I have a 97 jeep cherokee 4.0 auto. I get a ticking/clicking sound when im driving. When i let off the gas it stops ticking until i get on the gas again. I'm stumped, and it's not a lifter, exhaust leak, or cracked flexplate. New motor,flexplate,converter,starter recently. When i am in park or neutral I cannot get it to tick. The only way i can get it to tick is when i power brake it or drive it. Anyone else have a problem like this? Any help would be great. Thanks!!!

 

Check your u-joints and front hubs? My first tick was the hub then the front u-joint went and tick came back.

 

Mine did something like that. Finally figured out I used a blot a tad too long for the top starter bolt. The end would sometimes touch the torque plate. was burnished shiny... 14mm/universal & long extensions......D.

 

Well it defenitly is not my u-joints, or the bolt in the starter. Only haveing the noise when in drive or powerbraking, the noise is not there in neutral or park. I have located the noise towards the back of the motor by the intake/exhaust manifold. I have checked for cracks and put a smoke machine on to see if any small cracks were visible, but no cracks, no smoke came out. I swapped injectors to see if one was going out making that tick. By the way the tick sounds like an extra loud injector tick. Thank you all for your input, keep thinkin for me please!!

 

Find a wide open area. Raise hood and support open. Then put in drive and give it hefty gas pedal as you look through the opening under hood to see if motor raises on one side. Did this to my 90 xj4.0 and found that the right side motor mount was busted and the motor would raise up from the right which caused the exhaust downpipe to rub against the front drive universal joint causeing a tick and clicking sound. jerrys90