Ticking Tahoe

[dadenkern]

FYI only. My wife recently complained of a "ticking" sound from the engine bay intermittently ONLY while driving or parked on an uphill incline. My first thought when she described a ticking sound was lifters but after a few weeks of cold starting the vehicle and not hearing a thing I finally experienced the ticking sound myself when parked in a friend's inclined driveway.

Long story short, I found the recoil/return spring in the starter had failed allowing the starter gear to rub on the engine flywheel when parked on an incline. Replaced the starter this weekend and all is well!

2012 Tahoe LTZ
225,000 miles

 

[j91z28d1]

that's a good find.

 

[OR VietVet]

While I have seen this happen before, it is such a rare thing to happen, the situation has to be exactly the same when diagnosing the problem. In my 35+ years in shops and another 10+ in driveways, I think I have heard or seen this problem maybe 3 times, counting this instance. If the OP was the one who FOUND the problem, I commend his/her diagnostic abilities. That is over half the battle, finding the problem. Good job.

 

[iamdub]

This just happened to another member a month or so ago. IIRC, @Geotrash called it.