Overheating and lifters
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Overheating and lifters To make a long story short I ran my truck hot until I blew the head gasket without even noticing it was hot. After having it towed to the shop I told them what had happened and just needed it fixed. Wanting to keep the truck for awhile they said they could make sure it was fixed. They changed the head gasket and I went ahead and had them change the water pump, thermostat, radiator, all the hose, even a new radiator cap. Needless to say this was not cheap but I had no problem paying as long as my truck was back on the road. My problem is that now I have a lot of lifter nose that was not there before. Explaining to the shop that since they said they would fix my truck and I was willing to pay the bill for what ever needed to be done this should have been taken care of. Yes I know it would have been more labor and parts cost but should I start all over with the labor now? They changed the oil and told me to bring it back in a few hundred miles and they would change it again and the noise should go away. Needless to say it's still there and I don't think it is going to just go away. I've thought of trying some Sea Foam or maybe some MMO but I know the lifter problem was due to the overheating. Should I continue to push the issue with the shop at maybe some reduced labor rate or just bite the bullet? Any thoughts?
But...the lifter noise happened after the meltdown and after the cooling work was done. I'd say that it's an unrelated issue. Don't worry about the labor cost up to this point, because no matter what you have to get this fixed anyway. Maybe someone else will chime in...
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From: Hoosier Daddy....
We had a shop change out the head gaskets on the wife's Pontiac Montana van. The lifters were happily clattering away (read: loud) when we picked it up. The service guy mention that anytime you do head work, the hydraulic lifters drain themselves, and would quiet down thru regular use.
Eventually it did go away, as the lifters regained their oil through regular driving. Assuming yours were not damged from the over heating, they should quiet down. Might take a while.
Eventually it did go away, as the lifters regained their oil through regular driving. Assuming yours were not damged from the over heating, they should quiet down. Might take a while.
Last edited by johnnybravo; Oct 20, 2010 at 04:06 AM. Reason: spelling
It shouldn't take more than 5 minutes for any lifter to fill with oil and purge all the air out.
I've put cams in from some manufacturers that want you to install and do the initial start up on empty lifters. They only make noise for a few minutes.
I've put cams in from some manufacturers that want you to install and do the initial start up on empty lifters. They only make noise for a few minutes.
you guys do not know how hydraulic lifters work,
they will fill with oil instantly as soon as oil pressure hits them,
and they normally drain (bleed down) when the engine is off so to say they drain when any time head work is done is wrong.
what engine is this on and more importantly what type of rockers are in the heads?
If they are adjustable rockers then the lifter preload was probably set wrong and the noise you are hearing are the rockers clattering because of insufficient lifter preload.
If they are non-adjustable rockers then lifters just get tightened down completely and the lifter preload is determined primarily by the pushrod length. normally it's the rockers that make the noise, not lifters. If it is a lifter that is damaged, it would be from oil coking inside it from the overheat condition and the lifter is clogged, so it can't fill properly with oil and take up the slack between the pushrod and rocker, and it also probably isn't flowing oil up the pushrod to the head. the fix for that would be either replacing the lifters, or pulling each one apart to inspect and clean which isn't hard but time consuming. The shop should have checked lifter preload or looked for valve lash when reinstalling the head and tightening the rockers, if checked properly and there was none then look at the lifters. if it's not that, then start looking for bearing damage from the overheat condition and the oil getting too hot and not having enough viscosity, especially if a 5w30 oil, because it's a bearing knock you are hearing. since you overheated and blew the head gasket, the engine had to get pretty hot.
they will fill with oil instantly as soon as oil pressure hits them,
and they normally drain (bleed down) when the engine is off so to say they drain when any time head work is done is wrong.
what engine is this on and more importantly what type of rockers are in the heads?
If they are adjustable rockers then the lifter preload was probably set wrong and the noise you are hearing are the rockers clattering because of insufficient lifter preload.
If they are non-adjustable rockers then lifters just get tightened down completely and the lifter preload is determined primarily by the pushrod length. normally it's the rockers that make the noise, not lifters. If it is a lifter that is damaged, it would be from oil coking inside it from the overheat condition and the lifter is clogged, so it can't fill properly with oil and take up the slack between the pushrod and rocker, and it also probably isn't flowing oil up the pushrod to the head. the fix for that would be either replacing the lifters, or pulling each one apart to inspect and clean which isn't hard but time consuming. The shop should have checked lifter preload or looked for valve lash when reinstalling the head and tightening the rockers, if checked properly and there was none then look at the lifters. if it's not that, then start looking for bearing damage from the overheat condition and the oil getting too hot and not having enough viscosity, especially if a 5w30 oil, because it's a bearing knock you are hearing. since you overheated and blew the head gasket, the engine had to get pretty hot.
