ok got the oil leak fixed (turns out i forgot to tighten a fitting hehe) so i drove to work today.

i noticed that sometimes, in any gear before i hit boost, i hear a very slight "ra-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat" sound that goes away after i boost; so basically whenver i hit the gas to accelerate (just normal acceleration), i hear it and then it goes away (or my exhaust drones it out). i hear it in low rpm's (under 2.5-3k) but can't make out any sound in higher rpm's. it doesn't sound like marbles in a can or anything close but more like tapping a pen on a table or something like that ... very discrete. is this detonation? i check the plugs last night and i didn't see any flakes - in fact, after a search, my plug kinda looks like HXMan's (https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=205262) but i only have about 25 miles on the plugs and i haven't revved higher than 6.5k rpm.

btw, setup is stock timing, untuned hondata w/ 440 injectors, walbro intank, aem fpr w/ pressure set at ~43 hose on, maxrev turbo, carsound cat, and themal exhaust.

 

Sounds like an exhaust leak.

 

Hmmm....you know what we really need?? A J&S Safeguard...all I want is the classic but I don't know where to buy one from.

Or, it would be nice to have someone in my car that knew what detonation sounded like.

What engine do you have?

 

b18c1. if it's an exhaust leak like dustin says it might be, i'll be the happiest guy on earth

i used studs and nuts for everything except for the wastegate to the manifold. i might have to recheck if everything is tight but it really doesn't sound like pinging and it only happens in very low rpms ... almost like something is banging or rubbing against something else.

 

Perhaps your IC piping is bumping something. Mine was really close to rubbing on my lower passanger engine mount....

 

If it is a low RPMs and low load it's not pinging. Unless you are trying to careen a huge hill at 2000rpm in 5th gear.

For us, significant pinging only occurs at high load or at tip in..

 

If it's a discreet ratteling of any sort... Pen tapping or whatever even at low revs it's most likely detonation. I was getting it on mine under 2500 when seeing 1-3 psi boost. You have to be sure you're not boosting to be sure it's not under load. If your boost guage sais vac all the way and you hear this, it's most likely not detonation. But a tapping pen sound is close... I always hated the marble in a can idea... cuz it doesn't describe the sound correctly. Anyone willing to post a WAV file on it...

 

My ping sounds like rat atatat. Bring back the timing and see if that works, if it does then you were pinging. If your exhaust is exessively loud and sounds weird and funky then you have an exhaust leak or maybe it's heat shield rattle. But pretty sure it's pinging.

 

i'm 99% sure it's not pinging but rather something loose and rattling at low rpm .. my friend drove it and i listened intently and we both concluded it sounds more like a minor rattle ... car runs great and that wastegate is loud!!

oh man my stock michelin's aren't gonna last much longer hehe

 

you should get studs for the wastegate. I had that problem before too. check to make sure the downpipe flange is flush with the turbine housing also.