Q: ticking noise comimg from underneath ticks in all gears but 4th and only when clutch is out

asked by on July 13, 2016

Hi I have a 1999 Suzuki Vitara 2.0 two wheel drive about 2 weeks ago I was driving down the highway when I noticed a faint ticking sound coming from underneath the car. With in a day or two it had become louder and louder at first I thought it was a lifter knocking but when I push the clutch in the ticking stops it ticks in all gears except 4th even tick when in neutral with the clutch out I had my son who practices backyard mechanicing pull the tranny and the clutch and it appears to have nothing wrong with any of it the throwout barring is fine the only issue that I feel it could be is my clutch fork. 5 months prior to now my car became very hard to shift we pulled the tranny and found the clutch fork had cracked well with me being a single mom and no money my neighbor whom is a certified welder mended it and we put it back together and it has ran awesome ever since. But if it isn't the clutch fork again I am completely stumped. Please help!

My car has 245 miles.
My car has a manual transmission.

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If everything else looks good, there is one other thing that can create such a sound. Of course this forum is not replacement for a technician being present to diagnose the problem.

What you need to check for next is crankshaft end play. Thread two or more flywheel bolts into the crankshaft without the flywheel. You will need two pry bars to pry the crankshaft end away from the block. Then push the crankshaft in. Sometimes you will need to remove the accessory belts to do this as they supply tension on the crankshaft making it hard to move. If it moves, then what is likely happening is the crankshaft is moving front to back and causing rubbing somewhere. The rubbing could be in the clutch or internally in the engine. There is a specification for the crankshaft end play. But the rule of thumb is if you can clearly see it move when prying and pushing on it, it is probably to much.

Aside from this, being you are not an experienced technician, you maybe missing something a mechanic will be able to see. If this hasn’t helped you find the source of the ticking, I recommend booking one of our mechanics to help you out to diagnose the noise firsthand.

Good luck. I hope I have helped you out.

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