TNBoater

My wife just bought a 2016 LS460. This is our 3rd LS, having previously owned a 400 and. 430. The 2016 has much more engine noise than either the 400 or particularly the 430. The 430 was whisper quiet at idle and mild acceleration. The 460 is much louder in general. I notice a definite ticking noise at low idle and around 1200 rpm under light acceleration / deceleration. At first I thought it was slight valve knock.

I've taken the car back to the dealer and was told that the 460s are in fact a 'little' noisier than the 430s. They checked the car and said 'no trouble found'. They said the tapping I'm hearing is the the fuel injectors and that this is a normal situation with the 469s.

Anyone out there experience this? Is this normal for the 460 or is the dealer blowing smoke up my $&@.

Thanks in advance for any help.

Rhambler

Got the same noise from the high-pressure fuel pump. Been there since day one, tends to abate as the car warms up or maybe I just ignore it.

However, there's a caveat to all of this: they all sound the same in all car brands, or at least the Audis I test drove before buying this car was even worse and almost all high-end cars, regardless of brand, use HPFPs sadly.

It's just a property of HPFPs and pushing fuel at extremely, extremely high PSIs. A lame trade off for the sake of fuel economy in my opinion. You can either get use to it or buy cars from the early 2000s or late 90s, or try and find a newer one that uses port injection and nothing but port injection.

If you're coming from a car that had it before, you won't notice it as you've probably got use to it. If you're coming from an earlier, PFI only LS, you probably will notice it on any car that has it.

Stereorob

the tapping sound at cold startup is totally normal and nothing to worry about. they all do this. think of it as the car was asleep all night and you kicked it out of bed still sleepy and groggy. she'll wake up fast though.

the Ls460 definatly is a little louder, and its supposed to be. it has a nice growl to it that's way more vocal than the 400 or 430 ever was. I like it!

hfahmy

460 is louder than the 430. Was a big point of hesitation to move over for me and many other members, but you will get used to it quick.

greg3852

The noise you are hearing is from the direct injection of this engine which is different from the 430. Here is another thread about it.

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/ls-...e-in-idle.html

Rhambler

Yeah, I honestly don't hear it anymore; it's background noise to me in what would be an otherwise dead-silent car.

However, coming from a ten-year-old port-injected engine was a bit of a shocker. I first noticed this on the Audi A7 I test drove and asked the salesperson about it as I've never owned a GDI (gas direct injected) car before and he looked at me funny and said, "that's how they all sound." It kind of threw me off and made me look like an idiot.

But frankly, that is indeed how they all sound. Of course, some people might be more perceptible of it than others (like me), but it is synonymous with GDI and high pressure fuel pump engines.

BMWs, MBs and Audis almost exclusively use GDI and they all suffer from the same problem if you want to call it that. Some people can hear it and some cars are louder than others. Search their forums for it and you'll get deluged with people reporting the same thing you are and most are from people who have never owned a GDI engine before (like me and probably you).

Unfortunately, almost all newer cars has this, at least the higher-end ones or cars with "newer" engine technology. Newer isn't necessarily better, but what are a few ticks to stand in the way of technological improvements.

roadfrog

As Greg and others pointed out, this is a normal characteristic of direct injection/VVT-I systems. That said, my LS is still the quietest car I've ever owned.

R Z

Yeah I hear it and I don't like it. But it's part of the car.

Dr. Jekyll

iTrader: (1)

HAH! That tapping / ticking sound is driving me nuts! At first it sounded like the CD/DVD player was running or spinning then one day when it was really quiet I opened the door and found that the sound was coming from the engine compartment. Not happy it's there but in a sense I'm relieved to hear nothing is wrong with the car and I can scratch it off my list of issues for my service appointment in 2 weeks.

Dr. Jekyll

iTrader: (1)

And I just came from an LS430 and was used to super quiet cabin.

Nospinzone

Sometimes they are!

However, in this case it is legit. The explanation greg gave you is correct. That is also why you will see the spark plug change interval for your current car reduced from 120K to 60K. The 2007 LS's still had port injection so do not experience this ticking noise.

BTW welcome to the forum. Don't be a stranger.

Dr. Jekyll

iTrader: (1)

Soooooooo I guess the solution is to just get that $3,000 exhaust set up now LOL

Aron9000

Totally normal. This is why diesels are so loud as well, direct injection into the cylinder at very high psi will give you that sound.

As for it being loud, go drive a 90's Dodge with the cummins diesel for a while, you'll never notice that sound in your Lexus after driving that beast.

I'd say the easiest fix for this is to turn up the radio, I usually have some sort of music playing when I drive.

SW17LS

As others have said, it is a little louder at idle, you're et used to it.

Doublebase

Every car on the road with direct injection experiences this tapping noise, some are worse than others. I find that the LS is on the quieter side of the spectrum, jump into an Audi...they sound like cement mixers.

Direct injection cars normally experience problems like carbon buildup on the valves, the beauty of the LS460 system is that it combines a port injection system with the DI system and you won't experience this.

I've also been reading that DI systems can be hard on engine oil because of the carbon soot that can enter the oil...which is abrasive and can collect on the pins and rollers of a timing chain, causing it to wear and stretch. Makes me want to end any thoughts of extended oil change intervals.