Weird ticking noise?

[4bangerwrangler]

Hopefully this is the right subforum to post in haha. My Jeep (03 wrangler) is making a weird ticking ish noise. It's only when I give it gas and kinda dies out once I go over 3500 rpm. Sorry video is a little short, and the road noise makes it difficult to hear, but any ideas?

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[UPJOHN]

Could be an exhaust leak.

 

[Chris]

First things I would check would be an exhaust leak or a crack in the header. That could very well be what the sound is.

 

[Chris]

BTW, note that the crack could be very tiny, so leave the vehicle on and look around while it's running. Maybe even have someone rev it up while you're looking.

 

[billiebob]

in the old Jeeps that would be a timing advance issue.
too much advance under low rpm load causing pre ignition.
Not sure if that is even possible in a computerized EFI engine today.

 

[4bangerwrangler]

My boyfriend also thought it was an exhaust leak. It doesn't make the noise when I have it in neutral and rev it though


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[Chris]

I would check out the exhaust leak as a possible culprit!

 

[Zhillslady]

Mine was making same noise. Mechanic fixed an exhaust leak and went away

 

[Neskie Crawler]

You guys are without a doubt the experts. But is a belt issue ruled out?

 

[4bangerwrangler]

You guys are without a doubt the experts. But is a belt issue ruled out?

Yea, we thought about that too. I don't know what a lose belt or old belt would do/sound like though


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[4bangerwrangler]

So guys, would an exhaust leak make my Jeep lose power in any way? Hills seem to be getting difficult, especially in the cold, and it feels like I can get my rpms up as fast as before


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[Stinger]

Losing power at increasing rpm is also a sign of restricted exhaust system, as in something is plugging it up. On the news jeep 4.0 the precats are notorious for this.

 

[4bangerwrangler]

Losing power at increasing rpm is also a sign of restricted exhaust system, as in something is plugging it up. On the news jeep 4.0 the precats are notorious for this.

Would that also cause the noise then?


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[Chris]

So guys, would an exhaust leak make my Jeep lose power in any way? Hills seem to be getting difficult, especially in the cold, and it feels like I can get my rpms up as fast as before


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Are you getting any check engine lights at all? Stinger is right, the pre-cats could be an issue since they are notorious for this. However, I'd wait to see if you get any check engine lights as that could definitely help to narrow it down.

 

[4bangerwrangler]

Are you getting any check engine lights at all? Stinger is right, the pre-cats could be an issue since they are notorious for this. However, I'd wait to see if you get any check engine lights as that could definitely help to narrow it down.

The light was on at the beginning of January, but that was for an O2 sensor going bad. My light hasn't been on since it's been making this noise


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[Chris]

The light was on at the beginning of January, but that was for an O2 sensor going bad. My light hasn't been on since it's been making this noise


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Ahhh, but one of the reasons the O2 sensor could be going bad is because of failed / failing catalytic convertors. The cats and O2 sensors are synergistic, so I could very well see that if one was going bad, the other could potentially be on the way out.

 

[4bangerwrangler]

Ahhh, but one of the reasons the O2 sensor could be going bad is because of failed / failing catalytic convertors. The cats and O2 sensors are synergistic, so I could very well see that if one was going bad, the other could potentially be on the way out.

Yea, I can't remember from the scan whether the cat was on their or not. I figured that was going. Luckily, my township doesn't require emissions [emoji108] But would a bad cat be making this sound? I figured my Jeep would be louder, but it would sound like a hole in my exhaust or something


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[Chris]

It's really hard to hear it from your video, but I don't think that a bad cat would make a sound like this (unless of course there is a hole in it). Have you checked for any exhaust leaks and gotten under the vehicle while it's running? That's what I would do, and then have someone rev the engine while you're under it to listen (and maybe even feel) where the leak is coming from.

My bet is still on the exhaust leak, which could also potentially be a bad cat as well. Lastly, I would obviously check the oil level just to make sure!

 

[4bangerwrangler]

It's really hard to hear it from your video, but I don't think that a bad cat would make a sound like this (unless of course there is a hole in it). Have you checked for any exhaust leaks and gotten under the vehicle while it's running? That's what I would do, and then have someone rev the engine while you're under it to listen (and maybe even feel) where the leak is coming from.

My bet is still on the exhaust leak, which could also potentially be a bad cat as well. Lastly, I would obviously check the oil level just to make sure!

I haven't gotten under it to listen yet since the snow and I don't have a garage here at school. I have checked the oil, and it was fine [emoji108]


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