Greetings to you all. Am calling upon the assistance of you mechanically knowledgeable folk to help me - (Once again) sorry. My 1988 Chevrolet Caprice has gone rather lumpy and loud. Today, I started her up, from cold, and the automatic choke started her up and idled high as per usual. I selected 'DRIVE' and she drove me up to the top of my lane, which is around 1/4 of a mile on the automatic choke. Usually at the point of reaching the end of my lane she has idled down to her usual quiet whisper tone idle and I pull away with only a slight ticky burble from the V8 ahead of me. But today when I reached the end of the lane she was still idling very fast and loud and I had to literally stand on the footbrake to get her to stop. On giving the throttle pedal a dip with my foot (to remedy her to calm down) she became very "burbley" and tickyness became louder. I managed to get her to the Village garage "Norman's" and by the time I pulled up (2 miles later) she was starting to over-heat and still ticking louder. I switched her off put she pre-ignitioned after turning engine off (something she's never done) and coolant was literally peeing from the radiator cap. Norman looked her over - and much to my dismay he started her up and she started straight up - But whisper quiet! - no loud over-revving of a sticking choke - however, the ticking which has always been there, normal, is now louder and a strong smell of fuel engulfs the cabin. While I was there with Norman the engine temp needle quickly returned down to 'normal' and the leaking had stopped, We think probably through just a poor seal on the radiator cap. Norman suspects possibly the heat from the over-revving gradually getting hotter engine has ruptured exhaust manifold seals and hence the fuel smell as well and the acceleration engine ticking has got louder. What from my analysis and summary do any of you Gents think of this? I would be very greatful of your opinions. Kindest regards Wagonqueen and a 'loud hot' Dorothy.
The ticking could be many things,,,, valve tappet, bottom end, exhaust leak, even a what ever hanging under the car that may be bumping/making the sound. hard to internet that problem. As for the over heating..... from what you are saying, you only drove 2, 1/4 miles? That does not sound rite, I have driven a car with no rad in it much further than that and did not have problems Did you just start the car and drive away?, because that makes no sense. Did you start it, leave for a time, loose track of time maybe and then came back to the car in high idle that had been running for maybe a long time? Hope you get the problem sorted
Sounds to me like you might have a clogged exhaust system, perhaps a loose baffle in the muffler that blocked the exhaust and then flopped out of the way when you shut the car off. Could also be a catalytic converter depending on which type you have. A clogged exhaust would account for the ticking as the exhaust sought to escape by whatever means possible and would account for the rapid overheating. Also, is the ticking mechanical or an exhaust leak?
Thanks for the reply chaps. Yes, literally started her up and drove away, and after 5 minutes+ driving and under 3 miles she was hot, bubbling and leaking. Then after 5 minutes sat before my mechanic started her up she seemed fine and the temp dropped back down to normal and the leaking stopped. However the ticking/tutting sound has always been there in the engine since I bought her, its never acted up or drawn concern but now its louder, and the sound is quite noticeable from behind the dashboard near the back of the engine. Went out for a drive this evening after all that happened just to see if anything would occur again, - temp/performance all normal just the ticking/tutting is noticeably louder and sounding more like a dragster/race-tuned V8! The engine is from an Oldsmobile 2 years older according to the VIN. Thanks for replies. Wagonqueen.
