M97 Ticking Noise at Idle

I've owned my 2007 Cayman S for about a month now. I started hearing an inconsistent ticking noise, mostly at idle after starting the engine. Typically it disappears after I start driving and doesn't return or is only heard at idle. Some days are better/worse than others. Some days it's not even there at all. I believe it's the hydraulic lifters on the left side of the vehicle. I can also feel the ticking through the clutch pedal. I've read many threads on this topic and have heard different opinions: 1) it's normal too tick at cold-start for a while as long as it goes away when you drive 2) it's a faulty hydraulic lifter and can be rebuilt 3) some people have had lifters replaced and still have the ticking 4) it'll eventually worsen, cause damage to the valve, and should be fixed 5) not actually lifters, but coils or something else failing I'm taking the car in to a local indy shop next week and will have them check it out. Personally, I already tried flushing the engine and replacing the oil a with 0w40 Mobil1 . I was previously using Liqui Moly 5w40 (same weight as previous owner) and thought switching to 0w40 would help. So far, it doesn't seem to have made much of an improvement, but it's only been 60 miles on the lighter oil. I also threw in a can of Liqui Moly Hydraulic Lifter Additive. Anyway, would love to hear more recent opinions on this topic since most of the threads I've seen are pretty old. I'll let you know how what the Indy mechanic says. Here's a video of the the ticking at idle. Please click on the video to hear the sound. This is probably the worst and most frequent, it's usually not as frequent. https://photos.app.goo.gl/Ut2bDZGcgAdCwsyW6

How's your oil consumption? Any smoking at startup?

Well, the noise bothers you so maybe try the easy stuff first. Oil level is critical. Check the oil every week. Never let it get low. If you plan to track your car, you may want to install a pre-oiler system. I would recommend changing the oil to Amsoil Synthetic. That may get rid of the noise. The combination of the ACCUSUMP and Amsoil will make the engine live on with nearly zero wear on your bearings. Keep in mind that you can purchase a pull out 3.4L engine for under $11,000 USD. That Amsoil with great filtration will go 25,000 miles before you must change it.

From your video I don't hear anything unusual. The ticking noise is most likely your exhaust heating up. IMHO Liqui Moly is better oil then Mobil 1 and probably one of the best on the market. Mine sounds the same. The initial rattle at start is normal. It lasts about 1-2 seconds from the lifters until the oil pressure builds up. As mentioned before good quality full synthetic oil 5-40 usually alleviate the issue.

It is hard to pull out what you are talking about relative to all the noise. However, I believe these engines have hydraulic lifters. When cold they would sound like tic tic tic at a steady rate that matches engine rpm. The lifters should pump up as the oil pressure comes up and get quieter after a minute or so. If they don't go away you may have a stuck tappet. Other non-rhythmic clicks and ticks are as some suggested just the exhaust system warming up.

The majority of the ticking we hear in the Cyaman/Boxter is coming from the injectors and is completely normal. They require a large amount of force to open in order atomize fuel at 3,000psi and clack loudly in the process. The sound is being made worse because of the engine position where all of these mechanical noises are being amplified off the ground right under the engine. There was even an article of this last year in one of the Porsche mags (Christopherus/Panorama/Excellence, I can't recall which) which discussed this in detail in an article about the injectors in Porsche motors and how they work. In that article they claimed that the majority of the noises we hear on Porsche engines are fuel system related. Porsche forums are full of these exact same questions and "is this normal" videos. It seems there is a new one posted here weekly, and I'm not sure which topic wins as the most common concern over nothing, this one or the "why does my front end shudder in tight turns?"

Thanks for your reply, hopefully my local mechanic will confirm tomorrow.

Check the plugs, a loose one will make a noise just like that

Mine does exactly the same, although yours seems to tick more frequently than mine. I am not worried about that...it sounds like some sheet metal expanding...could be the exhaust warming up. After shut down of the warm engine, spend a minute listening around...you will hear it tick as the exhaust cools down and contracts. Mine probably (and hopefully its just that) has a lifter issue at cold engine that you can hear in the video linked below. Since I took this video I've been driving the car every second day and the knocking noise has been going away both in frequency and amplitude...maybe these cars need to be driven more often https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4h-L6F59d8

Do you have an aftermarket exhaust ? Mine has something loose and I can hear it make a sound like that at idle. It also rattles ever so slightly at around 2500 rpms.

I have stock exhaust , with aftermarket tips from the previous owner.

Driving the new clutch for several days now, the ticking noise actually seems to be gone. I wonder if the ticking was coming from an old/defective part in the clutch assembly? Strange, I didn't think the intermittent ticking was coming from any of the clutch parts. Also possible that it's the switch to 0w40 Mobil1 oil? That oil was only in the car for 4 days before the clutch was replaced. Maybe the engine needed to have the lighter weight oil in the car for a while before it improved fluid flow compared to the previous 5w40. I may switch back to 5w40 in a few thousand miles to see if the ticking comes back.