motor rattling like crazy

[SR20drftSX]

i cut the bottom off my airbox and then drove it downtown and back and when i got back the motor was rattling like hell and the noise is comming from the front of the motor around the cam shaft and yu can hear it comming fron around the valve cover all along where the plugs are....its a metal to metal type of noise...idk if it tried to advance the timing or something and idk..it might be the timing chain slappin against the side of the case...i really dont know anything bout this type of thing..any advice is much appreciated...thanks alot

Garrett H , NY

know where i can get a dohc by any chance? thanks

[SR20drftSX]

i have the 2.4L SOHC by the way and its a 5 speed all stcok except a 2.5 inch cat back , and no its not an exhaust rattle

[TrueSlide]

timing chain rattle. I would pull your valve cover and make sure the guides are still intact. Mine was not and the chain ate a hole in the front cover, through the coolant jacket cause the coolant to dump in the oil and a shat load of other problems. Timing guides are not difficult to replace.

[S13FX]

Or you can do away with the timing guides all together. I think though you can only get rid of the top one and the bottom one you might have to replace, Im sure someone here knows. There is also a great write up on here about removing the guides, that's what I used to do mine and it all took me about 45 mins. But I only removed the top one cause I wasnt having any trouble with the bottom one .

[SR20drftSX]

i have the SOHC...i cant remove the guides..ill see what i can do..ill prolly just have to park it for a while...how long was it after it started and yu drove it did it eat through the jacket?

[S13FX]

I have the SOHC too, and mine wasnt bad at all, I did hear the tickin noise but since the tensioner pulley is ran by oil pressure as soon as I added gas and raised the oil pressure it went away. But I took them off anyways. And the tear wasnt bad at all, it look like it bearly touched it but I still did it just in case.

[SR20drftSX]

so your suggestuiong taking the guides off? or just the right one or what? and wont the chain hit on the chain tensioner and make a lot of noise? idk..i just want the thing to be reliable and not tear my stuff up

[SR20drftSX]

nvm...it was just out of oil hahaha..i check it like 2 days before it started and it was on the full line...and then i checked it today and it wasn't even reading on the dipstick..but i added some and its all good now