BigDaddyZ28

The 'ticking' noise is directly proportional to the amount of HP that your LS-1 has...

The other engines that you listed do not make as much power as the LS-1 does and therefore they do not 'tick' as much.

If you listen very carefully and count the number of 'ticks' that your car makes before it quiets down, You can then divide by 2 to get your peak HP.
(works the same way as cricket chirps measuring the temperature)

I thought EVERYBODY knew this stuff by now...

brandons02

really I'll have to try that, thanks

02SS#406

iTrader: (1)

I now run 0/30 German Castrol Syntec, with a large Wix filter. 6 quarts, no tick, no slap, and no consumption up to 5k miles (when I change it). I just turned 50k miles.

Jack M

How can number of ticks be directly proportional to the power of a LS1 when you've not established a constant - like engine speed?

Please complete your unusual formula so we all can start counting ticks instead of bearing the expense of having our LS1 cars dynoed.

BigDaddyZ28

I usually take my count when the engine is cold and at normal idle speed. (while car is warming up @ 800rpm) My ticking usually goes away once the car has reached operating temp and once that happens this method of testing/measuring will not work without allowing the car to completely cool down first.

A really big cam is going to affect the overall number of ticks and the way that the ticking sounds so I suggest anyone running a large cam add about 25% to the total number of ticks before dividing the final sum by 2 to get your overall HP.

Special note: While having unusually low oil will sometimes cause our cars to tick (or 'knock') more in most cases, Having 'low oil' is NOT going to give you an increase in power and I do not suggest letting your oil level get low just for the purpose of gaining more 'ticks' during this test. (That would be cheating and the results will NOT be accurate) Make sure your oil level is correct before you start counting and be advised that running oil 'additives' will affect your results...

I have in the past cut the bottom off of an empty beer can to sort of use as a makeshift stethoscope to help me count but I HIGHLY suggest that if anyone does this that they should try to grind down any sharp edges first. I darn near sliced my ear off last time when I lost my balance a little and the edge of the 32oz got me...

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

That's funny as hell.

As for the additives mentioned above (fuel system cleaners), I'd recommend trying Red Line Fuel System Cleaner. You can get it online or at Pep Boys. It can be used in concentrated doseage for rapid cleanup, then in small doses with every fill-up to maintain a clean fuel system and upper cylinder area.

I use 1oz for every 5-6 gallons of fuel (per Red Line specs) in my Camaro because the car sits a lot, and the product also protects the fuel system from rust/corrosion due to mositure build-up from lack of constant driving.

Stuff works great. In my other cars, I use a full bottle about every 10-15K miles as regular maintenance.

BigDaddyZ28

I was mostly talking about the 'oil' additives that people sometimes use and how they can sometimes 'quiet' valvetrain noises. (like the Lucas stuff)

I do use the Lucas stuff in my 260k DSM to help quiet the noisy lifters but keep in mind that the engine in that car has a bunch of miles on it and IF the additives do cause something to take a dump, I will still feel like I got my $$$ worth out of the engine.

My Camaro does have the cold start 'tick' but it only has 20k on the engine and until I get much higher mileage on it I will just stick to the manufacturer's recommendations and stay away from oil additives. I dont really figure I need them when running synthetic oil anyway... (and they will also mess up my counting if they quiet things down )

As far as fuel system cleaners go, It worries the heck out of me that using one of them may knock some crud loose and that the crud might make its way to the injector filter baskets and get caught there (reducing overall injector flow). I wouldn't be so concerned about using the stuff except that our fuel filters are way back there towards the back of the car instead of up close to the injectors. That is a lot of fuel line to go through after the filter and the filter basket is the last line of defense. Im just not really sure how safe it is to run the cleaners with the way that our cars are plumbed.

The DSM's have the fuel filter less than a foot or 2 from the injectors. I dont feel so bad dumping the fuel cleaners in them because if anything does get knocked loose in the fuel lines, The filter is darn near at the end of the line to catch it before it cloggs my injectors. I recently sent some 175k old DSM injectors off to be cleaned and rebuilt. The company that did the service sent the old/replaced injector parts back and I got to look at the filter baskets up close. They were NASTY with rusty looking crud on them FWIW .

I'm just concerned about there being so much fuel line between our Camaro fuel filters and the fuel rail/injectors. That is an awful lot of line and I can't help but wonder where the trash will get caught at.

My car has 'ticked' since NEW with less than 50 miles on it... It now has 20k and I have noticed NO problems at all because of it. It usually goes away as soon as the car warms up. Crickets 'chirp' to tell the temperature. My LS-1 'ticks' to tell me that it has POWER! (or at least it make me feel better to think so)

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

I wouldn't worry too much about clogging the injectors with a cleaner. A good fuel system cleaner will dissolve any crud, not just move it around. It shouldn't clog anything at all. I've been using Red Line in my Camaro for years now without an issue. Regular use of the product also insures that no large amount of crud should ever build up anyway.

