Hi there! I have a 2003 Kia Rio and it makes a rather concerning rattling noise on cold starts on cold days. I’m having trouble pinpointing the noise. I have already had the timing belt, tensioner, and pullies replaced recently.
Most likely valvetrain noise if the car has over 80,000 miles. Make sure to regularly change your oil or the valvetrain will get worse.
@inthedetails
It has ~67,000 miles and the oil changes were always on time. I heard a similar/same noise and took it to the Kia dealer and they diagnosed it to be coming from worn pulleys and an old belt. That’s why I got them replaced. Then, the noise came back a few months later. I’m sorry, I should have mentioned this before!
Does it primarily do it when you are pushing on the gas? Does it do it when you're going up hill?
@inthedetails
No, none of those things. It only does it when it’s ice cold. Once it warms up a bit the noise goes away.
Ya I’m thinking the dealer mechanics did a bad job or didn’t replace all the parts necessary.
Thank you for the quick responses and I appreciate the help! 🙂
No problem. If getting a second opinion and having the repair done completely doesnt fix it then it is almost certainly valvetrain noise.
@inthedetails
Okay thanks so much!
Its possible that when they did the belt/pulley job they didn't replace all of the necessary belt components and the remaining components have gone bad.