bubbling/pigeon noise when idling, soft rattling between 1500-1900rpm

[migoreng]

i've got a bubbling/pigeon noise that seems to be coming from somewhere in the direction of the valve cover. it can only be heard inside the car and not when looking at the engine bay.
it happens when idling and only started recently. before it did happen every 2 weeks or so. now it's happening more often. it was thinking moisture in the belts but when i got to work it was still happening so the engine is fully warm.

the bubbling noise stops as soon as i use something electrical like pressing the windows/sunroof buttons or if i give a tiny bit of throttle...my car idles at 700-800rpm normally..if i rev it to 900-1000rpm the bubbling noise will stop

also when i take off and the revs gets to 1500-2900 i can hear a soft rattling noise somewhere in the engine bay as well...anything out of that rev range and the engine sounds normal.

anyone seen this prob before?

car is approaching 179,000km and i'm gonna take it for major service soon... ><

so basically bubbling noise at idle...
normal engine noise from ~800rpm-1500rpm
then soft rattling from 1500rpm to 1900rpm then normal engine noise from there..

[vinnY]

maybe your cat or resonator's collapsed
i know when mine did(resonator anyway) it would only rattle between 1300-1600rpm then normal from there on

[migoreng]

collapsed as in??
how do you fix it?
hmm
also a member on PA said he has the same bubbling noise as me, but he changed his tbelt and water pump already...
what could the bubbling/pigeon noise be then?

cheers for you help.

[vinnY]

when they collapse, they break internally
so assuming you have a stock cat, the ceramic stuff inside has broken or burnt to hell from age
if your resonator has collapsed, the ceramic stuff inside that has shattered and is rattling
only 'fix' there available is to replace it

[twing]

so basically bubbling noise at idle...
normal engine noise from ~800rpm-1500rpm
then soft rattling from 1500rpm to 1900rpm then normal engine noise from there..

I used to get soft rattling around 1500 - 1900, especially under load or steep hill. After I get the valve clearance adjusted, it's gone. When the last time you did yours? It should be every 20000 km.

[aaronng]

Check your accessory belt. You can diagnose it by adding a little bit of grease onto the belt. If the pigeon sound goes away, then it is time to consider replacing the belt.

[vinnY]

or if they were recently changed, check the tension and/or re-tension them

[migoreng]

it seems if i push the car a little then the sound will eventually stop?

when i got home last night it seemed the bubbling stopped.
when i reved the engine between 1500rpm and 1900rpm i don't think i heard the rattling kind of noise like i did in the morning.

the same things happened again while driving to work today...when i was 5-10mins from work i pushed the car a little and when i got to work the engine sounded fine when i reved it.

:S
i will be getting it checked out tomorrow anyway...not gonna do a full major service yet. i'm just gonna do whatever i need for now like changing MTF, fix oil pan leak, valve/tappet adjustments.
will get cat, exhaust and all that checked out as well in case something is falling apart ><

i'll see how the car goes for a few days...i already changed the coolant 3000km ago so if the problem still continues in a weeks time then i guess it's gonna be timingbelt/pump change time...and hope that fixes the problems for good :D

[migoreng]

also.
what's the worse that can happen?
i'm not sure about the history of my tbelt...
it was replaced 100,000km ago but could it have been replaced a few years ago? i dunno.
what's the chances of my water pump dying?

tbelt change is recommended every 100k...is there a masssive risk if you take it to 110,000km??
lol

[02gzm]

I had a strange reverberation/burbling noise recently. Turned out i had a hole in my exhausts flex-join. It could be a few things that by chance are happening at the same time. Ive had it happen. But yea hopefully during the service they're picked up

[migoreng]

sigh..
noise was happening a little this morning...arrived at doctors...parked car...started car 15-20mins later, went to mechanic close by, noise didn't happen...

=_=

will be dropping car off on weekends to get basic things done

i was also told to spray wd40 on the belts when the noise happens..i will have to try that sometime.
what does that prove anyway?

[twing]

also.
what's the worse that can happen?
i'm not sure about the history of my tbelt...
it was replaced 100,000km ago but could it have been replaced a few years ago? i dunno.
what's the chances of my water pump dying?

tbelt change is recommended every 100k...is there a masssive risk if you take it to 110,000km??
lol

If timing belt breaks, the piston will hit the valve.. huge engine damage.
tbelt change is recommended every 100k or every 5 years. So if you own the car 5 years, it is safer to replace it since you don't know when it was done last time.



i was also told to spray wd40 on the belts when the noise happens..i will have to try that sometime.
what does that prove anyway?
Better to follow what aaronng said, use grease. I don't think WD40 is rubber friendly. Or just soap water. The point is to lubricate/clean the rubber so that the belt can pull the pulley.

[aaronng]

i was also told to spray wd40 on the belts when the noise happens..i will have to try that sometime.
what does that prove anyway?

I was just about to post what twing said. Once you get WD40 on the belt, you SHOULD change it because the rubber will degrade.
Using grease, if it stops the pigeon sound, that means the belt is worn or the tensioner is loose. That is a diagnostic step.

[vinnY]

yep new belts are <$15 each
takes about 30 minutes of your time, replace them if you haven't done so recently :)