I cannot get my hydraulic roller lifters adjusted in this l31 engine. I have tried uncranked, running, hot, cold. Everything from 1/4 turn after valve lash to 1 full turn. Every time it seems to work but after I run it a little bit 5 mins or less the ticking is back. This is a gmlt4 hot cam kit with 1.6 roller rockers. The lifters are the original l31 the came with the block, I checked them out best I could a found no wear so I used them. I need to know if the ls7 lifters can be used to replace these. Or if you have another preference. This is not a small tick, but it does leave when I first adjust the lash, but the longer it runs the louder it seems to get. One other thing, it seems to be the same ones #3 and #5 cylinder that keeps causing the trouble.
LS7 lifters
- Thread starter Dustytrix
- Start date
anytime you run into a problem, the first step is to STOP, and think thru the potential source, of your problem, then isolate and test in a logical manor until you locate the cause.
a SHOP manual can frequently be a useful tool
http://www.toolrage.com/prodView.asp?sku=SLI-PV618
the tool I bought saves me a ton of work, because in some cases it allows you to inspect potential problem areas without dis-assembly.
over 40 plus years Ive seen dozens of similar engine problems and Id strongly suggest you look very closely at the valve train because theres a few common problems you may be overlooking, first you obviously need to verify the rockers, lifters,valve springs and rocker studs are not worn or defective, or pulling loose.
you may be 100% correct and its a defective lifter, or several lifters, it may also be something simple like a defective rocker,IF after inspecting the components on the cylinders that seem to be the source and finding nothing to be concerned with, swapping components from lets say cylinder #3 and #5 to lets say #6 and #8 will let you find out if its cylinder or component related,but if the inspection reveals a problem the parts should be repaired or replaced.
every one of us seems to learn this lesson the hard way,I KNOW I DID, and it took me several times to learn it too! that its best to stop and inspect and research problems rather than jump to conclusions,or assume anything, its always best to isolate the source of a problem rather than treat the symptoms
in many cases this is an indication of a potentially major problem, that if caught early, that can be avoided.
next, if youve swapped to any cam other than the O.E.M. cam you need to verify the cams indexed correctly and the valve train clearances and geometry.
next if its a problem that seems limited too cylinders #3 and #5 Id suggest inspecting the cam and replacing those two sets of lifters because they may be defective.
be aware that a header exhaust leak can sound a great deal like a valve train ticking
while your checking your valve train, check for weak or broken valve springs, more than one guys has broken a valve spring and wondered why the car runs like crap after entering valve float a few times, if you catch it early you may prevent dropping a valve and a huge expensive repair bill.
I know from personal experience that its indicators like that that frequently give you a few clues to problems that if ignored can get expensive,
EXAMPLE
when I was about 20 I had a problem on my on my 455 Pontiac fire-bird, I had alternator fan belt that seemed to get loose after a few days, I foolishly just kept just tightening the belt,, rather than inspecting the potential sources, of the problem, about a week into this process and about 4 belt tightening,s later the front crank damper started wearing a hole in the radiator as it was loose and moved forward off the crank., If Id taken the extra time, to carefully inspect the problem and do some research, I would have noticed and fixed the issue before it cost me a weeks pay
EXAMPLE
I had a 1969 BBC camaro that had a rocker that ticked, I turned out that no mater how I adjusted it that it would as you describe only stay semi quiet for a few minutes, then resume its ticking, it turned out that the rocker balls lower surface where it was cupped into the stamped rocker was burnt (badly worn) from a temporary lack of oil because ID over adjusted it and removed most of the required clearance at some point, replacing the rocker resolved the issue
related threads that may provide insite
viewtopic.php?f=52&t=4410&p=11602&hilit=busted+springs#p11602
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/ls-cam.2740/#post-54586
viewtopic.php?f=52&t=689
viewtopic.php?f=52&t=788
viewtopic.php?f=52&t=2661
viewtopic.php?f=52&t=2746
viewtopic.php?f=52&t=1769
viewtopic.php?f=52&t=181
a SHOP manual can frequently be a useful tool
http://www.toolrage.com/prodView.asp?sku=SLI-PV618
the tool I bought saves me a ton of work, because in some cases it allows you to inspect potential problem areas without dis-assembly.
