how will i know if the ticking is from the valves, valve retatiners, or TCT? if its the valves, do i just get a valve adjustment and it should be good?

will driving the car normally or WOT when the engine is clicking bad?

also when i blip the throttle in neutral position, the revs build up, come back down to normal idle speed, and then about 1.5-2 seconds later the engine shakes quite noticably. it definitely isnt a normal shake. what could that be?

 

The clicking and the shutter are probably unrelated. The clicking is likely the valves needing adjustment if it hasn't been done for a while. If louder (card in bicycle spokes noise) it's the tct. You can probably cure the shutter with a MAP whack, found on this site or by disconnecting your negative terminal to reset the ECU. May be the summer heat too.

 

thanks redsex2k but to me, the valves and the TCT sound the same to me.. is there any way to diagnose it to be sure?

 

The valves and the TCT do not sound the same. A bad TCT is a very distinct sound:
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVS-JLfmTnc [/media]

 

is it safe to drive the car when the valves need adjusting? is it safe to drive it hard?

 

Many people who report engine ticking are just reporting a fairly normal sound for the engine. If the valves are a bit on the loose end of the tolerance, you should be fine to keep driving on it. My rule of thumb is that preventative maintenance is the best maintenance, so I'd say budget maybe $250 and get do both. Then you won't have to worry about either for a good while.

 

Thanks RedSex2k good information!