Thread: 300 tdi turbo making a weird ticking sound

ok my defender is quite sick at the moment, it started off with the starter motor sounding a lil sick, then a few weeks later the water pump started sounding sick and now it seem the turbo is making a weird ticking sound...it started off being real quiet, anyone i asked if they could hear it just said it was the sound of the diesel idling over but it seems to be getting louder......more so when engine is warm or done a bit of highway driving,

anyone had this happen to them or can offer some solutions?........i know putting the defender out of its misery is one option but dont tempt me with that please lol

Hi Richard,

No ideas about the starter and/or water pump but I'd be checking the tappets before assuming the turbo is ill.

Another possibility is a leaking manifold gasket. If one of the exhaust ports is leaking through the gasket, it can make a 'ticking' sort of sound.

If your PCV system is still installed and there's a lot of oil down the manifold/turbo side of the block, you've almost certainly got a leaky manifold gasket.

Ian