I started the car a few days ago and while I know the motor is tired and could use a rebuild, it has a tap too back at #6 that gets loud enough to hear when it warms up, its had all that for the last 2 years, figured it for a bad spring or the clip that holds the rocker in place, but I wasn't prepared yet to hear the obnoxiously loud tap I heard today coming not from #6 but from dirctly under the center of the intake. I'll see if I can record it tomorrow and post it, it sounds like either I have a pushrod that finally spit the bit or I got a frozen lifter or lost a cam lobe. Needless to say I just dropped 2 grand into the rear going big to make it bullit proof, so now this pretty much means I'm not gonna have the scratch to make the turbonats, I'm gonna have to pull the motor apart. Haven't decided how much of the work I'm gonna do myself, I know I gotta do some of it due to funding issues thanks to my recent rear end upgrade. Not sure if I'm comfortable pulling heads and intake and doing a cam, push rods lifters and machine work to clean up the heads (I'll let the local machine shop to do the heads), maybe new springs too, this will be new ground for me, never went deeper than pulling exhaust or pulling turbo or dropping oil pan on this or any motor, any advice or help would be apreciated as I'm much better with electronics than the inside of the motor.
Loud tapping directly under the intake
- Thread starter youngstr
- Start date
HelloBozos
A Bozo in Buick
- Joined
- Feb 9, 2011
Sounds like valve train issue, Whipped Cam lobe,Bend push rod,Collapsed Lifter,Bend Rocker,etc,etc...Only way to be sure is pull the intake off an have peak. When you rebuild, go Roller Cam, an loose the Hydrolics...8^)
- Joined
- May 28, 2001
There might be 1 person that does.....
You, once you take the intake off and inspect the components....
There might be 1 person that does.....
You, once you take the intake off and inspect the components....
Yep, I was thinkin the same, just a little worried with my lack of experience inside a motor.
Yeah, I took a piece of garden hose and used it like a stethoscope and its coming from almost dead center on the intake, I'm leaning tward froze lifter, but I guess we'll see.
note taken on the roller cam
- Joined
- May 28, 2001
Start with the easy stuff......The valve covers. They have to come off, anyway.
As much complaining that I've done about the motor the last 2 years, considering its got over 120,000 on it, and has had a tap over #6 cyl for over a year, and that plug looks like it is getting washed out IE head gasket leak, my oil pressure once warm sucks beyond belief, I'm talkin warmed up idle I show 10 lbs of pressure 15 on a good day. Once off idle the oil pressure comes up to 20 to 40 depending how far in the throttle u are, but my idle pressure sucks. So I bit the bullet, dropped the car off at my engine builder and I'm just gonna have it rebuilt as best I can for 5 g's so depending on how bad the bottom of the motor is will tell if I'll have the money to go full roller and if I'll have any left over for porting work would like to make it breath a little better.
HelloBozos
A Bozo in Buick
- Joined
- Feb 9, 2011
What Ever You Do, Don't Punch It Cold!! let your car warm up, my original motor went 113,000 Hard mileage,weekly track trips,NOS for while,then one morning i fired her up, left the apt complex an stabbed it, ,it through a rod bearing..When you rebuild with that many miles, best to do a total bottom end build,an clean the heads up,I just had one done with full drop-in assembly for $2700 minus $300 for new block,sounds like you got some left over speed parts money!!...heh 8^)
Enjoy!
Enjoy!
- Joined
- May 28, 2001
"sounds like you got some left over speed parts money!!...heh 8^)"
Could be, unless the machine shop has been told how much the budget is!
Let's see: Owner says: 'I've got $5K for an engine build". Shop dude: "That should just about cover it"!
Reality check.....The engine is tanked,[maybe], honed, a valve job, rings, brgs,AZ gasket kit, spray bombed, and it magically comes to $5K...
Could be, unless the machine shop has been told how much the budget is!
Let's see: Owner says: 'I've got $5K for an engine build". Shop dude: "That should just about cover it"!
Reality check.....The engine is tanked,[maybe], honed, a valve job, rings, brgs,AZ gasket kit, spray bombed, and it magically comes to $5K...
I told my builder that he should take it apart and we'll look over what we got going on , although I don't think I'm gonna get away with reusing the bottom, I don't doubt with the mileage and other symtoms that I'm gonna have to do something with the bottom, I told my builder that I wanna around 3500 and go roller, so we'll see what they tell me later this week.
That part at least is perfectly healthy, you have (had) very good and normal oil pressure. For these motors.
Unless you already modified the oil pump. There are ways of improving idle pressure somewhat there.
its the stock spring and plate in the oil pump I told my builder to bump it up to the hi volume kit with the bigger spring. He told me there are kits available between 200 and 500 bucks that would greatly enhance the oiling even bath that end bearing in oil to keep it healthy.....gotta see what numbers he throws at me for the build I asked for, that will tell me what cash I got left for extras like that.
I guess its just me, when I'm idling and see that oil pressure guage dipping past 9 or 10 lbs it just makes me nervous cause I don't think the moving parts are getting the oil they should.
From what I've read, a high-volume pump can boost your idle pressure and that's good (or makes you feel good, at least).
A ductile iron thrust plate keeps the gears from cutting grooves, and that keeps the idle pressure from dropping even lower than normal.
What I've read to stay away from is the bigger spring. That does nothing for idle pressure, but it bumps top end pressure from about 40 lbs to about 60 lbs, and that has been reported to cause trouble for the drive gear and bearing at the front of the camshaft.
A ductile iron thrust plate keeps the gears from cutting grooves, and that keeps the idle pressure from dropping even lower than normal.
What I've read to stay away from is the bigger spring. That does nothing for idle pressure, but it bumps top end pressure from about 40 lbs to about 60 lbs, and that has been reported to cause trouble for the drive gear and bearing at the front of the camshaft.
Ok, dropped in on the shop today, engine is out and on a stand, and it looked rough. Being able to see in at the headers really good cause of it being on an engine stand, I saw the cracks in the headers on both sides, they're gonna weld those up. Now that its on the stand they're gonna tear it down then I'm gonna come in survey the damage and order parts. Will update thurs or fri , see if I can post a copy of the build sheet or at least a parts list.