over 40 plus years Ive seen dozens of similar engine problems and Id strongly suggest you look very closely at the valve train because theres a few common problems you may be overlooking, first you obviously need to verify the rockers, lifters,valve springs and rocker studs are not worn or defective, or pulling loose.
you may be 100% correct and its a defective lifter, or several lifters, it may also be something simple like a defective rocker,IF after inspecting the components on the cylinders that seem to be the source and finding nothing to be concerned with, swapping components from lets say cylinder #3 and #5 to lets say #6 and #8 will let you find out if its cylinder or component related,but if the inspection reveals a problem the parts should be repaired or replaced.
every one of us seems to learn this lesson the hard way,I KNOW I DID, and it took me several times to learn it too! that its best to stop and inspect and research problems rather than jump to conclusions,or assume anything, its always best to isolate the source of a problem rather than treat the symptoms
in many cases this is an indication of a potentially major problem, that if caught early, that can be avoided.
next, if youve swapped to any cam other than the O.E.M. cam you need to verify the cams indexed correctly and the valve train clearances and geometry.
next if its a problem that seems limited too cylinders #3 and #5 Id suggest inspecting the cam and replacing those two sets of lifters because they may be defective.
be aware that a header exhaust leak can sound a great deal like a valve train ticking
while your checking your valve train, check for weak or broken valve springs, more than one guys has broken a valve spring and wondered why the car runs like crap after entering valve float a few times, if you catch it early you may prevent dropping a valve and a huge expensive repair bill.
I know from personal experience that its indicators like that that frequently give you a few clues to problems that if ignored can get expensive,
EXAMPLE
when I was about 20 I had a problem on my on my 455 Pontiac fire-bird, I had alternator fan belt that seemed to get loose after a few days, I foolishly just kept just tightening the belt,, rather than inspecting the potential sources, of the problem, about a week into this process and about 4 belt tightening,s later the front crank damper started wearing a hole in the radiator as it was loose and moved forward off the crank., If Id taken the extra time, to carefully inspect the problem and do some research, I would have noticed and fixed the issue before it cost me a weeks pay
EXAMPLE
I had a 1969 BBC camaro that had a rocker that ticked, I turned out that no mater how I adjusted it that it would as you describe only stay semi quiet for a few minutes, then resume its ticking, it turned out that the rocker balls lower surface where it was cupped into the stamped rocker was burnt (badly worn) from a temporary lack of oil because ID over adjusted it and removed most of the required clearance at some point, replacing the rocker resolved the issue
related threads that may provide insite
viewtopic.php?f=52&t=4410&p=11602&hilit=busted+springs#p11602
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/ls-cam.2740/#post-54586
viewtopic.php?f=52&t=689
viewtopic.php?f=52&t=788
viewtopic.php?f=52&t=2661
viewtopic.php?f=52&t=2746
viewtopic.php?f=52&t=1769
viewtopic.php?f=52&t=181
Last edited by a moderator:
I will look closer at the rockers and springs also swap them around if I dont see anything wrong. I checked all the clearance issues when I was putting this engine together, but I did not check spring pressure because the springs came with the cam to work as a set. Thanks for your info I will let you know the outcome.
please let us know what you find and what tests you do to isolate the potential cause
I could not find the reason for the lifter tick, nothing on the heads anyway. I decided to go ahead and order some new ones. I attempted to make a push rod length checker today out of a push rod and 1/4 allthread like you have here. But it looks like my push rod i/d is to small so I will attempt to drill the push rod out for 1/4 hole. I will let ya know the outcome.
I got some new lifters,ls7 type. The pushrod length tool worked out good ( the homemade one) 3/16 allthread worked for it. I had to get the 7.150 pushrods for the new lifters. The old lifters were full of grime from previous engine. When I was building this engine I did not know that you could take the lifters apart and clean them. When I read the roller lifters could be used again if the bearings roll good and the lifters are cleaned good I did not know it meant (inside) and out. Anyway the new ones are in, oiling, and quite. The rearend change is next inline.