Ticking lifters, S52 Z3M after a few miles on Hwy 1 (CA)

[melville]

Just as stated in the subject line. I was having a bit of fun on the northernmost bit of Hwy 1 running from Leggett to Fort Bragg when I heard some valvetrain noise. When I took it back a notch, no longer seeing the ASC light in corners, the ticking stopped. This is a 2000 Z3M Roadster with 137K miles.

I vaguely recall reading back in the day that E36 M3s used for autocrossing or track days should be slightly overfilled to prevent starvation--would that help here?

[Terry F.]

Oil weight? It was full?

[Mr Bingley]

Oil temps?

[Randy Forbes]

In a word, yes; some competitors would overfill the crankcase by as much as one (1) or two (2!!) quarts to combat lifter ticking. For some owners, simply running a half (1/2) quart over was sufficient. I have to say, it's been quite a while since anyone has brought up the subject; has everyone dialed it back a notch?

Not all S (or M) 52s were subject to do this, and autocrossing my black car__before the then new gray one was pressed into service__never succumbed to the lifters being oil-starved, even though we ran on sticky R-Compound Hoosier tires. In fact, I'd never been witness to it until we went to a more or less private Z-Fest (20-21 cars) at Chateau Elan, and spent the day on the autocross course at Road Atlanta. There was a silver M Coupe that was clattering away afterwards that sat there idling a good 20-30 minutes in an effort to pump them back up again.

[melville]

Thanks all. Oil weight 10-40 Royal Purple. Due for a change soon, down to the last green bar at startup. Temps 210ish per the gauge. And a quick check of the dipstick shows it's a touch low.

It was a bit strange that my Bimmer was ticking like my Beemer or my old VWs but the solution of just slowing down a bit was probably the best move yesterday anyway. Some of the slower corners were covered in redwood duff after last week's storms.

I'll change the oil and report back in the near future. Maybe I'll take 36 to Dinsmore to test it out.

[Iftheshoefits]

Hi. I belong to the Golden Gate Chapter of CCA. We hold an autocross every month with 80+ cars. It's hard to hear yourself think when you walk down the line of M52/54 and S50/52 cars after the first run...! My M52 has a baffled pan. I use Amsoil 10-40W with 1 quart overfill and it still ticks like Big Ben... Ticking stops after a minute or two once I get on the highway, straight line, normal revs.

Nigel

[///Mpmp1025]

Thanks all. Oil weight 10-40 Royal Purple. Due for a change soon, down to the last green bar at startup. Temps 210ish per the gauge. And a quick check of the dipstick shows it's a touch low. It was a bit strange that my Bimmer was ticking like my Beemer or my old VWs but the solution of just slowing down a bit was probably the best move yesterday anyway. Some of the slower corners were covered in redwood duff after last week's storms. I'll change the oil and report back in the near future. Maybe I'll take 36 to Dinsmore to test it out.

I would not use those green oil service lights as a gauge for changing your oil. Change your oil based on mileage accrued since your last change. I've let the lights go without resetting it after an oil change, just to see how long it goes, I believe it was something in the realm of 12k miles before it went to yellow. I usually change synthetic oil every 5k miles and dino oil every 3k miles.

I would first change the oil. You could baffle your pan or run an s54 pan with the s54 dual pickup pump. I run the s54 option and have never had an issue.

db

[jbrannon7]

There was a silver M Coupe that was clattering away afterwards that sat there idling a good 20-30 minutes in an effort to pump them back up again.

If my car is not clattering after a run I know I was not driving hard enough, Been making that noise after most runs for 8 years and at least autocross 800 runs and still gets good oil analysis from Black Stone. Lifter usually get quite after a mile or so on the ride home.

[328 Power 04]

Hi. I belong to the Golden Gate Chapter of CCA. We hold an autocross every month with 80+ cars. It's hard to hear yourself think when you walk down the line of M52/54 and S50/52 cars after the first run...! My M52 has a baffled pan. I use Amsoil 10-40W with 1 quart overfill and it still ticks like Big Ben... Ticking stops after a minute or two once I get on the highway, straight line, normal revs.

Nigel

This has been my experience too. Love pulling in after a run and the seasoned workers laughing and pointing to their ear and "ah yes, the infamous lifter tick".

[melville]

If my car is not clattering after a run I know I was not driving hard enough, Been making that noise after most runs for 8 years and at least autocross 800 runs and still gets good oil analysis from Black Stone. Lifter usually get quite after a mile or so on the ride home.

Thanks for this. My main worry was that ticking was just a brief warning before the mains and rods got starved.

[bionicbelly]

I just rebuilt my engine, and went through and cleaned all the lifters out, and replaced the ones that were soft. Didn't tick after runs for an entire day. Next day, back to the BMW lifter tick. This is 1/2 quart over full, and a baffled pan.