Urgent Question for Cobra Owners

[KyleSVT9]

Hi everyone, my name is Kyle and I've recently found a cobra mustang that I want to purchase soon. This specific cobra has 62,xxx miles and is completely stock. Here is the kicker. As most of you know, Cobras have always had a tick issue in the valve train. This cobra has the damn tick. Many people have claimed that it is just a lash adjuster. Not only does the car have a tick, but the car is 2 hours away. So here is where my question to you all comes in: would it be safe for me to drive a cobra 2 hours with a slight tick? Or would the tick cause too much damage? The tick would be fixed as soon as it reaches my home town, but I don't want internal damage done to the engine. Thanks everyone.

 

[cobralvr01]

Yes? No offense but that's kind of an odd question. Cobras have this tick because of two reasons 1] lash adjusters and 2]there's so much valvetrain components you can't not make noise. My G37 with 24 valves has the same thing. I've had my Cobra for the past 2 years and it's always had that tick. My first Cobra only had 32k original miles and it had the tick. You'll be fine and a lot people will go ahead and readjust the lashes just to get rid of the ticking noise because it annoys them. So...yes, you'll be fine. Welcome to SVTP, by the way. When you get the Cobra make an introduction thread with pics!

 

[KyleSVT9]

Yes? No offense but that's kind of an odd question. Cobras have this tick because of two reasons 1] lash adjusters and 2]there's so much valvetrain components you can't not make noise. My G37 with 24 valves has the same thing. I've had my Cobra for the past 2 years and it's always had that tick. My first Cobra only had 32k original miles and it had the tick. You'll be fine and a lot people will go ahead and readjust the lashes just to get rid of the ticking noise because it annoys them. So...yes, you'll be fine.

Thanks for the reply, the seller just claimed that the tick had just started occurring and that it was coming from the passenger side. I haven't heard the tick in a video or anything so I wanted to be better safe than sorry. Thanks again!

 

[cobralvr01]

Yeah, my Cobras ticking is coming from the passenger side too You'll be fine. Pull the trigger and have fun!

 

[RDJ]

what year is it ?

 

[cobralvr01]

Based on his thread tags it's a 96-98 Cobra.

 

[cbr repsol]

Many people I have heard drive with the tick.
I had thought the 99 to 04s with the car heads were more prone to it.

 

[cbr repsol]

C head's I ment.

 

[TBCobra]

Better make sure what kind of tick it is before you buy it.

 

[CobraBob]

I agree with TBCobra. Don't assume anything. Check it yourself or at a good shop before you lay out your money. Or request that the seller have it checked and forward you the diagnostic report.

First, if this is a 1996-1998 Cobra with the factory motor, if should have the 'B' heads. The "tick issue" only occurs (occasionally) with the 'C' heads. So the ticking the owner is hearing would likely be another issue. Could then be one of a number of possible causes.

 

[keystonemedical]

I had a 97 Cobra with the B heads and had the tick with 40,000 some thousand on it. It was annoying but, If your in luv with the car, I wouldnt sweat the tick.

 

[CobraBob]

Keystonemedical, you're sure it was the "tick issue"? Was it proven to be from a worn valve guide allowing the valve stem to move? FYI, this is caused by overheating of the area due to poor coolant flow in the part of the left bank cylinder head. Like I said in my post, the "tick issue" occurs with 'C' head modulars. I've never heard of it happening in a 'B' head modular.

 

[cobralvr01]

I'm not sure where you're finding that this is a rare issue because this is actually very common on B heads. There's a lot of threads you can find on SVTP regarding this issue. But OP, confirm it is valve train ticking rather than a knocking. If it is a ticking then you should be fine. I take back my rambunctious statement of pullng the trigger. Always take a car to a shop before purchasing.

 

[Tabres]

Keystonemedical, you're sure it was the "tick issue"? Was it proven to be from a worn valve guide allowing the valve stem to move? FYI, this is caused by overheating of the area due to poor coolant flow in the part of the left bank cylinder head. Like I said in my post, the "tick issue" occurs with 'C' head modulars. I've never heard of it happening in a 'B' head modular.

They're two different things being referred to by a similar name, and are easy to confuse for someone predominantly knowledgeable in C-head cars. In this case, what everyone is referring to as a tick is not the cylinder head itself like what is found in the C-head cars. In B-head cars, the noise is the hydraulic lash adjusters that fail to pump up all the way and causes an audible tick. The issue has been around dating all the way back to 96 in Mustangs, and even earlier in Mark VIII's.

If you do choose to purchase the vehicle, you'll be fine driving it home if that really is what is causing the noise.

 

[CobraBob]

They're two different things being referred to by a similar name, and are easy to confuse for someone predominantly knowledgeable in C-head cars. In this case, what everyone is referring to as a tick is not the cylinder head itself like what is found in the C-head cars. In B-head cars, the noise is the hydraulic lash adjusters that fail to pump up all the way and causes an audible tick. The issue has been around dating all the way back to 96 in Mustangs, and even earlier in Mark VIII's.

If you do choose to purchase the vehicle, you'll be fine driving it home if that really is what is causing the noise.

Thank you for clearing this up. I was starting to think maybe I was not aware they were the same issue. LOL. You clearly explained the differences, even though they're both called a "tick issue". Thanks again for you post.