Greetings from a fellow Aston driver located in Switzerlad.

My car is a 2006 V8 vantage 4.3, which I own since 2017. This is my pride and joy:




I must admit that I am quite paranoid with the different noises it makes. Today I payed more attention to a noise which I think it might already present since I bought the car.

The noise you will be looking for in the following videos is an intermittent ticking noise, which seems to come from the front end of the engine in both sides (but I could be wrong on the location).

My car only makes this noise when fully warmed up and only in idle; rev it a bit and the noise seems to disappear (although it could well be that the exhaust noise deafens it).

To me it sounds like timing chain, but any hints are really welcome.


In the second video the noise ir more noticeable towards the end, around 20s onwards.

Oil and all other fluids were renewed in september last year, at the same time a new twin plate clutch was installed too. They have no more than 500km.

The noise is almost identical to the one described in this M3 forum:
https://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=116...

Thank you.

 

I wonder if it's just thermal expansion of the exhaust. Does it continue to tick after you turn the engine off?

 

That was my first guess, but as soon as I stopped the car, it stopped making any noise.

I have a list of possible causes, which I hope I can check next weekend:

• Idler pulley causing the belt to disintegrate and clashing against something
• Sparkplugs not properly tightened or issue with the coils -- This should lead to misfire, and there is none in the diagnosis tool.
• VVT solenoid -- Should also show any sort of error in the diagnosis tool.
• Timing chain tensioners
• Exhaust insulation / metal pieces rattling
• Chattering caused by the new dual plate clutch
• AC compressor clutch
• Alternator

 

My vote is for a sick AC compressor clutch.

 

Only a guess but the biggest clue I got from reading was new twin plate clutch.
Did it do this before that job?
Due to the random frequency and only does it whilst running there is a chance of something loose in the clutch casing?
Good luck.

 

Might be worth using a mechanics stethoscope, very cheap and will help pinpoint noises pretty quickly.

 

Turn the AC on and off and see if that makes a difference .

 

I spent a couple of mornings further investigating the problem.

Checking with the stethoscope I could discard the noise coming from the upper part of the engine. Noise is surely not coming from the timing chain, nor from the cilinder heads or head covers. I have also checked every injector, which also be discarded.

Using the stethoscope in the bottom end of the engine, I could hear the noise both when putting it against the oil pan (slightly muted) and against the torque tube bell (slightly louder, but could just be subjective).

The noise happens both with the clutch pressed and depressed.

These are my suspicions now:
- Flywheel/clutch case clashing against something
- Exhaust leak (as it only happens when the car is fully warmed, and because the exhaust manifold needed to be removed to do the clutch job)
- Exhaust insulation / metal pieces rattling
- Rattling catalytic converter internals (disintegrated)
- Piston slap (hope not)

The noise is present with both the AC on and off.

Unfortunately I don't know 100% sure whether it did it before the clutch job. In case it did it, I would say that it was not that loud.

Thaks! I did that :-)

The noise is present with both the AC on and off.

 

I've had this same noise pop up on my 4.7 and I'm nearly positive it's a bearing in one of the accessories. Either the idler, tensioner, or AC; I suspect one of the former. I'll be pulling the belt and checking each for endplay. This sounds exactly like a bearing that has just enough endplay to hit the outside of the race, should be able to find the culprit by seeing which wobbles loosely.

 

This problem, as you state, could well be related to an issue with the accessories. Actually a problem with the accessory belt and idler pulley is usual in the 4.3
V8 Vantage Pulley issues and now what... - 6SpeedOnline - Porsche Forum and Luxury Car Resource

I found a youtube video with a similar noise (in a completely unrelated car, a diesel BMW), and the owner told me in the comments that his noise was coming from the alternator pulley.


Although an issue with the belt/pulley would not explain why it only happens when the engine is warm.

Please keep me updated with anything you might find. Hopefully together we will be ble to find the root cause.

 

Everything expands as it warms up, tolerances open up which would make the play in the bearing more impactful.

 

Any update to your Vantage V8 engine rattle? My 2015 Vantage GT has developed the exact noise as your videos, and we're stumped on the fix. Any update would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
George

 

In some cars I might have thought cam chain tensioner got loose..it’s a weird one for sure..

 

Unfortunately no updates on this front. After an thorough inspenction and trying to fix every possible culprit, the car still makes the noise, although rarely now.

I have just leart to live with it, I guess.

 

I'll keep you updated. My mechanics a master.