Low tapping sounds..?

The past couple months when ive gotten on my car a little i notice that a mile or so down the road that it will make a very fast but not very loud tapping sound..but another mile of driving it will completely stop. This has only happened maybe 3-4 times. But a couple days ago when i left. i let the car warm up as usual. an as i was drivin it out of my driveway and up my street it was tappping again but a lil louder than it usually does when i get on it. it kept ticking until a couple miles down the road then it stopped.. yesterday it only ticked up to when i turned off my street.. this mornin it was ticking kinda loud.. almost as if i had a spun bearing. and as soon as i got in my car an switched it into reverse it stopped... and it didnt tick at all anymore. any ideas as to whats goin on here? i know its not a spun bearing cuz it would be tapping louder and all the time. im a little past due for an oild change, could this be the problem?? an could it possible be a bad lifter or something?

could be lifter tick...change the oil and find out

PLease don't tell me you don't know about the notorious lifter tick?? everybody has it or has had it, except the 99'ers. If it goes away after you change the oil then thats all it is.

i know all about lifter tick. what im talkin about is it will tap real loud for a lil bit down the road, then just stop at anytime. but ill change my oil in the next few days an see what it does.. i checked the oil earlier an it was on the low side. i added about 1/2 quart now its near the full mark

its lifter tick, my car does the same thing when it starts getting close to time to change the oil. it will do it for awhile and then just stop all of the sudden. then a couple weeks later its just constant tick.

i'm pretty sure its the lifter tick

yeah that's what it sounds like...especially if your oil was low, when my oil was low it was doing the same exact thing until I changed the oil.

alright,, ill change my oil. thanx :)