In a message dated 96-11-28 23:02:18 EST, you write:
>
>After playing with the car before we left town for T-day it may just be
>the chain (wishful thinking). The rattling is worst at idle and is
>prevalent on the return to idle. I did not have enough time to remove
>the fan belt, but I did put a metal rod and later a piece of heater hose
>on the various engine parts up near the front to determine where the
>noise comes from.
Jack-
If indeed your problem is the chain, you can actually feel it hitting the
side of the cover. WATCH OUT FOR THE FAN, but if you put your hand on the
drivers side of the timing cover you should be able to feel the chain hit the
case.
Another way to check for a bad chain is to check for spark scatter. Make a
large mark on the pulley at tdc so that it is very easy to see, hook up your
timing light, and run the motor where you hear the most noise. If the mark
appears to be jumping back and forth, it is a bad chain. Now, just to double
check, run the motor at a speed that there is no noise and check to see if
the mark jumps as much as you will probably get some spark scatter due to the
worn distributor.
The Car Curmudgeon
Nick in Nor Cal
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