ticking

ok my girlfriends mom has a 96 caravan and it makes a ticking noise but it doesnt have lose of power like valves ticking would have.the coolant has to be filled like every two to three days.if anyone might have an idea please let me know.thanks

CAREFULLY use a short length of garden hose held to your ear in lieu of a stethoscope to nail down where the ticking is coming from. Could be as simple as the canister duty cycle purge control valve near the coolant reservoir. It will normally start ticking a few minutes after starting. Sounds just like a ticking lifter. Just one of the many noises Chryslers emitt on a regular and normal basis.

As for the dissappearing coolant, if you're not getting puddles in the driveway or your front carpets aren't wet the engine must be eating it. Are you seeing oil in the coolant? Are you getting vapor out the tailpipe? A compression test might reveal the problem

If you have to add coolant evewwry 2 or 3 days then you have a major problem like a blown headgasket , under normal circumstances you should not have to add any coolant . If you don't see any coolant on the ground then headgasket is likely. If the headgasket is blown then you probably have diluted oil causing the ticking problems , get ready to right a big check.

the coolant leaks but dont know from where.would the water pump make a ticking sound!i think thats where the coolant is coming from?

the van drives fine no overheating or anything like that it has no power loose that would make me think headgasket.

if the water pump is leaking,it most likely is making a grinding sound as the bearing could be shot,and on older vehicles it is not uncommon for the injectors to tick somewhat.