FWIW, my Bonneville and Monte Carlo also have the fuel filters all the way at the back of the car. I have not nad any clogging issues with them either.

After 60K miles, my Bonneville actually still gets better gas mileage than GM rated it for, so I assume that using the cleaner has only helped.

TURBHOE

iTrader: (4)

i agree the ls1 tick is just the sound of hp in the morning.

BigDaddyZ28

A wonderful sound... Last time I counted, I was up real close to @350HP at the wheels.


Thanks a buch for the tips and advice RPM WS6... I appreciate guys like you that help us all out.

Smearin

I dont have any ticks.... Maybe you guys talking about it... started an effect..... Now guys are gonna be looking for anything that sounds like a tick...

BigDaddyZ28

If you want to go all out, you can get a bigger cam as well to 'enhance' the sounds.
When my buddy put the cam in his LS-1, It was like a friggin symphony...
(The following loss of rubber on his rear tires was direct evidence of the gain)

" A really big cam is going to affect the overall number of ticks and the way that the ticking sounds so I suggest anyone running a large cam add about 25% to the total number of ticks before dividing the final sum by 2 to get your overall HP. "

I studied up on this stuff and I KNOW...

TURBHOE

iTrader: (4)

so when does everybodies piston slap start? mine doesn't start until the eng runs for about 20-30 seconds then it start in until warm up. at about 160* it stops.

Jack M

4.8T,

My tick is about like yours: I start hearing it 30 seconds after a cold start, then it goes away when the temp gets up around 160 -180 degrees.

It may actually be ticking during the first 30 seconds, but the initial 900 RPM idle speed noise in Park could be drowning it out. When idle RPM drops down to 600-700, I put it in gear and start out, and hear the tick for the next mile or so at 20 mph neighborhood driving.

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

Glad to be of service.

lastofthebreedWS6

Im active duty army, and have been gone so damn much since i bought my WS6 i have had very little time to educate myself, hence why I have just recently spent any amount of time on this site. Anyhow, I had a tick since the day I bought my WS6, brand new, 2002, with 5 miles on the ODO. Being brand new, I thought, must be normal. A couplee wonderful military cross country moves later, im in Oregon, on my way to Ft. Lewis, WA and I get an SES Light. Still under warranty, take it to the local dealership after I get settled in my new home, They say Bad O2 sensor, and left bank cat needs to be replaced (16K miles, thats strange?) so I mention the noise and ask them to check it out, 2 months and a brand new LS1 later, the tick is gone, but now with 20K miles on the clock (4k on the new engine) I still get odd codes when driving it hard, they go away, and come back. WTF? Also, firing it up in the morning and driving off, unless i let it warm up, and I mean damn near to op. temp., the RPM's drop to about 300-500 and acts like its going to die, it gets warm, everything is fine. Any advice? While im at it, the replacement engine I got, has the "use Mobil-1 5W30" cap on the oil fill port, my original engine did not, I was once told this may be an indication I have an LS6? Doubt it, but that would be nice. Sorry for the rambling, but this is the first opportunity Ive had to unload all this info. Please advise.

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

The cat failing early isn't unheard of. Perhaps the O2 sensor had been giving poor readings for a while before getting bad enough to throw a code, hence allowing the A/F to run overly rich for an extended time putting the cat at greater risk of failure.

As for your other DTCs (codes) that pop up randomly after hard driving, what are the codes for? Can't be of much help without knowing what the PCM is saying.

And the idle condition, that could be connected to the intermittent SES light that you're getting. MANY things on these OBDII cars can cause idle issues, from electronic/sensor issues to vacuum leaks. Again, if you give us the codes perhaps we can help further.

As for the oil fil cap, honestly I don't know anything about that.

brandons02

how bout this one,got a 97 silverado/454, just put a brand new engine in and for some reason it has a slight miss, any thing i have to do with the computer? Thanks

bene

iTrader: (16)

Necro post... sorry but I just wanted to share some experience...

My LS1 must hate the cold, I mean cold like <40*. The motor would start however a loud ticking would follow until it warms up. What even funnier is it only happens in the morning as when I do another cold start at lunch it doesn't tick or even in the evening it doesn't tick.

This tick started when I had the stock long block. When I did the h/c swap, I checked everything that could make/cause the tick and eventually for any wear and everything looked good.

Like I said, this happens only in the morning when it's really cold outside and happens only once in a day.