Fixing lifters

[Buford T. JuSStice]

Sorry for resurrecting an old thread, but I had a ticking noise coming from my left side valve cover and this is what I found. I wasn't disappointed hahaha.

But no seriously, it's a bit of a relief. I pulled the valve cover, checked the rocker arms and they were all fine, checked the oil level, it was a little low but not much, so I topped it off. It's just... ticking. Almost at the same rate as the blinker flasher. Goes away when I give it some gas though so only at low speed.

Either way, reading these responses, I'm less worried about it now than I was.

 

[Gwarren79]

Try 4oz Seafoam in your oil...

 

[Buford T. JuSStice]

I'll put 'er in when I do my next oil change. She's only got about 450 miles on the motor so I'm guessing it's partly due to the break in oil being straight 30W with break-in additives.

 

[bracketchev1221]

I'll put 'er in when I do my next oil change. She's only got about 450 miles on the motor so I'm guessing it's partly due to the break in oil being straight 30W with break-in additives.

That makes it even more worrisome. Flat tappet camshafts are failing more and more today no matter what precautions are being made during break in and they are not failing right away. Many are failing after months of driving. I would be doing the pushrod check. Paint a mark on the pushrods and disconnect the coil. Crank the engine and make sure all the marks move. If they don't you have a lobe and lifter going flat.

 

[fleming442]

At least someone was able to use the thread (unlike the non-existent OP).

 

[lilbowtie]

Buford I wouldn't get too excited yet. The first thing I would do is re-adjust your lifters. It's easy to be off slightly setting them statically. I have a set of covers and used a greenlee punch to made holes to adjust w/o oil spaying all over. Make sure your adjusting nuts are in good shape and not backing off - I like poly locks. Also if you don't have screw-in studs make sure the studs aren't pulling out. I have never lost a flat tappet cam, it's all about the break-in firing up the engine and getting it to 3000. Too many people don't remove it inner springs when applicable thinking it's too hard change causing their own problems.

 

[Buford T. JuSStice]

False alarm on the ticking. It started getting worse today and I realized that it was an exhaust leak, not a lifter. Didn't sound like an exhaust leak at ALL when it first started! Tightened up the bolts, and sure enough the sound went away completely. I'd feel silly if it weren't for the fact that it definitely didn't sound at all like exhaust when it first started... it was a distinctive tick tick tick noise.

 

[Buford T. JuSStice]

I mean, when I had the valve cover off I should have made the connection when I realized it was happening in conjunction with the exhaust lifter on cylinder 7, but it sounded like it was coming from that lifter... but it wasn't loose or anything so I was sitting there scratching my head like an idiot lol

 

[Max Headroom]

Feeling silly is very inexpensive and if you mess with older cars for long enough, your gonna feel silly more than once.

 

[Buford T. JuSStice]

I've already got technicians at the dealership I'm working at wondering why I'm not a tech, and right now all I have to do is point out that I misdiagnosed an exhaust leak as a loose or sticking lifter lol.

Then again, without OBDII some of them are basically helpless lol