Gti6 Head Rattle - Spray Bars?

[NNN 1]

Hi everyone, I was hearing a very strange but subtle rattle or vibration inside my gti6 engine. The sound is like a metal part vibrating... around the top of the engine.

I removed the cam covers to see if the spray bars had come loose and I found that they are only attached or pressure fit at one location to the left of the cams. But the rest of the bars are just sitting there... not really hold in any way. I checked other spare gti6 spray bars and they are identical.

 

Am I missing something?

[Paul_13 212 1 Cars]

My mate had a rattle coming from the head and it was the vacuum pump bearing that had died.

 

Might be a loose coil cover bolt?

[welshpug 1,626]

standard cams? fresh conversion? checked the spark plugs?

[cheesegrater 43 1 Cars]

What did you take off to get to the spray bars :-P also if the seal isn't present of the cover then you won't be able to put the cover on. It seems to just apply light pressure on top of the spray bars once done up.

[allanallen 528 2 Cars]

I've found the rear head heat shield to rattle/vibrate if they come loose aswell.

[NNN 1]

Hi, thanks for the input. Plugs and cover bolts are pretty tight so that´s not it. I get the point of the cover being what pushes the bars downwards... I hadn´t thought about it tbh... but I still think the rattle is coming from there.

 

Will check tomorrow without the bars and if that doesnt make any difference I will continue looking at the vac pump.

 

I might have forgotten to say the engine has stand still for a few years... the cams look as new though and new oil and belts have been fitted... not that it makes any difference... but...

Edited May 14, 2012 by NNN

[chipstick 382 1 Cars]

Did you crank the oil around before starting it?

 

If it has been standing that long then the lifters may have old oil inside them or be a bit sticky?

 

The fact it's described as a rattle over a tick or tap means it's probably something else though.

[welshpug 1,626]

makes quite a difference its been standing a few years, needs a good drive to fill the tappets up sometimes.

[NNN 1]

makes quite a difference its been standing a few years, needs a good drive to fill the tappets up sometimes.

 

Yes I know... the car runs perfectly. Haven´t been able to go around much since the right hand driveshaft is basically dead... but the car runs, starts and sounds great if not for that rattle. And it doesnt sound as empty lifters... not only would I realize but also it´s like a vibration... not linearly proportional to engine speed... nothing like a slap...

[NNN 1]

I removed the spray bars today and the rattle continues... it´s very strange...

[Paul_13 212 1 Cars]

Is it a tapping that increases with revs?

[NNN 1]

No... its a vibration or "scrape" that I can hear after revving the engine when it´s going back to idle... maybe I just hear it at that time because the intake and exhaust are quiet... but it definitively isn´t there at idle... and it´s not proportional to the revs... it´s driving me crazy tbh...

[dave richards 26 1 Cars]

sounds like a heat shield rattling to me probably the one on the cat

[voldo 1]

Just wondering - when you removed the oil spray bars, did you plug the hole they push in to? Curious to know if you loose oil pressure to the head removing them without plugging the gallery.