# top of motor is extremely loud.. and loss of power...



## xnxbladexnx (Aug 22, 2005)

ok... i have a 1989 nissan 240sx sohc... my engine is makeing a horrible noise.... it sounds like its comeing from the top end of te motor.. but i have taken the vavle cover off and checked for any thing worng ididnt find anythig..... yesterday it got extremely loud... and my power is gone.. when i gun it i hear the engine wind up.... but i dont go... it still drives.. butit has barely any power.... also my emergeny brake light is now staying on as well as my oil light... i checked the oil.. it has enough.. and i did a oil change about 500 miles ago.. idk what the problem is??? head gasket??? i hope not.. i hate those damn things. any help would be greatly appreciated..


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## ittamaticstatic (Nov 5, 2003)

when you took off the cover did you check the clearences (with trim tabs)on the cam lobes to the rockers? If a cam lobe looses it's hardened surface it can grind itself to nothing in like 20 miles. Then again the engine would shake also if that happened.

I would do a compression test, and go from there.

What kind of horrible sound?


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## rogoman (Dec 16, 2004)

Probably what's happened is the oil pump is so worn out that it's not producing enough oil pressure which has caused one or more rod/main bearings to wipe out which is making the noise. Also since there may be no oil pressure, the timing chain tensioner stopped working and the chain may have skipped a tooth or more.


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## tyrodtom (Jul 23, 2005)

I think your problem sounds the same as mine. If your oil pump fails you lose power because without oil pressure the clearance on your rocker arms open up and your valves barely open,so that explains the loss of power, also you will have a lot of noise topside because there is so much space between the cam and the rocker arms. In my case the oil pump is only a few months old, so it's not worn out, but the shaft that drives it off the crank may have broke close to the oil pump, the other end of that shaft turns your distributor. Another possibility is the 2 o-rings in the timing cover, the oil goes thru them, but no one here seems to know what the oil path is in a KA24E, I asked the question several days ago, no answers yet. I'm taking my oil pump off this weekend and get the sad news probably.


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## xnxbladexnx (Aug 22, 2005)

asfor the noise.. it really hard for me to explain..it like a really fast tapping noise.. and in the background i can hear something that sounds like its a fluid.. oil..... squirting or something idk... but i unfortunatley have to drive it like this... i have to take it so a shop......i hope its not the oil pump.. ive never done anything like that.... does anyone ko how much this wlll cost??? and i will most likely have to replace some of my top end right?


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## tyrodtom (Jul 23, 2005)

xnxbladexnx said:


> asfor the noise.. it really hard for me to explain..it like a really fast tapping noise.. and in the background i can hear something that sounds like its a fluid.. oil..... squirting or something idk... but i unfortunatley have to drive it like this... i have to take it so a shop......i hope its not the oil pump.. ive never done anything like that.... does anyone ko how much this wlll cost??? and i will most likely have to replace some of my top end right?


If your oil pump has gone away bad enough for your oil light to come on your engine is probably already ruined, the more you drive it with no oil pressure the more likely it's going to be beyound a simple repair. I do all my own work, I have no idea what someone else would charge, probably better to find a good used engine and get somebody to put it in, it would cost less.


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## ittamaticstatic (Nov 5, 2003)

^yeah normally that would be true but on the ka there is timing c. guides galore. i guess if the pump was totally shot then yeah. 

If the shaft broke the engine would turn over nasty or not at all. 

Get a long screwdriver and really find if it a lower engine sound or mid engine sound

brake light could be STG or fluid related easily

Off the top of my head i cant think of any symptoms of knowing before an oil pump kicks the bucket, but for sure if oils too low or pressure then rods or mains are for sure toast.


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## tyrodtom (Jul 23, 2005)

I took my oil pump off this week end, the shaft broke right at the pump, thats why it still runs. It didn't jump time even though there is slack in the chain. I took the oil filter off and cut it apart, some bearing metal in it, but i've seen worse. The cam lobes aren't wiped. I'm surprised at how little damage I see, this happened when the engine was at full thottle, and I ran it that way for 8-10 laps after I saw the oil light. The engine still runs. I use Mobil 1 and Ziex oil addifive. I'm just going to overhaul it and run it next year.


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## subwooferfreak (Jan 24, 2006)

im haveing the same horrrible ticking sound coming from my 89 240 but im not having any loss of power it runs good except that noise any ideas what that could be?? could it be a rocker? or worse ?


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## SmashThat (Nov 15, 2005)

this same thing happened to me and it was the failed timing tensioner which made the chain jump timing.


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## subwooferfreak (Jan 24, 2006)

think that could be it since im not having power loss just an incredibley loud ticking noise


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## Lost_DriFter (Jan 29, 2006)

i had a similar problem with the loud noise n the oil light comin on and the loss of power but my problem was my timing chain when i took the from cover off i found there was no loose side guide it was completely gone and the tensioner side was worn down to **** i only found 2 small chunks of what use to be the loose guide so i pretty much replaced everything i dunno how it runs yet cause im still in the middle of my swap from auto to manual hopefully everything works right when its done but if ur chain is loose better check those guides it can cause some damage


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## subwooferfreak (Jan 24, 2006)

[i can look but if theres no loss of power could the problem be elsewhere or like i said could it just be a rocker arm jarred losse it sounds like its coming from the top side of the head by the injectors


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## tyrodtom (Jul 23, 2005)

your car won't necessarily jump time when the tensoner fails, but if the tensioner fails and releases the oil pressure going to the top of the engine the valves won't open all the way. You won't notice the lack of power until you get on it really hard and in the higher rpms. Off idle and to about 2000rpm the engine will actually run better, noisy as hell but kind of torquey until it finally jumps time.


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## subwooferfreak (Jan 24, 2006)

hey guys i found my prob a bolt broke off on the rail that holds the rockers on 3 were really loose ordered all new botls should be an easy fix she will purr again soon


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