ticking time bomb?
 

hey folks...got a new noise annoying the hell outta me...

theres a ticking sound coming from the engine...increases as rpms increase & goes away after about 10 mins of driving...

shes an '03 w/ only 82k miles...too young to die!

thanks all...

Re: ticking time bomb?
 

Check for broken exhaust manifold bolts at the cylinder head.

Re: ticking time bomb?
 

What he said... not very uncommon on these trucks. If its not a leaking manifold then it may be a lifter..... Im betting on the manifold bolt.

Re: ticking time bomb?
 

yeah I tried some gunk you put in the oil to clean the lifter...no go...

so is this manifold thing a big deal?

Re: ticking time bomb?
 

x2 Manifold...

Re: ticking time bomb?
 

My H2 has headers and just got a hole welded but I know they did not get the hole welded right. I am very sure weld job still left a small hole. I hear a tick. Question. How bad is this to run it like this?

Re: ticking time bomb?
 

so how expensive of a job are we talking here? (assuming it IS the bolt)

asking because I told my mechanic over the phone & he gave me an "oh boy..."

Re: ticking time bomb?
 

Hi orlasttoy, if the exhaust bolt is broken it depends which one and if its stuck in their and if you can get at it easy. I have taken broken exhaust bolts out in 1/2 hour or 10 hours and any where in between. A few times i had to remove the head to get at the bolt they were not hummers. It comes down to time by the hour. Sorry to screw up your day.

Re: ticking time bomb?
 

thanks for the reply...I'll update with cost info (if I can afford to keep the internet :()

Re: ticking time bomb?
 

My 2004 had 2 broken manifold bolts at about 47K miles. And one of them required removing the head in order to get to it. There was no hissing noise but they noticed the broken bolt heads while replacing the power steering pump and pitman and tie rods. Luckily it was all covered by the extended warranty I purchased when I bought the truck with 34K on it. They had the truck for a week and it even paid for a rental car.
Since it was warranty I have no idea of the cost to repair.

Re: ticking time bomb?
 

good point? am i causing more potential damage driving it this way? or is it just annoying?

Re: ticking time bomb?
 

If its only making noise when its cold it not that big of a deal. HOWEVER start saving your pennies because its going to get worse over time. More might break off and the leak could become very problematic.

So you can continue to drive it while you save some coin to fix it if you need to. I have a small tick on start up on mine as well. Within 3 minutes its gone. So untill it gets worse it really does not bother me.

Re: ticking time bomb?
 

i had 2 botls broke off my 03 H2 within the first few months of buying it in 2008.

i was still covered by a extended warranty, so they fixed it.. but honestly i wouldnt hesitate at all and do it myslef if i needed to fix broken bolts again.

just have to disconenct the exhaust
unbolt the head
get in there and get the old bolt out
put back together

ya i make it sound alot easier than it prolly is, but your not replacing any gaskets. while your at it, you can replace the bolts to some aftermarket ones that will hold up better.

if your lucky, and you have some of the bolt sticking out, you dont even need to disassemble the head and exhaust.

get some WD40, vice gripes and some muscle.

maybe a torch to heat things up a little to help break the bolt out.

chances are tho, the bolt is broken flush to the head, but never know.

as for how bad it can get...

well, assuming it is just 1 bolt right now..
eventually with the hot cold expansion, it will snap a 2nd, if it hasnt already
then add in vibration with the hot cold expansion.
by the time the 3rd bolt is broken, im sure the sound will annoy the hell out of you, and it may not go away once the gasket heats up. there will be too much of a gap between the head and the header. so you will hear more of a exchaust leak instead of the ticking sound.

worst case, you break all the bolts, and it is only held next to the manifold by the exhaust header. im sure you will notice the burning smell from all the wires cooking before there is actually a fire.. but.... again i would say that is extreme worst case.

i would also say there is a chance of warping the header, and possibly the head too if left long enough. ( i would think this would take a year or 2.. not days or months) but then again, i wouldnt even call myself a backyard mechanic.. i just fix my own stuff.

Re: ticking time bomb?
 

Same thing happened on my 2003 H2.A bolt broke off.Every mechanic I talked to said it wasnt a big deal and that I could still drive the truck as usual.I drove my H2 for another 10000 miles before repairing it.As mentioned the cost depends on if they have to remove the head.If they do then the cost will skyrocket.I was initially told about 1400(per head).Luckily it was just one broken bolt and they didnt need to do that.

Re: ticking time bomb?
 

thanks for the replies.

its annoying the hell outta me..feels like I'm driving an old rustbucket! :)

gonna have it taken care of now...I'll update when I know

Re: ticking time bomb?
 

keep us posted on your find.

Re: ticking time bomb?
 

So, it looks like 3 of the bolts are broken.

Initial estimate $1700 does NOT include however long it will take to get the broken ones out (he's guessing 4-6 hours) And that's assuming others won't break when removing (gonna replace them all)

Worst case scenario: he has to crack the head off to do it right.

She'll be in the shop until this weekend. Let's pray for a speedy recovery!

Re: ticking time bomb?
 

Hi if he can get at them he will not have to remove the head and if none of the other ones bust taking them out. GOOD LUCK I HOPE IT GOES WELL!!!

Re: ticking time bomb?
 

wow.....$1700 is alot of motivation for me to do it myself.

hell.... for that amount, you can buy a whole new exhaust system and install it while you take off the old headers.......its the hardest part, but hell, since you have to take them off anyways..

chances are that he is going to come back saying he will need to take the header off for atleast 1 of the 3 bolts.
im not saying he is over charging you, but seriously, thats alot of cash for something simple.. ya it becomes harder if you have to remove the header, but the hard part is just removing the header and exhause tubes. from there you have full access to the bolt to get vice gripes on.

Re: ticking time bomb?
 

Grand total: $2110. (includes a new battery, spark plugs, & wires)

Luckily, he did NOT have to remove the headers.

I don't have the detailed bill in front of me...will post when I get home.

At least she's back on the road!