FX45 ticking / rattle

I

InfinitiBoi

Member
Car
2009 FX50s
Name
Yes
Hi guys, I own an Infiniti FX45 - 2003.

Recently the vehicle developed a rattle when running. The sound is located on the drivers side, towards the front bumper. The sound also appears to be more top side than bottom. I want to say its a timing chain related issue, as I have seen others complain about bad tensioners / failing guides, however couldn't find anything that matches the sound of what I have.

I have replaced the oil and filter, with Penzoil's high mileage full synthetic 5W-30, which seems to have no effect at all.

The sound is present 100% of the time below 3250 RPM. Over 3250 the sound seems to disapear. The sound is there whether the engine is cold or warmed up, regardless of drive/neutral/reverse etc.

The car drives like normal, no loss of power or anything unusual. Please let me know what you think the issue is!

The red circle is where the sound is coming from, and the blue represents where more specific I believe the sound is coming from. not 100% sure.
7CH1UxZ.jpg

 
InfinitiBoi said:
Hi guys, I own an Infiniti FX45 - 2003.

Recently the vehicle developed a rattle when running. The sound is located on the drivers side, towards the front bumper. The sound also appears to be more top side than bottom. I want to say its a timing chain related issue, as I have seen others complain about bad tensioners / failing guides, however couldn't find anything that matches the sound of what I have.

I have replaced the oil and filter, with Penzoil's high mileage full synthetic 5W-30, which seems to have no effect at all.

The sound is present 100% of the time below 3250 RPM. Over 3250 the sound seems to disapear. The sound is there whether the engine is cold or warmed up, regardless of drive/neutral/reverse etc.

The car drives like normal, no loss of power or anything unusual. Please let me know what you think the issue is!

The red circle is where the sound is coming from, and the blue represents where more specific I believe the sound is coming from. not 100% sure.
View attachment 603943

Click to expand...
That does not sound good at all, if you accelerate does the sound speed up along with the engine rpm’s? It doesn’t sound like a rod knock..but more like valves tapping...or it could be your timing chain tensioner they are known to fail and it causes a slapping sound kinda like yours. Good luck I hope it’s nothing major. Please keep us in the loop.
 
Not sure how difficult it is on the VK45, but try ruling out the accessory belt tensioner by removing the belt and see if it still makes the noise. Different car, but almost sounds like the vid below.

 
I just took the cover off mine and looked at the manual. I'm thinking the only thing in that area that could make that horrendous level of noise and still run ok is the the timing chain slapping against something it isn't supposed to. Like maybe the slack-side chain guide is in chunks and the chain is hitting left block deck.

An exhaust leak could be that loud, but would sound different. If something was busted in the valve train it would run like garbage (if at all). Not much else in that area that would make that noise. That's a semi-wild-guess on my part so take it for what it's worth. Let us know though. I love my VK and want it to last forever! ...ish!
 
Alright I have an update! Like I thought and as OilGeek mentioned, it ended up being the timing chain. The tensioner failed (was depressed back, providing no tension at all) cause the chain to slap against the timing cover and eventually shred a chain guide. Fortunately the chain didn't skip any teeth. I took the cover off, replaced the guides and both tensioners. Couldn't replace the chain because that would require taking the oil pan off, which I wasn't up to. Thanks for everyone replying!

I will attach some pictures of the damage if anyone is interested. The fixed driver's side guide plastic completely wore down, leaving lots of plastic in the timing cover area. The chain dug into the front cover in 5 places (only 3 are posted).

This was my first time working on a car (other than simple stuff), was difficult but in the end I'm happy I've done it. Learned a lot more!
 

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QX70lvr305 said:
That does not sound good at all, if you accelerate does the sound speed up along with the engine rpm’s? It doesn’t sound like a rod knock..but more like valves tapping...or it could be your timing chain tensioner they are known to fail and it causes a slapping sound kinda like yours. Good luck I hope it’s nothing major. Please keep us in the loop.
Click to expand...
You were absolutely correct. The tensioner was the culprit. I bought a timing chain kit and had all the necessary parts to hopefully last the rest of the vehicles life.
 
This was my first time working on a car (other than simple stuff), was difficult but in the end I'm happy I've done it. Learned a lot more![/QUOTE]

1st time? Tough job. A shade tree mechanic is born. :tup:
 
That's scary - I hadn't heard of any timing chain issues on the FX45 - I remember the older Q45 had issues. Based on that noise, I would have guessed VTC sprocket or powervalve screw bouncing around in the chamber.
 
Did it yourself. Nice! Big job
I had a 91Q, & they had plastic guides that would fail. I changed them out before the engine could explode.
 
I would remove all the belts and see if the sound still there. It sounds similar.
 
Sounds similar. See if you can narrow the area down like I did in my picture. I used a long screwdriver and put my ear against it to find the source of the issue. My issue was loose timing chain due to a failed tensioner. If you still can't pinpoint the issue the timing cover has 2 access plates, one Infront of each tensioner. They are easy to take off and will directly show you the tensioner and if it's seized or not.
 
Eduardo L Alvarez said:
Sounds sort of similar to the sound I'm experiencing. Does anyone believe this might be the same issue?

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I recently took in my car in for service to handle this issue. It ended up not being the timing chain and instead was the Fuel Injection Dampeners (3). Each one was replaced and the sound that I posted about has been gone for the last 400 or so miles. Looks like it's been fixed. Just wanted to share.
 
Eduardo L Alvarez said:
I recently took in my car in for service to handle this issue. It ended up not being the timing chain and instead was the Fuel Injection Dampeners (3). Each one was replaced and the sound that I posted about has been gone for the last 400 or so miles. Looks like it's been fixed. Just wanted to share.
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Glad you found the issue! I also read up when I was troubleshooting and many many people said it was the dampener. I took a screwdriver on the dampener and put my ear against it and didnt hear any of the symptoms that others said would be heard. In your case sounds like they checked that before getting into the expensive stuff. Thanks for following up!
 
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