The pinging noise I was getting on part load, 2000 - 2400 rpm, became masked by the A/C belt noise. About every other cold startup, it sounded like a mashed cat under the hood. The dealer replaced both belts at 17000 miles, and now the mystery noise is gone, too.

 

I have a weird rattle, sounds almost like metal tapping. This happens at idle but goes away when the engine RPMs increase (it's probably still there but I can't hear it over the engine). I thought it was a floated valve so I took it in to the dealership and they found nothing wrong with it (they couldn't even hear the sound). The noise is amplified when I'm in a closed area because the sound echoes off buildings/cars/walls.

 

while listening to my car it's most def from trans as well as valve tick so between the two that's the noise. the valves cannot be adjusted they use bucket shims and u do not want to pay for it ad it is normal aka not a warranty fix.



my trans is messed i'm going to say since i have a clutch put on as my cars sound wasnt as bad before i got the clutch put in.

 

I know this thread is kind of old but i had experienced a similar problem recently. When i would cruise on the highway just keeping speed in the 2k to 3k rpm range there would be a rattling (almost like a real low poping sound) which would disapper if i pushed or released the gas. I could also get the noise just revving the engine. At first i thought it was the a/c compresor getting ready to break. It turns out the exhaust gasket was bad. I had i changed and all is well again. Hope this info helps.

 

Which pulley? Idler pulley? Or, a drive pulley? Mine does this as well. Dealer tightened the belt, but that only helped the noise for a short while...I can still hear it. Also, was there a service bulletin that you know of? I find it hard to believe that most 05's have this and there's no TSB yet.

 

O've had the SAME 2k RMP abnormal vibration problem on my Auto xA and unfortunately I have BAD NEWS:

I own a 2004 Scion xA (auto) that was used as a demo vehicle at Scion Carlsbad. I bought the car w/ 2,000 miles on it. No modifications have been made other than LCD lights in my cup holders.

I just hit 50,000 and I had to repair & replace the following:

My water pump

My alternator

My drive belts

Additionally I had metal fatigue on my interior driver door panel and a large chunk of metal FELL OFF and got stuck in my door.

I went to Mossy Toyota & everything was fixed for $275, thank goodness I bought an extended warranty.

Talking with the techs I discovered these repairs are highly unusual. I was honest that I have been a bit rough on my car & run the AC a lot. They insured me there was nothing I could've done to cause these repairs.

I was worried I was being taken advantage of for being a young female with limited car knowledge, but my car literally sounded like Chewy when I brought it in.

Perhaps it was because I have a first year & first model scion, but I feel doubtful now about the vehicle's longevity.

Helpful hints:

Buy Toyota Platinum Extended Powertrain Warranty

Even if the dealer tells you they can't diagnose ANYTHING, KEEP BRINGING IT IN! I am going to fight the warranty company for not covering the drive belts since I HAVE DOCUMENTED this occuring practically since I BOUGHT the car! Keep a journal, log everything & get a tech to verify it. I am going to show this thread to my service advisor, he thinks it is a bunch of BS too!

 

the metal fatigue was from jackarses slamming the doors after test drives i'd assume .



and your xB was not the first model year. the toyota bB has been in japan since 99 as an 00 model...

 

I have the same pinging noise, and it has been there almost from the start. I first thought it was the low-quality gas sold in NY, but after I took the car to Europe, where 95 is the lowest octane rating, the noise did not disappear. However, my Toyota Yaris Verso (the European cousin of the xB) used to make a similar noise, which leads me to believe that is the way the computer governs the engine for maximum efficiency.

 

Hi, I'm the original poster of this issue. I have a second xB (I sold the first one and found an xB with even fewer miles). This one does the same 2K rpm - 2.4K rpm rattle. I agree it sounds very much like a diesel engine (which implies valve rattle to me). I tried higher octane gas with no change whatsoever.

I'm leaning towards this water pump/alternator/drive belt replacement issue. I asked the dealer to replace them or at least look at them. Same BS response.

This time, I'll show the dealer all these responses, and see what they say. How could this issue be a "mystery" or "normal"?? I'm worried about the longevity of the car too. Old timers will tell you, if an engine makes noises like this, there's something wrong with some of the parts. It's obvious the noise is rpm sensitive.

Please keep posting any new results from dealer attempts to repair. Thanks!

J.

 

I doubt this is an issue, since it's present in just about every car with this engine. Toyota engineers do their homework, and this engine/platform has been around since 2000. This probably means that the engine is designed that way. Hence, I am not going to worry about it and you should try to do the same. Somehow I have a lot of faith in this product, having owned a 2000 Yaris Verso previously for three trouble-free years in very harsh conditions.

