Q: Knocking in my motor

Unless the engine overheated, the head gasket would not necessarily be damaged by running low on oil. Ticking type noises are usually associated with wear in the valve train. In some cases, low oil pressure will be the cause of the noise in the valve train. You can use an external gauge to check your oil pressure. If low, that could be contributing to the noise and you could consider replacing your oil pump. If the noise is just simply due to wear in the valve train, you can continue to run the engine indefinitely but if you desire that the noise be pinpointed, please request an engine noise diagnostic and the responding certified mechanic will get this resolved for you. If you have further questions or concerns, do not hesitate to re-contact YourMechanic as we are always here to help you.