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Old April 21st 04, 01:55 PM
WHL
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sounds like it may be an injector going bad or the whole car is seriously
jealous (me too) over the purchase of the SRT-4. you can use a long
screwdriver as a stethoscope to search for the noise. just be careful of
high voltage and moving parts.

"Ken" > wrote in message
om...
> I have a 2000 Dodge Neon ES (3-spd automatic) with about 50,000 miles.
> There are a few issues:
>
> Since about 30,000 miles, it has made a ticking sound when I first start
> the engine in the morning. It's loudest in the beginning, and will
> gradually become softer until it's not audible anymore (when the engine
> warms up to operating tempurature) within 5-10 minutes. The ticking has
> a frequency of about 2 ticks per second at engine idle speed, and will
> increase as the engine is revved. The ticking is louder when it's colder
> (colder weather, or sitting for more hours).
>
> Recently (last 5,000 miles), when I start the car, there is also a LOUD
> clacking noise that is sporatic and comes in bursts, lasting just one or
> two seconds each... This clacking noise is pretty scary.
>
> The car hasn't been driven much the past three months, as I have just
> purchased a new toy (2004 Dodge SRT-4), but the last time I drove it, I
> experienced occasional "spurts" from the engine. For example, I'm
> accelerating at a slow and steady pace, and for a split second, I feel
> the engine "tugging" the car forward, kind of like an engine with a
> rough idle.
>
> Any ideas? I'm pretty ignorant to diagnosing problems and am new to any
> type of repair work. Through the life of the car, I've down regular
> oil/filter changes myself, and have taken the car to the dealer for a
> 30k tune-up, but that's all... The recent problems have really got me
> wondering... I'm thinking about new plugs/wires and flushing the cooling
> system... The ticking noise may be normal? but the loud clacking noise
> can not be good....



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