Help with crazy sound @ 1300RPMS (sound clip)

[trogers]

Hey Guys,

I have been having a problem the last 6 months. Anytime I am driving at 1200-1400 RPMS, I get this crazy rattling/vibration sound coming from my engine (I can't really describe the sound, you will have to hear the clip).

I had my girlfriend hop in today and hold it at 1300rpms in park while I crawled under and took the sound clip.

Obviously its usually intermittent because I am never holding on 1300 rpms when I am driving, but it its load as hell and I know there is something wrong.

It has gotten progressively worse the past 6 months.

Any idea what it is? I wanted to see if it is something that I can fix before I pay the dealership to do so...

Any advice would be welcomed!

Here is the link to the clip...


http://media.putfile.com/Nasty-sound-82

[Carbeaux]

Does it sound like it's coming from the cats?

[Amadeus]

Heat shield rattle?

Use to have that problem on another vehicle I owned.

Yours sounds like a thin bit of metal from what I can hear, so start with every thin piece of metal on your undercarriage and try to wiggle it.

[ablexus]

99% chance of heat shield rattle. Get under your truck and look at the cats, then grab the aluminum heat shields (wait for the engine to cool down!) and see if they're loose. If they are loose, either tear them off or you can bind them down. Dealers actually use zip ties more often than not and it seems to work without melting or breaking off.

Andrew

[titanmoon]

I've had my 04 in a couple of times for heat shield rattle when it was still under warrantee. This week it got really loud- you could hear it when the sound was reflected at a drive thru and even on a freeway ramp.

Get under the truck with it off and bang on the exhaust with a rubber mallet. My heat shields rattle like crazy.

Not sure how to cure- maybe a hose clamp around the shield where it rattles against the pipe?

My shields also make a clicking noise constantly w/ engine running and as it cools down after running.

[sudden urge]

Wow, that does sound nasty!!!! I have no idea what it is though.

[ablexus]

You CAN remove them without much issue; their main purpose is to retain heat so the cats heat up faster to eliminate unburnt fuel.

But you know what I say, pour oil on a seagull and fvck the environment!

Andrew

[trogers]

Thanks for the replies guys. Seems like most of you think its the heat shield vibe. I will definitely look into that. An easy fixed like I hoped!

But dang, a simple heat shield can make a helllll of a lot of noise. As one of you mentioned, in a drive through or overpass, that think is SO loud!

[HRTKD]

I had the heat shields on my '91 Ranger rust enough that the brackets broke and the shields started to rattle. What a nasty noise. I was embarrased at intersections (and not just for driving a Ford!). I pulled them off and now there's no more noise. I was told that the reason they are there is to prevent the heat generated by the catalytic converters from sinking into the bottom of the cab.

Still, your noise sounds like an internal mechanical noise not an external rattle. Maybe I'm hearing it wrong though. Try using some wire to hold down the heat shields as a test.

[titanmoon]

Originally Posted by titanmoon

I've had my 04 in a couple of times for heat shield rattle when it was still under warrantee. This week it got really loud- you could hear it when the sound was reflected at a drive thru and even on a freeway ramp.

Get under the truck with it off and bang on the exhaust with a rubber mallet. My heat shields rattle like crazy.

Not sure how to cure- maybe a hose clamp around the shield where it rattles against the pipe?

My shields also make a clicking noise constantly w/ engine running and as it cools down after running.

Found my rattle! One of the narrow bands that clamp the heat shield to the cross pipe was broken, rattling. Amazing how something so simple could make so much noise. At start up or reving engine or even on a freeway ramp it sounded like maybe the timing chains were rattling inside their covers!