You say Deep Tap, is this in the upper half of the engine of the lower half?

Also, how long have you owner the car and what are the oil change records like?

It only happens for seconds, when the engine is cold and then goes away. That is why I think it has to do with the oil settling. I have not been able to tell exactly where it comes from.

Ross,

When you make reference to the "oil check valve" is the same part as a Oil Relief Valve in Filter Housing? I also have a similar problem with my 92 400se making a taping noise for a short time upon cold starups. The noise sounds like it's coming from the oil filter housing/distributor cap area (passenger side) of the engine. I'm going to get a Stethoscope from the auto store this weekend and see if I can better isolate the "taping noise" area.

Russell

Russell,

I'm sorry. I used a incorrect description for the part.

zeronero,

Click here for a detail thead that may very well fix the noise. The part is roughly $60. :)

The 400E vs. 500E M119.xxx engine is mostly the same except for Compression Ratio and piston / bore size. All the 500E engine info found on this forum can be also be applied to the 400E engine.

That seems to be the problem, next time I change the oil I'll replace that as well.

That thread that you listed is 3 pages long. Can someone cut paste the relevant part and part# on this thread?

Thanks!

This is the first thing to check the

You will have to read the whole thing to get the picture

wjm, on your shift knob did you cut the post and glue it or were you lucky enough to find a wood and leather one with the post attached?

Regarding shift knob.... I bought the knob and the shift post... they came separate. It took some time, but I was able to get the old one out completely.

Parts List
 

119-184-02-80 Gasket (housing to block)

119-184-01-30 Valve Seat kit

Thanks

Another item to check is the air injection pump, which runs for about 3 minutes at startup. I had a persistent ticking as well and when my mechanic disconnected the pump the ticking went away!

Left it disconnected (causes no running problems but may violate air quality laws - check local statutes) but after a few weeks the check engine light went on cause it was registering as a fault. Reconnected the pump and put up with the noise for the first few minutes every morning.

After about a year the ticking noise went away....go figure?

Dean,

www.europarts-sd.com carries a rebuilt air injection pump for $350 if you ever decide the ticking is getting annoying. They also mentioned that the check valve which prevents exhaust from getting into the air injection pump is the main cause for the pump failure. Cost for the valve was $35.00ea.

Luckly my pump works fine. It does make a small amount of noise when on but none at all when it turns off.