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car pinging?

7K views 13 replies 8 participants last post by  GTIWRX 
#1 ·
this might sound like a stupid question, but how do you know if your is pinging or not?:)
 
#3 · (Edited)
Even though I've never personally expierenced pinging/knocking, many people who have, said that it sounds like a marble in a tin can. It's a metallic sound sound that can be heard mostly during acceleration.

Please note: After re-reading this post and doing some research, my so-called knowledge about detonation is a little off. Sorry about that, and scroll down a few posts for the real info.

Knocking/Pinging occurs when gasoline in the cylinder is ignited by the spark plug, but the gas burns too quickly, and combustion occurs before the optimum moment during compression cycle. The resulting shockwave collides with the rising piston, creating a characteristic metallic "pinging" sound. If allowed to persist, knocking can cause vibration and damage to engine parts.

What kind of car do you have? Cause I know some of the first '04 STi's were pinging pretty badly. Subaru issued reflashes for their ECUs which, from what I've heard has fixed the problem. If your car is pinging, try switching to a higher octane gasoline such as 93-95 if you havn't already.
 
#4 ·
4 Banger said:
Even though I've never personally expierenced pinging/knocking, many people who have, said that it sounds like a marble in a tin can. It's a metallic sound sound that can be heard mostly during acceleration.

Knocking/Pinging occurs when gasoline in the cylinder is ignited by the spark plug, but the gas burns too quickly, and combustion occurs before the optimum moment during compression cycle. The resulting shockwave collides with the rising piston, creating a characteristic metallic "pinging" sound. If allowed to persist, knocking can cause vibration and damage to engine parts.

What kind of car do you have? Cause I know some of the first '04 STi's were pinging pretty badly. Subaru issued reflashes for their ECUs which, from what I've heard has fixed the problem. If your car is pinging, try switching to a higher octane gasoline such as 93-95 if you havn't already.
i have a 2003 silver wrx with cobb stage 1 for about a year now, but i haven't had any problems. i was just wondering cause it seems like people that are from California are having this problem with pinging.
 
#5 ·
My car and J.D.'s (maybe others) '04s sometimes knock/ping at >50% throttle at or above 5,000RPM in this Arizona heat. This is on the stock tune. We run 91 octane...

I wish I could get rid of it.
 
#7 ·
b4437 said:
i have a 2003 silver wrx with cobb stage 1 for about a year now, but i haven't had any problems. i was just wondering cause it seems like people that are from California are having this problem with pinging.
IIRC Cali has very strict emmisions laws compared to the rest of the country, so it's hard for them to find gas above 91, hence all the pinging in Cali.

The most common and eaisiest way to fix Knock/Pinging is by using a higher octane gasoline, or by adding a octane-boosting additive to your current gas. I've read before, that you might be able to tweak your engine settings to fix it by reducing in-cylinder temperatures or retarding the spark plug ignition. I'm not too sure how to do this, though. Maybe a few of the more mechanically inclined users would be able to elaborate.
 
#8 ·
In my haste, it appears I've confused Pre-ignition with Detonation (Knock/Ping). After re-reading my post and doing some research, my description is way off. Sorry about that.

Please check here: http://www.streetrodstuff.com/Articles/Engine/Detonation/Page_2.php

Detonation
Detonation is the spontaneous combustion of the end-gas (remaining fuel/air mixture) in the chamber. It always occurs after normal combustion is initiated by the spark plug. The initial combustion at the spark plug is followed by a normal combustion burn. For some reason, likely heat and pressure, the end gas in the chamber spontaneously combusts. The key point here is that detonation occurs after you have initiated the normal combustion with the spark plug.
 
#9 ·
4 Banger said:
In my haste, it appears I've confused Pre-ignition with Detonation (Knock/Ping). After re-reading my post and doing some research, my description is way off. Sorry about that.

Please check here: http://www.streetrodstuff.com/Articles/Engine/Detonation/Page_2.php

Detonation
Detonation is the spontaneous combustion of the end-gas (remaining fuel/air mixture) in the chamber. It always occurs after normal combustion is initiated by the spark plug. The initial combustion at the spark plug is followed by a normal combustion burn. For some reason, likely heat and pressure, the end gas in the chamber spontaneously combusts. The key point here is that detonation occurs after you have initiated the normal combustion with the spark plug.
thanks a lot man, maybe my car is fine. i'm just worried cause i will be putting a new turbo and all the other supporting mods next week. i don't want to blow the engine you know.:)
 
#10 ·
4 Banger said:
IIRC Cali has very strict emmisions laws compared to the rest of the country, so it's hard for them to find gas above 91, hence all the pinging in Cali.

The most common and eaisiest way to fix Knock/Pinging is by using a higher octane gasoline, or by adding a octane-boosting additive to your current gas. I've read before, that you might be able to tweak your engine settings to fix it by reducing in-cylinder temperatures or retarding the spark plug ignition. I'm not too sure how to do this, though. Maybe a few of the more mechanically inclined users would be able to elaborate.
if i add octane booster will this hurt my engine, cause i'm running cobb stage one and it's for 91 octane.
 
#12 ·
4 Banger said:
Even though I've never personally expierenced pinging/knocking, many people who have, said that it sounds like a marble in a tin can. It's a metallic sound sound that can be heard mostly during acceleration.

Please note: After re-reading this post and doing some research, my so-called knowledge about detonation is a little off. Sorry about that, and scroll down a few posts for the real info.

Knocking/Pinging occurs when gasoline in the cylinder is ignited by the spark plug, but the gas burns too quickly, and combustion occurs before the optimum moment during compression cycle. The resulting shockwave collides with the rising piston, creating a characteristic metallic "pinging" sound. If allowed to persist, knocking can cause vibration and damage to engine parts.

What kind of car do you have? Cause I know some of the first '04 STi's were pinging pretty badly. Subaru issued reflashes for their ECUs which, from what I've heard has fixed the problem. If your car is pinging, try switching to a higher octane gasoline such as 93-95 if you havn't already.
no problem man any help is good for me. i don't know anything about cars.:D
 
#13 ·
Don't forget that our cars have a knock sensor and know when they're detonating. As soon as it senses knock it pulls timing to compensate.

Your engine will then advance timing gradually until it senses knock again and the cycle continues....

I freaked out the first time my car detonated on a hot day, but did some reading (including Cline's article) and found out it's not so bad. Tends to happen especially if you've been driving conservatively on a hot day, stop for a few minutes (at this point the intercooler heats up), then romp on it from a light...Then it should detonate in third gear at around 5000 rpm. :eek3:
 
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