Hey all,

Wanted some thoughts/opinions on this ticking noise my car has developed recently. Heard in this video:
Engine is a BPz3 out of a 03 UK car, has about ~1000miles on it since its recent rebuild. Seems to be loudest at low rpm, still there when I ran the car with the waterpump/alt belt removed. Checking valve lash with the engine cold i came up with the following..

i1: 0.005 / e1: 0.012
i2: 0.007 / e2: 0.011
i3: 0.008 / e3: 0.012
i4: 0.008 / e4: 0.015
i5: 0.007 / e5: 0.013
i6: 0.006 / e6: 0.013
i7: 0.007 / e7: 0.013
i8: 0.008 / e8: 0.012

While I was in there I noticed this chip on cam lobe e4. Was unable to locate the missing piece in the head or after draining the oil. Not sure how much of a concern that is given the location of the break..


Let me know what you guys think, thanks!

 

Is that a radium fuel rail? Did you upgrade to EV14 style injectors during the rebuild? I can't really see what you're working with from the video.

That cam lobe looks pretty not great to me, but I'll let a more experienced engine builder chime in on if it's actually an issue.

 

yes it’s a radium fuel rail. ID1050x injectors

oil pressure reads ~15psi with the car warmed up. If that provides any more context..

 

I think that sound is just the injectors. When I rebuilt my engine I thought it was broken because I threw in EV14's for the first time and they were so clacky. I did the same thing, stethoscoped, checked lash again, etc... 6K miles on the engine now and it seems happy.

15 PSI seems low to me. I usually idle around 25. Lowest I'll ever see is around 18 PSI, but that's after an autocross run when the oil is really hot. I am running an upgraded oil pump though.

If you want to read through my experience, it's here. Post 11 should have some videos of the engine running and the noise I heard.
https://www.miataturbo.net/engine-pe...c-help-109020/

 

I decided to dig into the engine tonight. Found a large chunk of piston 1 missing... at first glance, it looks like something found its way into the engine. The car never saw more than 10# of boost since the rebuild and had a fairly conservative tune which I've attached. Curious what you guys think.

 

Looks a little bit like a hex nut got in there.