i recently purchased a used 2002 acura 3.2 tl type s w/ 32000 miles, when i got it home i noticed a slight ticking noise coming from under the hood, i have since put 1200 miles on it and it still ticks, tried injector cleaner and an oil change, ive also noticed that while it seems the ticking is coming from the heads, there is also a ball check valve in the vacuum line on the drivers side firewall that also ticks in sync. and the engine seems to idle a little rougher than i expected, is there a problem or is the type s engine generally a little noisy and im just being too picky?

 

we were just discussing this thread as i poped the question also, same car as you. seems to be the purge soleinoid, it says denso on the top, right behind the brake fluid resivoir. sounds like it should still be under warranty either way, have them fix it.

 

i don't have an 02 tl-s, but have heard of this many times and it is the purge selinoid.

 

i hear a ticking noise in that spot too. no warranty for me

 

what is the function of this part and can it affect the performance of the engine. by the way, my warranty is up, but i did just buy the car a few weeks ago from a dealership, do you think it's covered?

 

also, my ticking seems to be louder when in park, or at least thats what it seems maybe cause theres no wind noise

 

is this something the dealer will replace if you have a active warranty? Cause i went in 3 times about it and they keep telling me its normal.

 

well i am way out of warranty, but when the part comes in, any day now, and i replace it, if it fixes the ticking noise, you should just march right in and demand they fix it under warranty, ticking noises aren't normal.

 

plan on posting a DIY??

 

sure, but from what i was told on the thread, its an unhook, rehook that can be done in the time to fill the gas tank up. but when i get the part, we will find out!!

 

same situation... they say is normal...

But i noticed that its getting louder...

I'm gonna try to bring it in to a better dealer...

It gets kinda annoying just to hear the ticking.... its like my engine is getting old or something.... it just makes me think that way lol

 

Ok, i got the purge solenoid. $53 with tax. Came home, didnt even change, just put on a pair of latex gloves, found the part in the car, its to the right of the brake resivour on the firewall, can't miss it. There are 2 hoses and a power clip, undo, redo, took me 5min.

The results:.......................................... ................NO FUCKIN DIFFERENCE!!! Well, let me say this, i can still here a ticking, clicking sound in the engine bay from that area from the outside of the car w/ the hood up, but not in the car anymore, of course i didn't drive it around yet, but as long as i can't here it in the car, i am not too worried, i didn't buy this car to keep forever. At 118k, getting me 32mpg on the hwy, and it still pulls strong, its gonna have to drop dead before i drop any major cash into her.

 

for me the car only makes the noise while accelerating. Or even more pronounced if im going uphill.

 

Could it be valve tap?

 

i highly doubt its the valves, i mean i can't hear it anymore inside the car now that i changed the soleniod, only outside with the hood up. i mean, the valves shouldn't really go outta wack far from factory spec, i mean, these are great engines, but not high performance race engines etc. my motorcycle just had a valve check and adj, and after 13k, everything was in factory spec and no adjustments needed, and she zings to over 13k rpm, making 150+ at the wheel from only 1 liter. So unless they screwed up in teh design, all of us couldn't have valves outta wack, and all at different mileages.

 

So... it even possible to get rid of this ticking noise?

I have a 2000 TL-p and a 2003 TL-S ....AND they BOTH Tick....

I'm getting quite annoyed of it.....

 

you can try the purge solenoid, i mean it helped some in the respect i can't hear it inside the car anymore.

 

so u think I should change the solenoid?

I'm going for an oil change soon next week.
Do u think they can do anything about the ticking?


I'm gonna ask them to also fix:

- the dead clock light
- the stretching of the leather on my driver seat ( my seat is the 2 tone A-spec)
- the front passenger seat (back pocket) which has bad assembly job.

I hope they can fix most of these problems

 

That sounds like an exhaust leak. Do you have headers? If so - check for a cracked weld. If not - could be a bad gasket.

 

I think i have an exhaust leak from driver side muffler.

it will make this drumming sound when its in idle some times

 

well if your car is under warranty, let them figure it out, if its more like your describing, its probably an exhaust leak.

 

I have the same problem. I swear sometimes it's a cruel joke, because every time I've brought it to Acura to fix, they can't find anything wrong, but I gotta tell you, sometimes it drives me NUTS It's going in again next week, so hopefully they'll be able to find it this time. Sounds kind of like a loose valve, doesn't it?

 

mine too has the ticking noise. sounds kinda like an old chevy with loud lifters. What i don't get, is its not all the time.

 

The ticking noise by the firewall on the driver side, near the brake fluid reservoir is perfectly normal. It's the evap purge solenoid. Its job is to reroute the fuel vapor from the canister to the engine for combustion. The solenoid naturally ticks during its operation. It's normal.