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MG MGF Technical - Tic tic tic tic tic tic

Hi
Had my mgtf nearly a year now and only used it at weekends been kept in the garage all the time hence only 2300 miles on the clock. Anyway my car for work decided to blow the turbo and some joker at the Ford gagarge wanted £2200 to fix the turbo and could then not guarante that the engine would be OK, anyway to cut the story short "got rid" of it.

So been forced to drive the MGTF and what great fun I've been having, even had the top off in this cold spel, blowing the turbo did me favour. Sorry going on a bit here, the question is:-


When I start her up I get this tic tic tic noise from the engine for about the first 3 - 4 miles or warmed up. I'm no petrol head is this cause for concern?
Mad Frank

Good day Mad Frank

Sounds like a noisy tappet which is the source of the noise.
Change the oil & filter with a good quality oil, ie Castrol Magnatec 10W/40 and a filter and this should do the trick.

Mad Tony
Tony Harrison

Hi Frank

Our MGF (1996 MPi) has done this since new, although it normally goes after a couple of minutes - it is the hydraulic tappets, as Tony says, and due mainly to the oil draining out of the head when the engine is switched off, personally it has never worried me but if your car is due a service then, again as Tony says, an oil and filter change may help - however it has never made any difference to our car.
Ted Newman

Frank, if your car has only done 2300 miles then it still requires a bit more bedding in. The oil can drain down from the followers and initially cause a tic tic until they repressurise. Personally I would leave the oil and filter till you have 6k on the clock and make sure you keep the revs up and not labour the engine and change to a semi-synthetic oil.
VVC engined cars tend to suffer more from drain down due to the extra oil in the VVC units and as such suffer more from the inital start up noise.
mike

I remember when my VVC was new the oil had to be changed after the frist 3000 miles (does that apply to the TF too). There was a voucher in the service manual to do this FOC.
Keith

mad Frank

I parked my TF up a fords ar*e. Whoops

It sat in the garage for two weeks while being repaired. When i got the TF back it had a noisey tappet. Took it back to the garage and said this noise wasn't here when i left it with them.

Cut a long story short. My oil level was a little low. Toped up the oil and run arond for a while and the noise had disappeared.

As you mentioned your TF has been sitting there a while the oil must of sunk to the bottom of the engine.

Hope this helps.

Oh left a thread about whistling manifold gasket. any help would be appreciated.

church
church

Does the TF have hydraulic lifters or solid lifters?
Mwhitt

hydraulic
mike

Thanks guys. I cant beleive the ever helpful assistance on this site.
Mad Frank

This thread was discussed between 04/02/2006 and 10/02/2006

MG MGF Technical index

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