A tick while in overdrive

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Dewhittier
Posts: 5
Joined: Wed Aug 30, 2023 6:13 am

A tick while in overdrive

Post by Dewhittier »

Hi. Sorry to bother but I have a quick question with hopes that someone will be able to help someway.
I have a 2003 Pontiac Vibe and I love it it runs great drives great without having any major problems until now. I recently was on a trip to MO to MN and on the highway my serpentine belt didn't completely break but frayed and I lost power pulled over to figure it out and then it wouldn't start had it towed to tires plus and had the belt and the tensioner replaced then continued on the journey and so the question now when the cruise is on and it shifts into overdrive I hear ticking but only only when it first shifts into od and when I reproduce it with the throdel pedal when the ticking starts if you let off the pedal a little bit the ticking stops even while still in of and I don't hear it any other time and it's running ok the idea is a little low about 3/4 of a grand and it cranks a little more than usual but fire's up relatively good so would anyone have any idea on what could be causing the tick I'm still in MN and will be heading home soon and with digging into the issue more but for now I'm just trying to figure it out with hopes of making it home so any help would be greatly appreciated thank you so much for your time have a great day and take care and God bless.
andrewclaus
Posts: 546
Joined: Tue Oct 03, 2017 6:38 pm
Location: Golden, CO

Re: A tick while in overdrive

Post by andrewclaus »

It sounds like the car was driven for a while with a very loose belt, which could explain why you didn't have cranking power, and maybe it stalled due to lack of ignition power. That belt also drives the water pump, so it's possible the engine ran too hot for too long, and there's some mechanical damage. A compression or bleed-down test would be needed to rule that out.

Some punctuation would help in reading your post.
Dewhittier
Posts: 5
Joined: Wed Aug 30, 2023 6:13 am

Re: A tick while in overdrive

Post by Dewhittier »

Hi. Thank you for your response.
And sorry for the bad punctuation I had a stroke a few years ago and sometimes my brain isn't quite there.
Anyways.
We made it back to Missouri from MN and the car ran relatively well.
I got home and ran a scan and got four error codes.
P0301 P0302 P0304 and P0442
So I replaced the coil packs and spark plugs and the EVAP system purge valve and reset the computer.
I ran a scan again and it resolved the error codes.
The car runs good a strong constant idle and good power with no ticks or anything while reeving engine.
But still when it shifts into the second stage of overdrive it has a ticking sound.
It doesn't sound like a high frequency lifter tick but more like a muffeled exhaust or air tick.
Also about your previous suggestions.
I was driving it when the situation happened and I pulled over right away and prior and during what happened the car never got hot or anything close to overheating.
Could it possibly be some kind of timing issue?
I don't understand why everything runs good except for the tick in overdrive.
Sorry if bothering but any suggestions or ideas would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you for your time.
Take care and God bless and have a great day.
andrewclaus
Posts: 546
Joined: Tue Oct 03, 2017 6:38 pm
Location: Golden, CO

Re: A tick while in overdrive

Post by andrewclaus »

When you say "second stage of overdrive," do you mean when the torque converter locks in?

I wonder if you switched overdrive off, would you still get the sound when the torque converter locks in while in Drive? If it does, I'd suspect some sort of problem with the torque converter lock, though I have no idea exactly what. If it does not, I'd suspect a problem with the overdrive gearing. Either one is a transmission problem.

Since it sounds like it's slower than engine speed, it probably would not be a timing or engine problem.
SSizler
Posts: 172
Joined: Tue Jan 21, 2020 7:06 pm
Location: Urbandale, Iowa

Re: A tick while in overdrive

Post by SSizler »

I agree with Andrew that your "second overdrive " is actually your torque converter lockup.
If you only hear the tick in lockup it may be because the engine noise is much lower in lockup.
You may be hearing something that is always there at a low level you don't notice until the engine noise is lower.
Since it started after your belt frayed, maybe part of the belt damaged something, or is the something.
Have you been completely under the car looking for secondary damage?
Belt strands around the axle?
Vacuum connection knocked loose by belt parts?
Maybe you just have a new exhaust leak?
All things to consider and check.
Keep us updated.
2003 Vibe Base/ Frosty White Mono/ Total Loss 1-23
2006 Vibe AWD/ Lava Red Mono/ Loaded w/Leather and Sport Pkg/ 150k mi
2006 Vibe Base/ Stealth Gray Mono/ Loaded w/Leather/ 180k mi
40 years with a wonderful woman / 2 adult kids
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