The Triumph Dolomite Club - Discussion Forum

Sprint started making bottom end noises the other day as I drove along at 70mph. Oil pressures still good though.... Took the cam cover off to see if anything was wrong up top but it all seems fine and sounds like its coming from deeper inside the engine...


Spun bearing? Blocking up the oil hole in the crank so the pressure is still fine?

When you say oil pressure is still good, is this from a gauge? Or from the standard switch?

Could be a failed timing chain tensioner. Main bearings rumble, big ends knock, timing chain makes a terrible rattle from the front.

David

standard switch. Goes out on the starter as always

The light is a "your engine is broken" light and doesn't come on til about 3psi so you could have very little oil pressure and still not have the light on

Well my old 1500 engine wasn't as noisey but would flicker the oil pressure light at idle

I don't really know what to do now... My insurance is due in a week but I'm likely to end up taking it off the road to rebuild it....

take it off the road then. Laid up cover is only £40 and you can always put a bit aside for when you reinsure it later in the year.

will they give me the same price wether I renew immediatly or if I renew in 2 months time?

2F45T4U wrote:will they give me the same price wether I renew immediatly or if I renew in 2 months time?

They probably will, especially if it's a classic and you have been continually insured with them (hence the laid up policy), but you should ring and check.

Doubtfull i've missed my renewal by a couple of days on the Jensen twice and both times they had to start the quote from scratch and cost me a bout a tenner more.

its ok rung them up and they said that quote is guaranteed for 30 days

Whip the timing cover off and have a prod at the timing chain, sprint36 is likely correct in the first suggestion. Also try checking the ignition timing by the static method first pushing the car forward and then pushing it backwards. A big difference between the two again suggests tensioner. Been there twice.

Tinweevil

In fact you can see if the chain is slack by poking a long screwdriver down the oil filler hole and seeing if you can move the chain. Or you could whip the rocker cover off and have a look at the whole top end. You might find something like Alun did!

David

top end came off when I first heard the noise, sounds deeper than top end. Chain is tensioned fine

Get yourself a rod of steel or similar Welsh Wonder and go round the block listening with the rod pressed at ear t'other end may pin point sound. Engines are very simple so it cannot be too hard to find.