is 380,000 miles too many for lifters -ohv 4.0? | Ford Explorer Forums
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is 380,000 miles too many for lifters -ohv 4.0?

T

tywhitaker

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August 29, 2006
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City, State
Asheville
Year, Model & Trim Level
92 sport
I rebuilt the engine about 80,000 miles ago. I didn't replace the lifters, push-rods or rockers. I have the engine out again - should I replace these?

Thanks

Ty
 



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Yeah, you're closing in on half a million miles. Show her some love and buy rockers
 






Lifters means pulling the heads. Doing that 'right' would mean having the heads checked by a machine shop. New gaskets, new bolts and likely a lot of swearing. Are yours ticking or making noise? If not, leave them. You can buy new pushrods and rocker arms to take up any slack but you don't have to have the engine out to replace those.
 






So new pushrods can quiet down an engine? I will check the rockers, but are you talking about some-sort of adjustable pushrod?
 






lifters

....and what's up with the lifters - they range in price from $15.00 to $45.00 each? Is this a 'get what you pay for' situation or am I missing something?
 






tywhitaker said:
So new pushrods can quiet down an engine? I will check the rockers, but are you talking about some-sort of adjustable pushrod?
Click to expand...

They can, it depends where the wear is. My 1991 ticks on cold startup until it fully warms up and then will give the occasional single tick. Doesn't affect driving but can cause shaking when cold if it's really bad (engine has a hard time breathing). Previous owner of mine said he replaced the pushrods & rockers and it took care of the ticking many miles ago. I purchased the same parts. Upon teardown, there wasn't a ton of wear so I wasn't overly optimistic. Changed the pushrods, rockers and rotated the rocker shaft 180 degrees. Didn't make any difference. So, it depends on where the ticking is coming from. Clogged lifters, worn pushrods, worn rockers, worn rocker shaft... etc. These engines are only adjusted hydraulically via the lifters and oil pressure. No adjustments you can do but the engine needs clean oil and frequent changes to maintain the top end.


tywhitaker said:
....and what's up with the lifters - they range in price from $15.00 to $45.00 each? Is this a 'get what you pay for' situation or am I missing something?
Click to expand...
I'm not sure on this one. I've seen a kit for the $100 but then like you, $50 a piece. I'd want to go OEM if possible on those or at least a reputable aftermarket. I'm not impressed with the Sealed Power pushrods & rockers I got, had to return 2 rockers right out of the box due to bad castings. I don't know that there's any reputable aftermarket supplier for lifters. I'd probably bend over for the dealer and pay whatever they wanted. Certainly wouldn't want to pull the head to replace a faulty lifter.
 






found the lifter

So I pulled the valve covers just a few minutes ago...I found no play in the rockers and all the pushrods were tight - except for one.....

The engine has been out for a couple months. I was surprised to find the pushrods so tightly fitting into the rockers after that time. I could spin them all, but that one I could rattle up and down.

goddamit. Looks like I am pulling the heads....I just have to decide whether to replace them all or just the one.....

Thanks everyone for the guidance!

Ty
 






I wouldn't necessarily take that as needing to replace the lifters. What you need to look at is the underside of the rocker arm pad that contacts the valve stem, that's a location where a lot of wear occurs. Then from there, the pushrod to rocker surface should be shiny, not 'brushed' looking. The rocker arm to rocker shaft surface you can only really look at by pulling a rocker arm off the shaft and seeing how much wear there is.

If it is the lifter that's causing issue on that one valve, it may just be leaking down after sitting. Some will do that depending on where exactly the engine stops, it's not a big concern.
 






adjacent lifter caps broken.....hmmm?

I made sure to leave some other valves compressed overnight to see if that didn't result in the same effect as the really loose one - it didn't.

Deciding to tear into the beast, I pulled off the rocker shaft and started pulling and orderly stowing the pushrods. The rod on the suspected lifter pulled the lifter plunger out with it. I found this odd, but figured it had something to do with its failure mode.

I pulled the manifold off the engine and could see that three adjacent lifters on that same side (including the suspected bad one) had lost their caps. The caps look to keep the plungers in place. This seems rather odd and I wonder if I didn't do something wrong during assembly all those years ago. I know the plunger is restricted by the push-rod, but that cap is there for some reason.

I haven't pulled the heads yet. I am gonna make sure I can get lifters, gaskets and head bolts at my local shop first.....sheesh

Thanks everyone

Ty
 






There's a few theories on the cones/caps but the one I see the most frequent is that they're meant to make assembly easier and quicker. Without them, it's harder to get the pushrod right on the lifter plunger.

Other theories are that it helps to keep oil on the pushrod.

About 3 of mine are broken off. One I found in the oil pickup screen and the other 2 had stayed as a ring and hung on the pushrod. Not a big deal and hasn't caused any problems. The phenolic plastic becomes brittle after so much use. Again, I wouldn't worry too much about it.
 






What did the rocker tips look like?

Leaving them compressed wont result in a loose pushrod unless you can get the motor to rotate where the pushrod/lifter is at base circle again without filling the lifter with oil again. .

Ps the cones do keep the plunger in but only for assembly when the lifter is drained..if the plunger builds enough pressure to pop the caps off when the pushrod and rockers are installed then you have to much slack or your valve springs are worn...the plunger should never get that high with everything tq down
 






awwww (fog is maybe lifting)

So the fact the caps were broken off is a good indication that the valve & rocker require more stroke length than the lifter (& push-rod) can provide.

I could need springs, rockers, maybe push rods and new lifters for those three valves.......
 






tywhitaker said:
So the fact the caps were broken off is a good indication that the valve & rocker require more stroke length than the lifter (& push-rod) can provide.

I could need springs, rockers, maybe push rods and new lifters for those three valves.......
Click to expand...

Just because the cones are off doesnt mean they been forced off,they do break and fall off from being brittle. .but if there is no sign of damage and they snap right back on then......

Springs are dirt cheap and doubt the issue but would replace them if you haven't with that milage. .

Rockers its pretty obvious if they are bad..here is what to look for.

20150322_170210_zpstkrzypad.jpg


20150321_154657_zpsfadqx591.jpg
 












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