KA24 Chain Noise AFTER removing guides (tensioner works)

[DallasW]

Hey all,So just getting ready to sell the '95 S14, it has about 100,000 miles on it, so I pulled it out of storage (has been sitting for about a year) and did a few things.

One of the main things before when I was driving it was that it had a bit of timing chain noise, so that was one of the first things I fixed. I didn't start it BEFORE I did this fix, but I know when I was driving it previously the chain noise was noticable.

Yesterday I went through the timing chain guide removal tutorial, and all seemed to go well. I took BOTH of the guides. Also, I ensured my tensioners were both working properly. The top one seemed to move well, moves back all the way and pushes the chain forward when released, as it was supposed to. The bottom one was in similar condition. The guides were both worn fairly similarly to the tutorial I used, maybe a bit worse. The chain is tight on top between the gears, little rebound.

So I went back and put it all back together, left it overnight, and threw in a new battery today and started it up. It's making a pretty awful noise, I can't tell if it is coming from the timing chain or the valve train however, but it seems more like the timing chain. I checked the oil (it's old from sitting, but full, I was going to change it after a seafoam)

The noise sounds like a constant grinding, and if you listen closely it seems like there is the odd "ping" as well.

The timing chain itself seems in good condition, no bad wear, so I'm not sure what the problem is. There was also a fair amount of carbon build up on the bottom of the valve train, not sure what that is from. Attached are pictures and videos. Anyone else have any thoughts one something I did wrong or what else this could be?

I also tried rotating the crank by hand and inspecting for any problems. The timing chain seems REALLY loose as you can see in the videos, but only at specific points etc. Is this normal because if the tensioner is working as it should the left side should be kept tight (more slack if the tensioner wasn't there) , and the top/bottom should be tight then? When the "loose" part of the chain is on the tensioner side, then the tensioner still moves freely and easily as it should, but if the "tight" part of the chain is on the tensioner side, the tensioner is totally pushed in. Also on the top of the valve cover there is a very faint outline of the timing chain, all the way across and down the sides of the cover, I'm assuming from the chain hitting the cover? You can also see slight wear marks on the outside of the chain (not the chain part itself, just the guides around the outside if that makes sense) that looks like they were dinged up when hitting the valve cover (or maybe from the guides before)

The more and more I research the more it seems like it's caused by low oil pressure and not activating the tensioner, but this occurs at all RPM's not only idle. What is an easy way to check the oil pressure (what can I easily use to do this) and also what is the normal range for the oil pressure. I'm going to pull off the oil pump and see if that's what's causing the problem as well, as seen in this thread: zerothread/161684

Thanks in advance for the help!

PS- Yes I know the engine bay is dirty, it's on the to do list!



VIDEOS:YouTube - 240SX Timing Chain NoiseYouTube - 240SX Timing Chain Looseness

[MooMoos14]

Check the bottom of your valve cover to see if it's slapping that?