V-10 Killer

iTrader: (22)

Hey Guys.

Last year, I finally got my car all back together from a 4L80 install. I drove it very mild for the first week because I had the previous years gas in it. When I put a fresh tank of gas in it, I'd driven about 60 miles (no heavy throttle yet) when I heard it start ticking pulling away from a stop light. It started at around 10-25 mph, but by the time I'd made it another 7 miles home, it was doing it from above idle to ~50 mph. When I start it, it sounds ok for the most part, with an occasional noise, but you can hear it under a light rev.
I'm sure I didn't help any by driving it home and am planning on tearing down the motor. I pray it might be a rocker or rocker arm bearings, but I'm not going to count on it.
I'm first going to separate the motor from the tranny and see if it goes away, but if it doesn't...
I've done almost all my own auto work, but I've never had to do a forensic analysis on a motor going bad. Are there any good writeups you can direct me to on things to look out for? Also, any tips or pointers on things to do or not do? Like keeping bearing caps in order, etc...

I'd really appreciate any info you could share on it.

chrisfrost

iTrader: (8)

I would say the best piece of advice I could give You would be to buy Yourself a good repair manual ,,,,,,,as it will have complete engine rebuilding procedures step by step . They are pretty thorough . Good luck

V-10 Killer

iTrader: (22)

Thanks Chris, I have the Chilton and Hayes manuals for the car, and bought these two.
How to Rebuild GM LS-Series Engines
How to Build High-Performance Chevy LS1/LS6 V-8's
I've only made it about 1/2 way throu the second one so far, but theres good info in it.

Just wondering if there were things to pay attention to that might not be mentioned or emphasized enough in the books. Thanks for responding though

V-10 Killer

iTrader: (22)

I've read a few posts with similar symptoms as mine, and it turned out to be a lifter coming apart and tearing up the camshaft. I'll look into this before pulling the block.

pdsq98gt

Before you tear your engine down, make sure that it's not something easy like an exhaust leak since you just had trans work done.

V-10 Killer

iTrader: (22)

Yeah, that was my first thought. I put the car up on the 2 post lift and let it run a bit, and couldn't see anything from any angle that might have been it Sure would be nice if it were external though...

bww3588

iTrader: (49)

The first thing I would do is drain the oil, cut the filter apart and examine that. Then pull the valve covers off and check everything out there. Just checking the pushrods for excessive movement can tell you if you have a lifters going bad. A little in car diagnostic can save you a lot of head aches in The future.

bww3588

iTrader: (49)

One other thing, go buy a new drain pan for the oil, And a section of window screen to put over the hole on the drain pan to catch any needle bearings that might come out from a failed rocker. Then get some cheap mason jars and put the oil in that to inspect for bearing material or whatever.

V-10 Killer

iTrader: (22)

I started tearing down the motor yesterday. Double valve springs looked fine, none looked broken. Rockers looked fine, none were missing needle bearings, or felt overly sloppy. No pushrods or cups looked like they'd been beaten up. I found one lifter that had just a little bit of give, but not anything drastic. It'll take me a few more days to get the motor fully removed so I can check the bottom end.
I guess if there's an up side, I'll use this time to start re-purposing or replacing parts for my single turbo project...