engine tick/occasional hard start

hey, i have a 91 bird (3.8L) with 166k km's on it. when the engine warms up, i start getting a steady ticking noise that follows the rpm's. i've had the oil changed and am using 10W-30 (instead of 5W-30). it didn't help. if u lean under the car, it is more apparent than when listening from the top of the engine. the lower end was replaced, along with the head gasket and exhaust manifold gasket. any ideas? also, once the engine is warm and sits for a while, it takes longer to start and puffs a bit of black smoke for about two secs and then goes away. any clues? doesn't run rough or miss either. thanks in advance.

sounds like it might be the piston and/or rings. By the description of the clicking (possible piston slop) and the black smoke. That would be my guess.

If it puffs out while driving...and is definetly from the rear...

Priority # / Action /Part Type/ Cause
1 Inspect VALVE STEM SEAL Cracked or brittle valve stem seals allowing oil to enter combustion chamber.
4 Inspect PISTON RING SET Worn or broken piston rings.
5 Inspect ENGINE CONTROL COMPUTER
Incorrect operation information being delivered and sent from the eec.
6 Inspect DISTRIBUTOR Worn, loose or incorrectly adjusted distributor.
8 Inspect PISTON Worn or damaged piston.
9 Inspect TIMING SPECIFICATION
Incorrectly adjusted engine timing.
10 Inspect ENGINE Worn or scored cylinder block


Check these in the same particular order, or have a mechanic do so. Most of these you can do yourself though :smile:

hey thanks for the help. the other thing, i dunno if it helps, is that it has been making this ticking noise for a while (as in at least 4 months). also, if i get the engine quite warm (to the middle of the "norm" on the temp guage) the ticking disappears and will only return once cooled down. my thinking is that if it was anything major, the engine would've already died? there is no smoke at all driving down the road, even under hard/heavy acceleration. i'm going to try the timing first. the lower end was done just over 6k km's ago, so i hope it's nothing serious. are these common problems or am i in for some major repairs? thanks again.

black smoke isnt oil, its gas, so anything involving pistons or rings is doubtfull, did you replace the oil pump? could be getting weak, get a can of sea foam, put about 2/3 in the gas tank and teh rest in the crankcase, see if that helps any

I've got an 88 3.8l and I just put in a 200 amp alternator. After the install I heard a tick. I'm not sure where it's coming from. It's probably completely irrelavent.

If you havent done lately change plugs/wires/Dist cap/rotory button.
If your engine isnt firing right that can also be a cause of the ticking.