My Jag shop asked me to add a quart of transmission fluid to the engine oil (after draining a quart of oil out) to diagnose a ticking sound. The sound is apparent when starting the car but disappears after a few miles driving.

Has anybody heard of this and if so, is it advisable?

My guy has been trustworthy for years. Just thought I'd run it by the forum to see if anybody has had this experience.

Oh. The reason I'm doing it and not him is that I'm out of town and trying to avoid driving back home right now.

Thanks!

 

Transmission fluid has very high detergent content, so he may think something is gummed up.

 

Hadn't heard of it, so I've just had a read around and much discussion either way. Seems to be something from back in the day when oils weren't so good as a way to clear varnish from the motor internals.

Apparently lots of people do it, although many drain it all out and do an oil change after a few miles.

I wouldn't.

 

Piston slap noise is my suspicion based on the OP’s description.

Unless the pistons are completely worn out, It usually goes away after the motor warms up.

IIRC, the X-100 family of engines have some history of piston slap noises. After all, they aren’t new anymore.

My car has always had ( since I’ve owned it) some piston slap type of noise that always goes away once the engine mid up to full operating temp.

If it were a serious issue I think it would’ve gotten worse in the past 4 years / 60,000 miles.

I also think using ATF is not such a good idea, especially if left in the car for more than a very few miles.

The best thing one can do for a car is to use a quality oil and change it often. In my case that means Mobil 1 0w-40 and changing it and filter every 4,000 to 5,000 miles. That may be a wasteful oil change interval, but I’m coming down on the side of safe, not (penny pinching) sorry .


PS : an engine stethoscope is a good way to isolate and make a determination which area a noise is originating from.


Z

 

Thanks, guys.
Sort of in line with what I was thinking, and he did tell me to have the oil changed after checking for the sound.
As Z wrote, the ticking goes away after the engine warms up. It's been there for a few years, but as you might notice from my signature, I don't drive much and it never seemed to be an issue. Just trying to give my baby a little love.
Thanks for the advice.
Much appreciated.
OK

 

It was common practice in the day to fill the sump with paraffin and run the engine to clean out all the **** . This was usually done prior to re building the engine to make it a cleaner job.
I too have the tick ..sounds like tappets out of adjustment but the clearance is fine..comes and goes but is not so prevalent after adding a Molyibdonum oil additive. I have 110,000 miles on the clock

 

By the way, the total mileage on my ‘02 XKR is 175,000 miles. With the exception of the warm-up tick, the engine is quiet and uses no oil.

it might be useful to hear from a wide spectrum of owners regarding a cold / warm engine noise that goes away when full operating temperature has been reached.

Z

 

I have also increased the oil level about 1 quart as recommended in jag advisory and that seems to have helped ..it seems to be the no 3 cylinder on the RHS thats the clicker. I found a good recording of piston slap on the net and it sounds exactly like mine and simulates a bad tappet tick

 

Do you have a link for “jag advisory” ?

thanks,


Z

 

Mine is a 97 and had a different dip stick to later models which raised the oil level..

and here it is

100-17 oil level (2).pdf

 

Thanks again for the terrific information and thoughtfulness towards this issue. I'll look for Molyibdonum oil additive and review the other suggestions.

I have to say this more or less confirms my trust in the shop (as much as you can trust a repair shop). Is it customary to endorse a repair shop here? I'm in LA and it seems there aren't that many people that have much knowledge of 23 year old Jags.

 

false. it has much much less

oil detergents are not dishwasher detergent they do not clean.

 

Hmm. Is it just me or does that link point to nothing?

 

not just you.


Z

 

Try this

Question on engine oil...overfill - Jaguar Forums - Jaguar Enthusiasts Forum

its called using the forum search. Finds you the right post by Motorcarman