Re: Hydraulic Lifter Tick

Posted by 53 Cavalier On 2024/1/14 11:03:43

Maybe a good cleaning is all it needs!

If your car wasn't smoking I think that would indicate that your rings are not too bad, but the low compression tells a different story. Either valves or rings...

A few things I did/learned when working on my engine.

Be sure to cover the drain holes so you don't have any keepers fall into the oil pan when removing and installing valves.

Do a leak-down test on your lifters to make sure they're up to the task after you clean them.

Don't change plungers from one lifter to another, they're very finely machined and are matched.

I found on my valves that one side had just a bit of wear, so I turned the valves that I reused 180 degrees. (Put valves back where they came from.) I replaced all of my exhaust valves and a couple of my intake valves.

I tested my valve springs to make sure I didn't have any weak ones in the mix. (I was not sure what was causing my noise, so I was leaving no stone unturned.)

When lapping valves I found that most lapping compounds in the auto parts store are very coarse, too coarse, I ended up ordering some finer lapping compound. (This is based on my YouTube research.

I picked up a used Blue Point CF-12 valve spring compressor off FB MarketPlace that needed a little repair. It worked very well.

Take your time when putting your valves back in to make sure keepers are in correctly, especially for the valves behind the exhaust that are hard to see and get at. A mirror or your phone are helpful to check these ones. As another member commented just put a bit of grease on the keeper and stick it to the valve stem. Squish them on tight and slowly loosen your compressor watching to make sure the keepers stay in place. I found reassembly very satisfying! Although I did need to swear at a couple of them! LOL

When you put the head back on, I torqued mine down, and then retorqued it after it warmed up and cooled down and then did it a couple of more times after that. This was recommended by a few forum members and I found it was necessary.

BTW, I'm not a mechanic, just a farm kid that's a bit mechanically inclined.

You'll well on your way and you'll be ready for start-up before you know it!