Lifter noise

[Cgoddard]

Hey guys. Yay, first post. Ive been watching this forum for a while when I first got my '91 Xl. We'll I rolled that one and bought a '91 EB. Well, it has the ol famous ticking lifter noise. What do you guys recommend I do about it? Ive got a few questions. Number 1, is it worth trying to quiet the sound with thicker oil? Ive had varying opinions on that, noone can give me a straight answer, lol. #2, How safe is it to run it like this and how long can I drive it for. As for getting it fixed, Ive got a choice to get a used engine that has no noise for $400 CDN. Is it worth buying it and either using it for parts or as a drop in replacement? or should I just buy new parts and get the lifters/rockers replaced?

 

[Rick]

$400 sounds like a very good deal for a motor that you know to be in good condition. You will probably end up with that much invested in parts if you decide to fix what's in their now. However if you do invest into your current engines top end, it would be a good investment since the 4.0s bottom end is so reliable.

 

[cculter]

I have the lifter noise, I just drove my X 5 hours up north.I use Murphy's Marvel Mystery oil, with my oil change. Quiets it right up.

 

[JStrider]

my explorer has the lifter click too... I think its always noticeable when idle, havnt really paidtoo much attention to see if it goes away when warm...

this thread http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=154299&highlight=lifter+noise
made it sound like it wasnt a big deal, so I havnt worried about it....
is there a reason I should worry about it? will it eventually cause problems?

that thread also mentioned a kit from delta camshaft http://www.deltacam.com/
the kit is $181.50 + $42.00 CORE DEPOSIT
is this hard to do or could an amateur do it in a weekend (in a dorm parking lot)

 

[Cgoddard]

ok, so the big question is how long is it safe to run it like this? days? weeks? years? forever?

 

[cculter]

I don't think that it is that big of a deal mine has done it for years. Eventually the lifters will have to be replaced. As long as you aren't beating on your X every second it should be ok for a while. The worst that could happen is that the valves wont open anymore, and I really don't see that much metal wearing off.

 

[Cgoddard]

Ok. thanks for the advice

 

[Josh]

I winder if its possible to make them solid? And why not solid lifters for the V6?

 

[b0ne]

To use solid lifters you'd have to convert to adjustable rocker arms. Not sure how big a project that is, as I've never seen the inside of a valve cover on this particular engine. Mine also has a couple ticking lifters too, and I'm going to try the thicker oil as a stopgap measure until later.

 

[cculter]

solid lifters have to have an overhead cam I believe. The lifters on these engines have holes through them so that the oil can get up to the rockers.

 

[Josh]

To use solid lifters you'd have to convert to adjustable rocker arms. Not sure how big a project that is, as I've never seen the inside of a valve cover on this particular engine. Mine also has a couple ticking lifters too, and I'm going to try the thicker oil as a stopgap measure until later.

Oh yea well hows about adjustable pushrods instead and weld the lifter cups in place?

 

[pugsy]

Has anybody had continued or long term sucess in adding an oil addtive or engine treatment to keep the valvetrain quieter? If so, what brands and should it be added at every oil change or once in a while?
Thanks!

 

[jimwww]

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=165117

 

[pugsy]

I'm not too eager to put ATF in the engine. Who knows what other small pin holes it might unplug. Don't want any leaks. Same reasoning behind not putting in Synthetic in a high mileage engine.
Any engine treatments to condition the valvetrain and lifters?