YACT: what is that clicking sound after shutting off an engine

[Maximus96]

this is for a buddy's 96 infiniti I30 ( which i'm considering buying for around $3800) its got 115k miles on it. when the engine shuts off after a short drive or around 15 minutes, i heard this clicking sound. i remember hearing it from our other cars, but the clicking is not as frequent as it is on the I30. what is the cause of that and is it a cause for concern?

 

[bunker]

That's the sound of metal cooling.

 

[TitanDiddly]

Steel settling after it cools down.

 

[Bootprint]

It's was my understanding it's from the engine cooling.

 

[Maximus96]

so the more frequent clicking from this car shouldn't be a concern?

 

[Cooljt1]

my 97 maxima does that too(same engine as the infiniti) i cant rememmber the answer but its nothing bad. you can go to the forums on maxima.org and ask.

 

[Mark R]

It's the hot exhaust pipe and catalytic converter (if fitted) and/or brakes cooling down. As they cool down, they change in size (due to thermal expansion) and the small movements are often heard as clicks.

 

[Bootprint]

It's really the sound of the hampsters still running, their little nails clicking. It's part of their cool down run. You usually don't hear it because they're running are full speed.