Cold engine rattles

R

rmhodgson

If left out overnight in cold winter weather the engine rattles when started - sound much like tappets used to sound in the olden days. The noise continues for about the first mile or two and is more noticeable under power. Am wondering if there is a restriction in an oil way and thus taking time to get warm (thin) enough to get through but unsure what might be making the noise. Hydraulic tappets would normally rule this out wouldn't they. Am worried that cams might be wearing excessivly. Car is 3.5 years old so no chance of warranty as of right. Any ideas what this might be and how to get it fixed would be appreciated. In warmer weather or after a warm start there is no sign of the noise
:(
 
did you have anti freeze in it? if not the water could have froze over and expanded could have cracked the bottom end! any leaks? smoke?
 
cracked the bottom end lol, some k12,s have had chain problems (your is a 1.3 ???)
but they usually cause running problems rather than rattles, and the followers are,nt hydraulic btw :)
 
Initial reactions

I don't buy the antifreeze suggestion - car is fully protected and the noise goes away once engine is warm. I double checked the registration docs - engine is 1240cc model is "Micra S Auto" - owners handbook implies the engine is of type CR12DE, if that helps. The symptoms suggest temporary oil starvation to me - but not sure where to or how it occurs / corrects itself on warm up and why it only happens after prologed park in really cold weather.
 
Update

To respond to earier questions..

No it does not rattle when idling - it's a tappit like sound while demanding power from the engine (not on overrun) and only when engine is cold - pretty well until the blue light extinguishes to indicate engine temp OK
 
as i posted on another thread i found out the problem its the shield around the manifold not the heat shield!its just under the engin
 
Mine did exactly that from new until the first oil change and then it went away.

Maybe other members can help here but if the timing chain tensioner is oil dependant it may be the cause.

The reason may be that you should use a different grade of oil for the temperature you drive in or change per season (summer/winter)
 
my k12 1.0 had over 130,000 miles on it and was a little bit rattly on start up...
personally i wait around 20-30 seconds before i drive away (from cold start only) to give the oil a chance to get around the engine before i put any kind of load on it... i also switched to 5w30 oil and since making these changes it sounds far sweeter.

but the micras do have famously noisey timing chains although that shouldnt persist for too long after start up.

has your car been serviced recently or is it overdue a serivce? what kind of mileage is on it?
 

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