Stelvio Engine Clatter at Idle

[jukester]

2009 Stelvio; 40k km. Bike starts easily cold and idles perfectly and "quietly". After a couple of miles ride (or after idling for about 5-10 minutes) engine makes a loud, clattering sound when idling (at a stop sign, light, etc.). Once rolling, the clattering sound is not noticeable. The bike has been rollerized, valves set correctly, correct 10W- 60 oil, TBs balanced and TPS reset, sump gasket and sump spacer gaskets replaced, all fluids replaced, no change in idling sound with clutch lever in or out, exhaust clamps and gaskets all tight and secure, no error messages, no warning lights, no low oil pressure light, etc.. Since it was rollerized shortly after I purchased it, I can't recall if the idling noise was there prior to rollerizing but I don't think so (but not positive). It was rollerized about 3K km ago. Bike pulls perfectly up to redline, shifts smoothly, and otherwise runs like a dream except for the god-awful clatter when idling after warming up.
So my questions are: As the engine oil warms up, what occurs in the oil delivery circuit that could maybe cause this? Am I causing any internal damage, even though it has been running this way for at least 3k km ? Is there anything in the roller installation (C kit) that might cause this? Your thoughts ?
And yes, I do wear ear plugs. Thx for any suggestions.

 

[GTM®]

Noises are nearly impossible to diagnose here via the net. That said, can you guess on where the sound is coming from?
It could be the hydraulic cam chain tensioner as a guess. I’ll ping our friend Jim Hamlin and ask him if he’s seen anything fail there. I have a similar noise lately in my ‘13 NTX. At first I thought it was a loose skid plate. I’ll dig into it if it gets any louder.

 

[jukester]

Noises are nearly impossible to diagnose here via the net. That said, can you guess on where the sound is coming from?
It could be the hydraulic cam chain tensioner as a guess. I’ll ping our friend Jim Hamlin and ask him if he’s seen anything fail there. I have a similar noise lately in my ‘13 NTX. At first I thought it was a loose skid plate. I’ll dig into it if it gets any louder.

Yes, I agree noises are difficult to diagnose over the internet, so I thought it better to just describe a god-awful clattering at idle rather than post a recording.. It seems to come from somewhere in the engine; not specific to one side or the other. Would a cam tensioner issue only occur at idle after the engine has warmed up ? Thanks for checking with Jim Hamlin.

 

[GTM®]

Would a cam tensioner issue only occur at idle after the engine has warmed up ?

Generally opposite, but mine like yours, seems to get louder once warmed up. I don’t want to take you down the wrong path here, as it may be something far more serious on yours.
Jim’s words…

We've seen a couple over the years that became noisy, mostly at startup. We've replaced a couple. If I recall the right side is easy, the left isn't, we may have had to remove the left cylinder head to do it. I've never seen an outright failure though.

 

[jukester]

I'll check out the camchain tensioner, thx.

Meanwhile, perhaps I'll copy and paste my post to the Stelvio forum in case someone over there may have experienced a similar problem.

 

[GTM®]

Welcome, and no need. I’ll move this entire thread over.

 

[jukester]

Problem solved.
The right hand cam chain tensioner was mistakenly installed upside down sometime during the rollerization process. Pulled the tank, re-installed the tensioner right side up and no more clatter. Also, there appears to be no damage or ill effects after running in this condition for approx 2000 km.

 

[scottmastrocinque]

Wow! Sharp diagnosis and remediation. Congratulations.

 

[gbe.bell]

Problem solved.
The right hand cam chain tensioner was mistakenly installed upside down sometime during the rollerization process. Pulled the tank, re-installed the tensioner right side up and no more clatter. Also, there appears to be no damage or ill effects after running in this condition for approx 2000 km.

so what was the correct way to install - plunger end in first or does the plunger rest directly below the bolt/plug (by plunger I mean the end part with the small oil hole on the side that slides into the sleeve)? Was it straight forward / any special tricks to putting this in?

 

[jukester]

No special tricks or tips. It will slide in easily either way. If it's easier to understand, then the larger diameter end goes in first. You can also see the correct orientation of both cam tensioners on any Stelvio parts diagrams.