Tick tick tick.......I'm going nuts.....

[robstvr]

Ok, this is my problem...soon as i start up, there's a tick coming from the dash. it's loud enough to hear over the engine, seems to be from the middle of the dash. My guess is something like a speedo cable knocking as it spins, but i defer to your greater knowledge. If i blip the throttle the frequency of the tick does not change, but it does with speed, hence speedo related? Unless, of course, as all TVRs are different, they've routed the drive shaft through the dash?!

Help, going nuts.

R xx

[Bob Falfa]

If it's ticking when the engine's on, could it be the fuel pump that's making a noise louder than it should be? If so, it might be a sign that it's on its way out?

[dougc]

Does it tick when stationary? I know its a long shot but the milometer in a mates Chim used to make a click noise when each mile passed. Could explain why it gets more frequent at speed.

[robstvr]

I forgot to say, noise disappears, or at least is diminished, when i lift the entire dash up with my hands below the passenger part. Definitely a dash related thing, so not any sort of 'part' defect.

[robstvr]

Nope, not that kind of frequency. When stationary ticks too. More a kind of 3 - 4 a second kind of thing.

[nig-gtv]

What age is your Chim?.... on early models the speedo clicks every 10th of a mile, but this was resolved with the updated dials I think. Certainly my 1994 Chim clicked (and yes - it is very annoying and there's nothing you can do about it!), but my current 1998 Chim doesnt click!

[spend]

I think a previous thread put this down to heat / thermal expansion movement, sounded very similar to this topic.

Dave

[sparkythecat]

The drive to the speedo isn't mechanical, it's electronic . It's fed by wires from a sensor not by a roatating cable from the gearbox. If it's more frequent than a click every tenth of a mile it must be something else

[Mad Mike]

Hi Rob,
I had the dash up on mine last week ( to change alarm, and it all looked electrical behind the dash.
There are a large number of RELAY'S behind the dash, and they make a CLICK .

Sounds like one of these could be your problem.

does everything work properly?

any intermitant faults?

check none have worked loose and then suggest method of elimination - remove one at a time, restart engine wait for click - replace and move to next one.

Good luck

Mike

[Cider Andy]

Let's recap on this ticking noise:

1. It only happens after starting up.
2. Frequency doesn't change with engine speed.
3. Frequency does change with road speed.
4. When stationary it happens about three or four times a second.
5. It diminishes if you pull the dashboard up from the LHS.
6. It appears to come from the centre of the dash.

So, a couple of questions:

1. Presumably the frequency increases with road speed?
2. Does it happen with the ignition on and the engine NOT running?
3. Can you definitely eliminate the speedo as the source?

[GreenV8S]

If you get the noise when stationary you can rule out anything to do with the transmission, speedo etc. If it is independent of revs you can rule out blowing exhausts, stones trapped in fan belts, engine ancillaries etc. Given that you can affect it just by pressing on the trim I'd suspect that it is simply some component resonating and tapping on something. You may find you can locate it approximately by getting somebody to rock the car while you listen?

[robstvr]

Thanks guys, i'll investigate the above. Nothing happens with ignition but not engine on, so not a relay, i don't think. Everything works fine, and my feelings are some sort of component knocking on something. I'll employ some assistance.....

[andy-w]

long shot but could it be the relay for the interior light...???

Try pulling the relays and see what fails when the noise stop....

[Al 450]

Sounds like a relay, you could try pulling fuses although this should happen also in ignition 2 with the engine off...