99' 1.8T clicking engine

77k miles and when oil gets 1/2 way down the "full line" the engine makes a clicking noise. I have searched the forum for clicking noises and none seem similar to this issue. I asked the dealer about this and they said older VW's will do this.
After thinking about the dealer answer I thought more about it myself:
I run synthetic oil, notice since I get more burn off ( I have to add oil at about 3k miles after oil change). Any advise?

Oil pump and cam adjuster.