told them I wasn't coming back to get it until both valve cover gaskets were replaced, and oil was changed out.

This is the 2nd time I have had an oil change and ran dry WAY before I was due for my next change. sound Like I may need to find a new mechanic who understands how substantial misdiagnosing a "slow leak" and a drain your oil bone dry leak...

Will keep you posted and thank you for responding!

 

Turns out I was just low oil. Ended up having a "gasket set" replaced or something, as well as a valve cover on the driver side replaced. This along with a full synthetic oil change and a rotation and balance was $700. Well here is the GOOD part, I crank the car up to leave after having it in the shop for 5 days, as soon as I crank it the RPM gage starts going crazy, check engine light is on, and white smoke is BOILING out of my hood. I take it back to the lobby, they come look at it, reset my service engine light and tell me my "rough shaking the entire car" idle will go away once I get to full speed and that is just oil burning off my motor. Well I go down the road, walk in a store to come back out and white smoke is now boiling out of my hood even worse, my car sounds like it is about to shut off or blow up one, and it smells like plastic burning. I called the shop AGAIN, only to be told well maybe you shouldnt drive it out of town, and let us look at it tomorrow. I explained to them that i LIVE 45 miles out of town. I left the car at my moms and they are coming to get it right now. Should I be respondible for any more repairs? The car was in PERFECT driving condition when I took it to them initially..the oil was just low and had been leaking from my valve cover, causing the ticking, but there was NEVER a sputter, or a stall, or RPM problems. I literally stopped at a red light and my car lunged forward for no reason and then sounded like it was going to shut completly off it was stalling out so bad (on an auto trans)...I feel like the mechanic has damaged my car, or either not put something back on right...

Any comments? The car is WORSE than it was before I even took it to the shop,.

 

No of course not. Document everything and record future conversations.

 

Thanks I sure hope not. I am sick thinking I will be required to pay more than I already have when all I wanted was the small problem I was having address. Now im carless AGAIN, working 45 miles out of town, and one more step backwards instead of ahead. Called the shop at 8 to get my car towed back to the shop, they were just hooking to it at my moms at 11:45...

I can't contain my enthusiasm for my once adored mechanic shop...

 

Well I can say mechanic did make it right. The owner returned my car to my house personally and explained to me the mechanic who worked on my car had a gasket slip when he was putting the new valve cover on and he just finished up instead of correcting it. Thank god I didn't drive home and blow the motor. The car is running fabulous now and the owner continuously apologized. I explained to him I understand mistakes Happen, but the fact that I initially brought the car back and called THREE times only to be blown off like I was some fool who didn't know a thing about cars when something was obviously terribly wrong. Little slip could have cost them a new car! Still really upset that the mechanic knowingly didn't repair the car correctly and hoped I would think the car was just "burning off spilled oil" for obviously forever until it blew!