K8 Top End Noise

Robot

Robot

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Hello Busa Buddies,

My K8 has 25,000 miles on it. I have been good about oil changes and have used 4T Mobil 1 Since break in. Oil level has always been fine and still is.

I have had no significant issues with my Busa.

Last weekend I pulled the bike out, it started normally and I sat for about 30 seconds to let things warm up. Just as I think about putting it into gear, the engine sputters and I hear what seems like mechanical noise.

As soon as I say WTF! The sputtering/noise stops and I am left with a ticking noise.

I shut the engine down and started doing my research, I hoped it was the clutch bolts loose, no such luck. Valves have not been touched or adjusted to date.

I searched this forum and found various possibly related items, but nothing exactly like this.

I decided to restart the engine and use my stethoscope. Ticking was coming from the valve cover, possibly near timing chain side. I pulled out the cams, certain I would find something. No luck so far, no evidence of wear, damage or debris.

Everything Cam, Tappet, shim, etc, looks brand new. I used my finger to push each tappet down, checking for broken springs.

Timing Chain tension seemed snug, especially for low RPM's


Now for the big questions, WTF happened and where do I go from here.................

My thoughts are to re-assemble top end, then re-set timing and check cam/tappet clearance. Then rotate the engine by hand to see if I hear any noise, or see anything.

Before starting I thought I would change oil and look for debris, Ill also cut the oil filter apart to see if it ate anything.

Hopefully I dont have to go into the head :please:

Any advice is welcome, Thanks!

Regards, John
 
I have had that noise the whole time in my 08. I bought it new and took it back to the dealer about it and nothing was found. It will still do it every now and then but I can figure it out either. I just ride and don't worry about it anymore. Mine had 17K on it.
 
mr8ball said:
I have had that noise the whole time in my 08. I bought it new and took it back to the dealer about it and nothing was found. It will still do it every now and then but I can figure it out either. I just ride and don't worry about it anymore. Mine had 17K on it.
Click to expand...

WOW, interesting. Very Strange. Thanks. Fortunate for me my work has a fiberoptic borescope, I'm borrowing it tonight to take a look into the cylinders through the spark plug holes. If I dont see anything, Ill feel better. Thanks for the info.
 
mr8ball said:
I have had that noise the whole time in my 08. I bought it new and took it back to the dealer about it and nothing was found. It will still do it every now and then but I can figure it out either. I just ride and don't worry about it anymore. Mine had 17K on it.
Click to expand...

Same here, mine ticks occasionally as well, and I am meticulous on maintenance. From other posts here, this is normal. Mine has 41k on it now, still running strong.
 
A good time to check your PAIR reed valves is when you do the first valve clearance inspection. Either put in block-off plates or replace if there is carbon build up. In the latter case they can get noisy.
 
jellyrug said:
A good time to check your PAIR reed valves is when you do the first valve clearance inspection. Either put in block-off plates or replace if there is carbon build up. In the latter case they can get noisy.
Click to expand...

Thanks!
 
I bought my 2011 two months ago. The first day I brought it home, I let it run in my driveway. It was ticking and only had 10 miles on it. I put it away for the day. From then to now, 1200 miles later, nothing. It totally went away. I brought it to my mechanic who couldn't find anything wrong with it. Sometimes bikes have a mind of their own. I say just ride it, and don't worry about it.
 
I drained the oil last night and let it flow over a magnet. I also inspected the magnet on the drain plug. No sign of contaminants. I also band sawed the oil filter apart, no debris found.

Using a fiberoptic borescope I went through the spark plug holes and inspected the cylinders, I had a limited field of view, but no damage was indicated.

The K8 service manual says the "shims" should have the thickness numbered side touch the tappet. Upon inspection it seems the factory randomly put them in both ways. Some numbers touched tappets, some were "upside down". I put all shims with numbers against the tappets.

Ill change oil and filter tonight and begin the re-assembly for cam-tappet clearance inspection, this should take a few days my evenings are busy up until the weekend. Ill update when I get the clearance measurements done.
 
Fearless1 said:
I bought my 2011 two months ago. The first day I brought it home, I let it run in my driveway. It was ticking and only had 10 miles on it. I put it away for the day. From then to now, 1200 miles later, nothing. It totally went away. I brought it to my mechanic who couldn't find anything wrong with it. Sometimes bikes have a mind of their own. I say just ride it, and don't worry about it.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info!
 
I have two '08's here, mine doesn't make any noise, my wife's bike has the ticking sound you refer to. Dealership has never found anything, bike runs great. It only makes the noise occasionally...
 
Mine ticks at idle. I took it on for the first service and clutch recall and told them about the noise and I guess some fuel injectors are more noisy then others. I have not noticed any adverse effects. Keep in mind the shop over fill the oil and is no longer in operation. My parents Buick does the same thing.

Sent from my GSB v3.6 ODEXed using Tapatalk
 
Update:

(New oil in and Plugs Out), Cam/Tappet Clearance is good and No noise is apparent upon turning the engine by hand or starter. Now I need to wait for my valve cover gaskets to arrive, then re-assemble and see what happens.
 
my 08' ticks when i warm up the bike but subsides after a couple of minutes. i recently had excessive (11,000k) chatter/sputter so i performed the T.S.B. and thread locked the clutch bolts/ new clutch gasket. problem solved! doubt that helped you out but ya never know. :laugh:
 
Schism said:
my 08' ticks when i warm up the bike but subsides after a couple of minutes. i recently had excessive (11,000k) chatter/sputter so i performed the T.S.B. and thread locked the clutch bolts/ new clutch gasket. problem solved! doubt that helped you out but ya never know. :laugh:
Click to expand...

Just curious, how close were the throttle bodies? Most are good from the factory but every once and a while you find one that's off.
 
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