legacycentral bbs

History of problem:

I was stuck in stop and go traffic for about 1.5 hours the other day. Toward the end of the trip, I noticed an engine speed dependent clatter coming from the engine bay. When I got home, I checked the oil, and the level didn't even register on the dipstick. I added oil, hoping this would clear up the valve train noise. It did not.

Next day, I removed the valve covers, and sure enough, I could press some of the rockers in with my finger. I bled the "bad" lifters (all of which were on the bottom row), and put everything back together.

Everything seemed fine during the first couple of drives. Now, the noise is back. It’s bad as ever, and there is a noticeable loss in power.

After checking the oil, I found that the level is about a quart high (apparently I added too much when it was low).

My question:

Does it make sense that the high oil condition resulted in frothing, which could have introduced air bubbles into the lifters?

My plan is to bleed the lifters again. Then I will change the oil so I know the exact amount that's in the engine.

This shit is really pissing me off.

This time, when I bled the lifters, I made sure to keep the rocker arms submerged in oil during assembly. I also made sure to keep the bleed holes up while I installed the rocker shaft assemblies on the heads. I didn't do this the first time.

So far, so good

did the lifter noise stay away for long?

I'm having the same problem, thanks for the post.
-sam

Sounds like sticking valve lash adjusters (lifters). I've had this happen to me and sometimes if you use some kind of detergent or cleaner like seafoam in your oil and drive it about 100 miles then change the oil. That will help clean your engine and lifters. Also I'm not a big fan of additives but I have found that (Engine Restore) will add detergent to to oil keep it from ticking. Others might have better ideas.