Hi Scotty,
I have a 1990 Nissan Hardbody 2.4L manual transmission. It has a heavy rattle on a cold start that continues until the oil pressure builds up. It also does it for a few seconds every time it starts and occasionally when it revs up in 1st gear before going to 2nd. I am pretty sure it has to do with the timing chain. I had a mechanic tell me that it would need a complete engine re-build at that point (they wouldn't work on it though). Is it not possible to just replace the chain, sprocket, and tensioner? Could it potentially not be the timing chain?
Thanks for your help.
If you are very lucky it might be just the tensioner.
You don't need an engine rebuild just to replace the timing chain, guides and tensioners. If the timing chain fails then you will need a new engine. Fix it now before it's too late. Get a compression test to see if it's worth it.
