Poncho72

iTrader: (1)

i have a mystery to solve about the possible use of plastic valve retainers on Gen IV engines. were they ever used? i've worked on quite a few Gen III's and 1 or 2 Gen IV's and never have i seen plastic retainers, but i have a guy swearing that he had a failure on an 08 5.3 with 'plastic" retainers. help me resolve this.

KCS

iTrader: (20)

Nope, no such thing in the LS engines. Stock retainers are steel, aftermarket can be steel, titanium, or even aluminum.

Poncho72

iTrader: (1)

before the guy could finish, i called him an idiot at the thought of something that critical being made of anything non-metal. he swore that the dealership told him that was the cause of his failure. before you guys jump, i know the key word here is "dealership", they aren't the most truthful bunch. i even tried to give him the benefit of the doubt and suggested that they may have been referring to the "valve seals maybe", but he's convinced that they are all made that way. i finally told him to give up his right to own a GM and just buy one of the the other 2.

ryridesmotox

Lol... Funny.

Jontall

Plastic retainers would last about 2 seconds.

mrvedit

The dealership probably referred to the plastic valve lifter "retainers". If they fail the lifter can turn and destroy a "varying" amount of stuff.

96capricemgr

iTrader: (1)

or the guy at the dealer might have been an idiot, there are a LOT of guys who swap parts for dealerships who don't know a damned thing about cars.

GSAWYERS

There are part-changers and there are technicians, did 6 years with BMW and 2 yeads with Land Rover. There are not too many technicians left in the dealership world, but there are some seriously talented ones out there. Shop politics and flat-rate times being reduced are contributing to the decline in talent. I only know a couple of the really good ones that have stuck with dealer work, most said "F... Y.." to the crooked service managers and low pay and went independent or walked away from the craft completely. I ended up modifying exotic cars, because thats where the money is if you can do it. Anyway, plastic retainers? Really? The trade schools are really turning out some quality techs, lol

KCS

iTrader: (20)

That would make more sense.

Poncho72

iTrader: (1)

i assume you guys are talking about the lifter trays now. that would make a lot of sense logically, but if you know this "know it all asswipe" that probably is not the case. i get a kick out of just listening sometimes, and observing how guys actually seem to believe their own lies or trap themselves in the end.