My final M119 ticking thread

[Benzy Boy]

Hello everyone. Thanks for sticking with me along this treacherous journey of trying to fix my tick that resulted in a biggest roller coaster of my automotive life from a simple oil change to doing oil tube maintenance to dropping metal into my cylinder head and going to hell and back to fix it
.
Unfortunately, my phone never picked up the ticking sound enough so that I can share exactly how it sounds, but I stumbled upon a video today where someone had the ticking sound and swapped his oiler tubes and apparently "fixed it" yet his engine ticks just like mine.

If you watch this video at 18:16 the dude finishes the job and pats himself on the back and says he fixed his tick. But clearly as in 18:21 you can hear the ticking audibly from outside the car.

This is EXACTLY how my ticking sounds 100%. So is this just normal? I can hear it from inside the car with the windows up and from outside with the hood closed. Can someone get to the bottom of this? I appreciate all the help.

Summary of work done:
All oiler tubes replaced to aluminum ones with victor reinz o rings installed
oil separator replaced
timing chain guides changed

Does this user have the same problem?

Ticking / Knock from crank not top of engine. | M119 Engine

So I recently picked up a second merc with a m119. I took it in to my mechainic (a West Berlin mercedes specialist) who rang me a day later and advised me to sell the car. I took the car in because I had what I thought was the ticking sound (the cam oiler issue) and after inspection he said it...

www.500eboard.co

It sounds the same as mine and also mine is coming from the bottom too yet stethoscope on the oil pan reveals no sound.

 

[TerryA]

Hello everyone. Thanks for sticking with me along this treacherous journey of trying to fix my tick that resulted in a biggest roller coaster of my automotive life from a simple oil change to doing oil tube maintenance to dropping metal into my cylinder head and going to hell and back to fix it
.
Unfortunately, my phone never picked up the ticking sound enough so that I can share exactly how it sounds, but I stumbled upon a video today where someone had the ticking sound and swapped his oiler tubes and apparently "fixed it" yet his engine ticks just like mine.

If you watch this video at 18:16 the dude finishes the job and pats himself on the back and says he fixed his tick. But clearly as in 18:21 you can hear the ticking audibly from outside the car.

This is EXACTLY how my ticking sounds 100%. So is this just normal? I can hear it from inside the car with the windows up and from outside with the hood closed. Can someone get to the bottom of this? I appreciate all the help.

Summary of work done:
All oiler tubes replaced to aluminum ones with victor reinz o rings installed
oil separator replaced
timing chain guides changed

It sounds normal to me. There’s no abnormaly loud lifter at 18:21 that I hear. That’s pretty typical at least to me.

 

[Benzy Boy]

It sounds normal to me. There’s no abnormaly loud lifter at 18:21 that I hear. That’s pretty typical at least to me.

Ticking / Knock from crank not top of engine. | M119 Engine

So I recently picked up a second merc with a m119. I took it in to my mechainic (a West Berlin mercedes specialist) who rang me a day later and advised me to sell the car. I took the car in because I had what I thought was the ticking sound (the cam oiler issue) and after inspection he said it...

www.500eboard.co

It seems he has the same problem as me

 

[Joncf]

He explains after that, he still has to do the other cylinder bank (left head, cylinders 5-8), because he still hears it.. but it was more severe on the side right bank (cylinders 1-4), which he showed in the video.

 

[gsxr]

There's no ticking noise in those videos. That is how a normal M119 sounds.

THIS is what a lifter tick sounds like from a popped oil tube... skip to 0:30 in the video below.

 

[TerryA]

There's no ticking noise in those videos. That is how a normal M119 sounds.

THIS is what a lifter tick sounds like from a popped oil tube... skip to 0:30 in the video below.

@Benzy Boy,
+1w/ gsxr, If your hearing what is in gsxr’s video at 0:30 seconds you have a lifter problem. The engines in post #1 & #3 have no problems. It’s normal. You said you changed to aluminum tubes in your other thread so no popped ends possible.

Let it go and drive your car.

lol

 

[Benzy Boy]

Well that's a relief. I'm going to put in some heavier oil and see if it quiets down, since it's definitely a "new to me" sound I don't think was there before.

 

[TerryA]

Well that's a relief. I'm going to put in some heavier oil and see if it quiets down, since it's definitely a "new to me" sound I don't think was there before.

My 500E has had nothing but 20W-50 since I bought it in 2004 w/ 89K miles. The previous owner also ran 20W-50. I run 20W-50 Royal Purple full synthetic for the last 4 changes (about 20K miles with no issues) I now have 143K miles.

I suggest 20W-50 but no heavier.

lol

 

[Benzy Boy]

My 500E has had nothing but 20W-50 since I bought it in 2004 w/ 89K miles. The previous owner also ran 20W-50. I run 20W-50 Royal Purple full synthetic for the last 4 changes (about 20K miles with no issues) I now have 143K miles.

I suggest 20W-50 but no heavier.

lol

Good to know that heavy works with this engine. I was thinking of trying Redline 10w40 which advertises a 20w50 petroleum oil film equivalent. Also gsxr’s favourite oil. I'm so sad I wasted my 5w40 redline though. It cost me $200 and now I have to spend another $200 on top of everything. At least I have the peace of mind now and learned a lot about working on the M119 I wouldn't have learned otherwise.

 

[Benzy Boy]

Sorry to be so annoying but I just came across something in 2020 @gsxr told this fella his sound isn't from the lifters. He has the exact same hot idle sound as me. I can try re-recording my noise with a different phone as my mic appears too distorted to capture any sounds but I promise I have the exact same noise as this guy in the thread below.

cf: M119 Engine Ticking

He never posted his solution

Thoughts?

 

[a777fan]

Benzy. Drive the car. Enjoy it. I think you’ve covered all your bases at this point.

 

[Joncf]

Sorry to be so annoying but I just came across something in 2020 @gsxr told this fella his sound isn't from the lifters. He has the exact same hot idle sound as me. I can try re-recording my noise with a different phone as my mic appears too distorted to capture any sounds but I promise I have the exact same noise as this guy in the thread below.

cf: M119 Engine Ticking

He never posted his solution

Thoughts?

Obviously all of these videos are taken with different cameras with different mics, so it’s hard to tell. Not doubting him, but that video does sound very similar to this video, which is definitely a lifer noise:

You should seriously start driving the car though before making any more assumptions.

 

[gsxr]

The difference is the VOLUME of the tick, and also the frequency.

The quiet, rapid ticking that is difficult to hear, is most likely normal M119 engine noise. The video in post #10 appears to be a quiet, rapid ticking that may nor may not be normal (hard to tell)... but it doesn't sound like a lifter.

The LOUD ticking that sounds like someone smacking a hammer on the valve cover, rather slowly (at half-speed relative to the other light ticking)... that's a lifter / popped oil tube. The video in post #5 is a loud, slow, lifter tick.

 

[Benzy Boy]

I drove the car 100 miles today at mostly open throttle and everything seems good. It definitely doesn't sound like post #5.
I'm starting to suspect maybe timing chain since it makes a very subtle 1 second clack clack clack on some start ups.
I'll keep driving an see if it gets worse otherwise I'll forget about it.

 

[TerryA]

The clack clack on start up may be the timing chain tensioner.

 

[Benzy Boy]

The clack clack on start up may be the timing chain tensioner.

Mechanic checked my start up noise and said it’s just the engine starting up and called me paranoid lol
The ticking I hear might be a classic case of Baader–Meinhof phenomenon