Bluehawk27

I have an F13 cam in my car with some headers, I just recently put an electric cut out. The valve train sounds pretty noisy, almost sewing machine like. Is that normal? I checked the springs and the rockers and they are fine, i have chrom moly push rods, and the car has 62K on the clock. Am i just not used to hearing the valvetrain with the cam? The noise gets lounder and faster as it revs up. Let me know please

ls1 1990 VN

Yea mate, it's normal, we all have to get used to it. There has been a lot of discussion about it.

Bluehawk27

The only problem is that i have had the cam in for about 3 months and it just recently got loud. Oil pressure is close to 60 at idle, could it be a collapsed lifter?

Tranzor

It will sound like a sewing machine with the F13 cam, perfectly normal... did you change oil recently? Sometimes a different oil weight, different brand, etc. can effect what you hear in the valvetrain if you're sensitive to the effects of those kinds of changes.

Bluehawk27

Yeah i did just change oil weights actually. I went from the German Castrol 0w-30 to Mobile 1 0w-40. Would switching to something like 5w30 or 10w03 quiet it down?

Tranzor

Well, Mobil 1's 5w30/10w30 are both fairly thin oils... it wouldn't help your valvetrain noise, it might actually make it a tad louder considering the 0w40 Mobil 1 is slightly thicker.

I had a little more valvetrain chatter with Mobil 1 as well (used the 0w40 as well as 5w30 before that), but it has gotten slightly quieter with the Amsoil XL 5w30 I'm running now. It's still audible though, as with a cam like F13 some sewing machine sound is to be expected.

Bluehawk27

Damn i feel like an idiot, but i found the problem. drum roll please......................Loose spark plug wire.