5_02ls1

iTrader: (20)

its due to loose clearances ....there is too much clearance between piston and cylinder ,but when everything warms up and expands it goes away..or gets tighter rather

98Camarod

iTrader: (43)

It's funny though, I've never heard it come from any other engines except aluminum ones with our ignition type.

Hoss Ghoul

iTrader: (2)

This is true, but carbon deposits also cause piston slap. For vehicles with higher mileage(or unkown fuel system maintenance/gas usage) this can be especially true. Run some high quality fuel system cleaner like BG44K, Techron, or do a Seafoam treatment.

My LS1 has 42K and no piston slap.

darrensls1

No piston slap here

I have two friends with LS1 F-bodies and they don't have it either. If it's really in four out of five then I guess we all hit the LS1 lottery

5_02ls1

iTrader: (20)

if that were the case it wouldnt stop at operating temp

5_02ls1

iTrader: (20)

i wouldnt say lucky it doesnt really hurt anything my car is proof of it..
the main purpose in this thread was ro stop people from tellin others notto by an ls1 if its noisy...

Hoss Ghoul

iTrader: (2)

That's not entirely true, the two can have a contributory effect upon each other.

Hoss Ghoul

iTrader: (2)

http://www.garage-pak.com/pat-goss-c...te-corner.html

Pat:

Thanks for answering my question about the piston slap in my car. I went on line and found 464 other people are having the same trouble. There’s Commercial Three Baybably hundreds more out there that don’t know what to do. If you go on line under Corvette piston slap, go down to unhappy GM consumers, join the list. IF ENOUGH PEOPLE SIGN MAYBE GM WILL DO SOMETHING.

GOOD LUCK

A.L.
Long Island, NY


Answer:

Please do this folks. Corvettes are wonderful cars that cost a lot of money and GM should not have the right to tell us to take a hike when our engines sound as if they were pirated from a Farm-All tractor. For what it’s worth, you might be interested to know that piston slap on Corvettes is far and away less prevalent than on GM trucks. The 5.3 in Chevy and GMC trucks is experiencing huge piston slap Commercial Three Bayblems.

There are several theories as to what is causing it. The one most plausible to me suggests that carbon may build up on the pistons ring lands. This binds the piston in the cylinder causing it to rock, leading to the noise. I’ve had some degree of success in correcting the Commercial Three Bayblem by using BG’s 44K Fuel System Additive. This has worked quite well, but only on cars where it is used immediately after the noise starts. 44K apparently sometimes has the ability to soften and dissipate early-stage carbon deposits on the pistons.

oneBADDz

iTrader: (26)

that's not piston slap

darrensls1

I would say it was lucky. Who actually wants piston slap? If nothing else, it is very annoying. Would I pass on a good deal for a LS1 just because of piston slap? No. Would I buy the first LS1 I found a good deal if it had piston slap? Definately not. My goal was to get a good deal on a LS1 that was free of piston slap. Mission accomplished

My advice to anyone LS1 shopping is make sure you shop around before you buy and make sure you hear the car started up cold. If it's a private owner then show up 15 minutes early so they don't have a chance to let the car warm up before you get there.

Daytona Yellow 69 Z/

That is good advice. When I flew in to get my car they conveniently had already warmed up the engine so I heard nothing, everything sounded good. Unfortunatly I was unaware of the piston slap problem with LS1s before buying my car. Would I have passed on the car probably not but I am sure I would have paid less.

It is very annoying in the morning listening to it bang. If it were one of my First gen Camaros the motor would have already been out and tore down. Heck I have spun bearings that didnt knock as loud as this slap

UCABlackChevy

iTrader: (10)

121k no piston slap here.

NoSlowSS

That's right... piston slap is ok. So are fragile rear ends. And leaking pinion seals. And window motors that die frequently. Also leaking T-Tops.

People complaining about stuff like these items is what leads manufacturers to improve their product. After dealing with the negative backlash and putting a dollar value on the problem, GM may actually decide engineer a solution.

Please tell me you'll test drive a new Camaro when they come out, hear piston slap from a brand new car, and gladly pay the $35k anyway because "it's normal." If I had the choice I'd avoid a car with piston slap and would be thankful for anyone who told me about it.

Even though it may not effect performance or longevity, I would avoid a car with slap simply because it annoys the crap out of me and it's embarrasing having people stare at your car (in my case truck) because it sounds like crap on startup. If my car was a dedicated race car, I wouldn't care what noises it made to get the job done... but my street car shouldn't make sounds akin to sewing machines, shaken cans full of rocks, or anything else that makes bystanders thank God they bought something other than a GM product. It seems GM disagrees judging by the reaction they've provided to piston slap.

Zymosis

iTrader: (7)

Great video. I do not have piston slap, but this video should almost be a sticky somewhere. People will still ask, but atleast theres a video with good enough audio now.

1998SilverZ28

Just wanted to add in on the excessive clearance cause of the piston slap. This is caused because overtime, the piston inside the cylinder actually slightly deforms into a slight oval or egg like shape (when cold). That in turn leads to the piston slap noise. But as the pistons heat up, they form back into a circle and properly seal agents the cylinders. There is no know easy fix for this and one is not expected to ever be found. As stated above, however, this in no way affects the life or longevity of the engine. I know for a fact that there are several pickups at the GM proving grounds that have this piston slap with over 200,000 miles them and they are still running beautifully.

5_02ls1

iTrader: (20)

if it embarrassed me that bad and i thought gm was that crummy id get a ford or dodge....my sister bought her 00ws6 with less than 10k on it and it now has 140k and the engine sounds the same as it did when she got the car..my engine is very quiet as soon as operating tem is met..and yes i will test drive a new camaro buy one probably not but i wouldnt let slap keep me from buying it

5_02ls1

iTrader: (20)

on other engines yes on the lsx no if they have piston slap they had it new right off the rack...

5_02ls1

iTrader: (20)

it was my point becaus i searced and havent found a vid on hear...my wife will be home at midnight and im gonna get the warm vid and post it up...

5_02ls1

iTrader: (20)

not completly warm but you can tell the difference...my wife works minutes from the house and my fans are set low so it hadnt reaced operating temp completly,but you casn here the differencehttp://s177.photobucket.com/albums/w...nt=wash007.flv

Omec

iTrader: (2)

i dont know if this sounds normal but when i first start mine its very quiet for the first 30 or so seconds and then it starts rapping. it wont realy stop untill it gets to about 210 deg. if i shut the car off and turn it back on or idle for a min or two after warm up it comes back full force. im pissed becuase i spent a fair amount of money (about 22k) on a MINT 02 ws6 w/ only 23k on the clock and it sounds like total ***. only to be told by the dealer that it was because i was trying diff brands of oil and thats why it was doing that. "only use mobile 1" they said. i have an advanced assoc degree in automotive science and 6 ASC's. i dont like being talked to like a moron. after working realy hard for the past 5 years i finaly get to buy something nice to show the fruits of my labor and this is what i get. a deisel power sounding T/A. i for one am not pleased.