I have literally no idea why this sound is occurring. Possible piston slap?

Dang, how much was that to fix?

the sound certainly gets a bit quieter in gear. Sometimes the sound is more apparent than other times. It doesn’t quite make sense to me. Just hoping it’s nothing too serious..

 

Take a sample of your oil and send it off for analysis to some place like Blackstone Labs. It is cheap to do.

 

Took it to a shop today (they were busy, but came out to at least take a listen. Which was cool, didn’t ask them to!)

anyway

some questions he asked

does it run good? Yes
Does it idle fine? Yes
(Unscrewed oil cap, shined a like down and observed. Said it looks really good.)
Checked oil level (looks good)

Is it worse in a cold start? No
Does it get worse as you rev the engine? No
Does it get worse going down the road? No, it gets quieter in gear. Can’t hear it when I’m driving

final verdict (for now) : Just drive it.

he said you’ll know if it gets worse. The fact that it hasn’t isn’t a telling sign, but it’s also not a death sentence.

he mentioned that it would need investigated to determine the exact source, but the engine itself sounds fine.

he said he would just drive it and if it gets worse.. THEN bring it down. Of course it wasn’t doing it there on the spot. (At least as loud).

nonetheless.. I think he’s right. I should just drive and observe. If it gets worse I’ll just make the inspection appointment

others say theirs sounds the same.. some say “mine doesn’t sound like that” .


Who knows. ‍♂️

 

Piston slap....... Not likely.

The piston fits the cylinder bore with a few thousandths of an inch clearance. Plus the length of piston prevents the piston flopping around in the cylinder bore.

If by some chance the piston is "slapping" around in the cylinder bore, then you have serious engine problems and the resulting noise will be horrendous.

 

makes sense! I was told by well.. the internet that’s what it may be. That’s why I wanted more feedback lol.

 

3k for a used motor. The used one sounded real quite. They put a little hole in the oil pan so we had to rip that motor out to change the upper oil pan. Luckily i can change a motor so no labor

 

Suggest you spend a little time to learn about the basic assembly of a piston type engine.

Try a 1 cylinder lawnmower engine. They all assemble the same basic way.

 

i agree, something I shouldn’t have to guess with.

 

Piston slap is an actual thing.. it used a problem for older Hondas in the 90s. The pistons are aluminum and they would rattle (slap) in the bores when cold. The clearances were just a hair too loose when cold, when the engine heated up they would expand and quiet down. Might not be what's going with OP's truck but it does happen

 

You're over thinking it. You said the sound was coming from the cat. It would make sense the sound is worse at idle.. more vibration.
Inspect the cat again. I'm sure something is loose there. Either a heat shield or something internal.

 

for sure. I think I’m still in the “oh god, please don’t be serious” phase. We all love our trucks, but you know.. it is what it is.

still drives great!

 

Heat shields are notorious for coming loose.

Is the noise like a cheap tinny sound? Similar to a empty tomato can rattling around in a metal box.

 

Sounds like most Toyotas I've owned. The 22R-E in my old Pickup used to sound like a diesel.

 

Well fellas, idk if this will help but I made another video. I’m not too good at helping find the obvious. I just thank y’all for your help as is. I made this in the event anyone wanted more clarity.

https://youtu.be/zcHQmg7vvBI

 

I had a similar noise coming from mine. I really only noticed it at idle. It wasn't bad, considering it's 10 years old with 165K on the odometer, but it was mildly annoying to me. I was prepared to live with it. But after my first oil change ( I bought the truck last November), the noise has vanished! I was pleasantly surprised. I don't know what oil was in it, but I put in Castrol EDGE Extended Performance (gold bottle) 5W30 full synthetic. The oil level was full when I changed the oil. Maybe try a different oil and see what happens?

 

I’ve had the truck about 35 days and it’s due for one! I’ll give that a shot.

 

If you can inspect the filter media. You'll need to cut the filter open

 

When I inspect it, what should I look for? Also, if I find something abnormal should I do anything specific? I’ll have it done by the shop when I get the oil changed. I was all excited to change it myself, but just to make sure.. I’ll have actual mechanics inspect it lol

 

Its the Cat... mine is the same.. took it off, and didnt hear it. You can really tell if you get under there with a hose in your ear. The sound comes straight from the cat

 

thank you. I thought it may be.