jasoncoker

Hey Guys,

I just changed the HG on my car (with the help of a prominent SoCal lister whose old car is now in Canada), and I had the guides replaced and seats ground while the head was off. Head was off for a few months during which time the lifters in the cam tower bled down somewhat. Anyway, when the car was started, the lifter(s) did not pump up. I let the car run at least 20 minutes and it improved about 40% but never got quiet.

I tried using a mech. stethoscope to figure out which cyl. was the prob, but could not localize it too well b/c it was so loud everywhere.

The motor hydrolocked when the HG blew--could this have stressed a lifter to the point of failure?

I am using straight 30wt oil just to start the car and flush out the coolant, etc. Is that too thick to pump up (I doubt it, but . . .)?

What should I look into when I pull the cam tower and should I order a whole new set of lifters ($$$)? Is there a good way to check them? Could there be a problem with the way the head was put together?

Please help!

Thank you,
j

hosrom_951

First of all, if the lifters are going to be taken off for a long period, they should be soaked in oil, several hours before installation.

Secondly, did you mix-up the lifters?

Jeremy Himsel

Try cranking it over a bit with the DME relay pulled. I've had this happen on a new motor install and it took about 20 minutes and a few gentle low rpm rev's for them to quiet down because they were not stored in oil (actually the motor sat for a year). If you do pull the cam tower, make sure that the valve located on the top of the head above cylinder # 4 header has no obstruction. Also be sure the gasket wasn't blocking the path of oil from the head to the groove in the cam tower and into the lifters. A lifter (s) that was completely bled down may take a while to pump back up on a running engine. Again, try cranking the engine over 10 or 15 revolutions with the DME relay removed. It's worked for me in the past. Good luck.

Perry 951

I have had a lot of success using an oil additive called Rislone. It comes in a bright yellow bottle. Dump it in and run as normal. Change out the oil when you decide it's time to run it hard.

Mark-87-951

Jeremy,

Maybe I am dense today (occurs often lol) But what do you mean with the valve over cylinder #4 being blocked? Is this about restricting oil flow to the lifters? the reason I ask is that I changed my cam tower gasket and have had a loud clicking sound since then. I was thinking I accidently dropped a washer in the tower assembly.

Bengt Sweden

I had the same problem when my car sat over winter. idling didn't help. I got the advice to just drive and take it through the rev range and that helped.

I wouldn't worry about mixing lifters. As you can see when looking at them, they do not wear.

Bengt

Peckster

Right, just rev it up a little. 30 oil is not thick, but I doubt it's a good idea to run it even with a fresh or gunked up engine.

Perry, I'm surprised at you. I didn't take you for a mechanic in a can guy.

Tom Carson

the 'valve' I believe he's talking about is the 'oil check valve' in the head (or in a big bore head...the pressure reducing valve )...this valve feeds into an oil galley that then feeds that channel or groove running the length of the cam cover. the cam tower gasket has a oil passage hole for this valve, but of course needs to installed properly, else it could block the flow…

jasoncoker

Hey guys,

Thanks for all of the good advice. The oil check valve is probably the problem. When we put the head on and started up the car, oil came streaming out of an orifice in that general area, so we immediately shut off the motor. Apparently, that valve was missing. We put another bolt in there to stop the leak not realizing the significance of the original bolt (not knowing what it actually was). I must confess, that I am not that thrilled with the factory manuals (because I looked to see what went there and could find nothing). I guess I will go to the dealer and order another one.
I will keep everyone posted with the results.
Thanks again!

Sincerely,
j

KuHL 951

My shop manual covers the check valve pretty clearly. It has to be drilled out using a specific size and then pulled. I believe the replacement requires a stepped drift pin to set it right.

Edit: This applies to the 83 to 87 only. I think the later heads had a fixed orifice instead to maintain a regulated oil supply volume. Both my cars are early.

Perry 951

Hey.. some of the best mechanics have little tricks that they know work.

Thick oil is not the best for pumping dry lifters with. The lighter weight oil (or adding Rislone to thin it a bit) makes sure they don't get bashed around by the cam. Revving it up is not the best idea because if the lifters are already floating, the increased RPM just bashes them up a little.

I took the step to inject them with oil and sill had a few that were unhappy when I first broke in my fresh motor. Dumped in the Rislone and they were quiet in seconds. Since I was going to drain the oil anyway, it was the best time to do it.

TurboTommy

Are you guys talking about start up on a new engine. Another words, the next time you start it the noise is gone (after you revved it up a bit)? Once the lifter is dry, it will always make that clicking noise?
Sorry to pipe in here, but my new engine is always clicking below 2,400 RPM, even after it's warmed up.