 

They'll suddenly find the problem once the warranty is expired. How can my car all of a sudden start making this noise? That makes no sense.

 

Yes, I agree, but not many people have owned an xB for 5 years, since they were new in 2004. See the posts from the 50K+ miles person who has had to replace the drive belt/water pump/alternator system.

I just don't think toyota should consider noises like this normal, because it ocurrs only at certain rpm. That can happen with parts that resonate at certain rpm frequencies, etc. Or maybe it is just part of the weave? In any case, I sure like the car, the visibiltiy, the seating position, the interior cargo volume. It makes sense to me, and I'd rather drive a noisy xb than a silent Nissan Sentra!

 

The car has actually been around since 2000 (never mind the 2004 US Scion introduction). This particular platform has a very good reputation and is used in many Toyota models. For instance, the Finnish Post has a whole fleet of them, in cargo van configuration, as do many European airports. Many by now have well over 100K on them but seem to be doing just fine. Again, this platform is one of the most reliable ones among Toyota models, not to mention everything else. Don't worry too much about this noise, although I agree it is a little annoying.

 

Thanks for the info! I haven't been to Europe in some time, and didn't think the xB was sold there. But I realize lots of Euro cars are based on the same chassis as some here. I bet the Finns don't worry about the rattle because they are used to diesel. Same for Germans, etc.

J.

 

The xB is not sold as such in Europe, but a couple of other Toyota models, based on the exact same platform, are. And they have a very good reputation, naturally. This is in fact the reason I got the xB back in New York, having owned its cousin in Finland for 3 years previously. My xB is the only one in Western Europe (everyone stares at it with envy - and they should!), but there are some BBs from Japan - used ones - in Russia, which is Europe's biggest car market right now.

 

I know this is an old thread, but I am hoping there have been some updates to this since the last time it's been posted to. I've done searching, and this is the only one that relates to this noise.

2006 XB, have this same rattle, 2k-2.25k RPM rattle. It's real light, started around 30k. It sounds like the valves, judging from the pattern. It sounds so light compared to valve noise I've heard in other engines. Almost sounds like the valves made of plastic when I hear it. It is hard to describe.

The car has had Mobil 1 synthetic oil since it's 2nd change. Premium filters oil filters, Chevron 87 octane gas almost exclusively. New air filter from dealer.

I've tried new Iridium plugs, the NGKs recommended. I've given it a thorough Sea Foam treatment (oil, fuel, and a slow soak in through brake booster vacuum hose).

There was a nice little improvement from the new plugs, the old ones were well worn judging from the gap.

The noise is still there however. I doubt it's carbon, unless these engines have a bigger carbon buildup problem than I realize. I am thinking of doing another Seafoam treatment just before the next oil change again. Mainly thinking over oil additives now.

Thanks, and hope there has been an update to this.

 

I have heard this from a few people.

"I got this clacking knoise in my car , I have Mobile 1 for x miles"

mobile 1 seems to make our engines NOISEY. Not saying it is a bad oil , it just makes our motors clack more.

 

Think I solved the problem. I did not make the connection, but ETHANOL was introduced to our gas about the same time. I saw a gas station advertising "Ethanol Free Gas." So I tried it, and after 10 miles, the noise was gone. It's been over 20 miles now, and I cannot reproduce this noise anymore. For a while, the engine was starting to sound like an old VW Beetle with the valves clattering right around 2k RPM.

So I am led to believe that darn "up to 10% ethanol" fuel is the problem. Wish they would do away with it, zero benefits and more environmental problems. Nothing but a big scam anyways.

 

I've had a noise for a long time now where the dealer said "there is nothing we can do about it until it gets worse" hahaha. According to them it is the A/C compressor clutch or something of that sort. Nice little annoying metallic rattle that just has to happen when cruising around 2500-2800 rpm. Darn that 4th gear.

 

I have had the same noise for a good 30K...between 2000 and 2300 RPM. I have an 05xb since new, now has 85K. Three dealers could not find the sound. I was able to finally point them to where it was coming from. They decided to narrow it down by eliminating belts. They determined it is a bearing in the A/C compressor. It makes the noise where the A/C is on or not. Of course my extended warranty expired in July and I took it in multiple time before that and they could not find the problem. New compressor = $1600. The A/C is cooling fine. Guess I will let it go. They are going to call Toyota and see if they will do anything about it.

Toyota would not do anything about it because the dealer could not identify the problem in any of the other visits. Guess I will just weight until the bearings go and then replace it....if I still have the car.