Sticky Lifter?

[blackhand]

I finally got all of my cooling issues under control and the car's been running like a dream until this morning. On my way to work I heard a ticking sound coming from the engine. It lasted about 30 seconds and there was no loss of power, change in oil pressure, change in manifold vacuum, coolant temperature, etc. I thought that was strange but everything felt fine so I continued on my drive to work. Right as I was pulling in to the parking lot the ticking started again so I parked it quickly and popped the hood to see what was going on. Everything looked ok and the noise was obviously coming from under the valve cover, maybe the number 4 or 6 cylinder. I've heard this noise only once before, during start up after an oil change. Sure sounded like there was some lash in the valve train and the rocker arm was slapping around.

I understand that lifters can make this noise at startup if they bleed-down, but if that's the problem that I'm having, what might have caused it to start randomly doing this when the engine was fully warmed up and driving down the road?

Any thoughts, opinions, experiences?

Thanks

 

[cudamark]

Assuming this is a V8 and the noise is only there when it's at full operating temp, it could be: worn/faulty lifter, thin oil, worn rocker socket,shaft, or push rod end, or a combination of these. If it now makes noise all the time, add loose rocker arm shaft and worn cam lobe to the list.

 

[blackhand]

BTW, the engine is a big block. Anyone know of a way to diagnose the problem further? I'll check the oil level when I get home, beyond that looks like I'll be pulling the valve cover this weekend to take a look.

 

[demonmike70]

my 72 318 would have this happen once in while too.i have 168000 miles with a compleat rebuild.just before an oil change in drain one quart of oil,add one quart of trans oil,warm it up,then drive tp parts store,get oil,filter and one quart of lucus oil.it hasn't come back.

 

[blackhand]

my 72 318 would have this happen once in while too.i have 168000 miles with a compleat rebuild.just before an oil change in drain one quart of oil,add one quart of trans oil,warm it up,then drive tp parts store,get oil,filter and one quart of lucus oil.it hasn't come back.

I've heard of other people using ATF to cure this since it's high in detergent. Glad to hear that someone here has had luck with it as well. I may try this first since it's definitely the quickest solution.

 

[64dart170]

I finally got all of my cooling issues under control and the car's been running like a dream until this morning. On my way to work I heard a ticking sound coming from the engine. It lasted about 30 seconds and there was no loss of power, change in oil pressure, change in manifold vacuum, coolant temperature, etc. I thought that was strange but everything felt fine so I continued on my drive to work. Right as I was pulling in to the parking lot the ticking started again so I parked it quickly and popped the hood to see what was going on. Everything looked ok and the noise was obviously coming from under the valve cover, maybe the number 4 or 6 cylinder. I've heard this noise only once before, during start up after an oil change. Sure sounded like there was some lash in the valve train and the rocker arm was slapping around.

I understand that lifters can make this noise at startup if they bleed-down, but if that's the problem that I'm having, what might have caused it to start randomly doing this when the engine was fully warmed up and driving down the road?

Any thoughts, opinions, experiences?

Thanks

In my 64 with a 273 V-8,
The noise started on/off on the pass side.
Long story short, The tube that the rocker arms are on was clogged. I had to pull both rocker arm assemblies. Clean out tube, then put back together. Had to readjust the rockers like 6 different times.
I still don't have it right but it runs good enough and the rockers are getting oil all the way to the front of the engine now. Before only the back few and a couple more random arms were getting any oil. She don't burn the tires off at the slightest green light anymore due to bad adjustment, valves are letting some compression escape, but they are quiet now.
I prefer cork with sealer on the valve cover side. That way when you go on and off with the covers in the future, they will come off the engine clean and stay in the valve covers. They can come on and off many times before you need to replace.

Good luck man!
John.:salut:

 

[blackhand]

Thanks for all the advice, suggestions, etc. Drove the car again yesterday after checking the oil and the noisy valvetrain was back, but this time it just didn't want to go away.

I've heard both good and bad things about Seafoam but I thought that the rewards outweighed the risks in this case so I dumped a third of a can of it in the oil. Let the car idle for five minutes and then hit the road. Drove about fifteen miles on the highway and everything seemed fine. Got off the highway and turned onto my street where I got on it up to 5000 rpm. As soon as I lifted the gas pedal, the noise was back with a vengeance! I immediately pulled over and the engine was idling very poorly, there was definitely a cylinder misfiring and the whole car was shaking. Shut the engine down and let it rest for a while. When I started it back up I planned on just limping the 100ft to my garage at little more than an idle. I drove it very gently for a couple of seconds and the noise went away and everything was fine again.

Hooked up the vacuum gauge and did a couple of tests today, couldn't detect any problems at all. Good, steady vacuum in park and in drive. Took a short test drive and all was good. Seems to be OK for now, maybe the Seafoam finally cleaned up whatever needed un-stuck. I don't know, I'll probably end up having to replace all the lifters sooner than later, but for now it seems fine.