Hey all

Have got a EF here i just bought with quite noisy Hydraulic lifters

I was wondering is it common for anything to go wrong if they keep being driven with tappet noise ?


Oil pressure is all good , i am running 20/50 just changed it 200km's ago old oil was very filthy and new oil is now filth as well thanks to being so dirty inside the motor but oh well

Sounds like your lifters (HLA s) are gummed up. You can either replace them with some new ones (try the Nason ones on eBay), pull them apart and clean them, or put some additive in the oil to loosen them up. If you replace them, don't forget to block up the oil return holes and timing chain opening in the head so none of them can fall down there.

If you plan to replace them yourself, do a search and you'll find a write up on replacing them in an AU 4.0L.

I also notice when the car hasn't been driven for 2-3s days the first 3-5 seconds of start up is quite bad lifter noise , could that be something else

But can any damage happen from running with noisy HLA's ?

You may have to run an engine flush through it.....follow the instructions.....never drive the car with the flush in it.

I do not mean to argue guys , but i dont like engine flushes and additives i dont believe in them and have had many bad mishaps with them

But will i be ok to drive it as is for a few km's ,car is only used twice a week 10min trips

If you guys could please tell me what to look for with HLA's at wreckers i will get a set from pick a part as the last set i bought just for shims was $20. i dont mind replacing them if you guy's could give me some pointers on what to look for with them to tell if there ok or not

But i really don't want to replace them if no damage will be done with them as is

there wont be any damage done, but your valves wont be opening as far as they should be. it will be hit and miss using another used set if lifters. get another set and clean them using the method on this site somewhere and hope for the best. or throw in a bottle of lifter free.

Buy a new set. Using second hand lifter will be hit and miss. Even cleaning them will not ensure that they will be ok.

Be careful using Nason Lifters, they can be hit and miss as well. See if you can get your hands on some genuine Ford lifters, same as AU.

I use additives all the time, never had a problem with them.....I use Nulon brand additives.

You could drive basically forever with noisy lifters and you would do no damage. It's more a nuisance thing.

Considering the state of the oil when you bought the car, I would bet that the lifters are gummed up bad. The new oil is black from the detergents in it disolving the gunk - this is a good thing. But you won't get a full 5000 kms from this oil change.

Separate oil additives theoretically should never be required, but it sounds like your engine needs a little remedial help. The good additives don't do any harm, and can help. If it were my car, I would throw in a bottle of quality lifter-free additive (eg, Nulon), run it for about 1000 kms, then change the oil again for a top-notch synthetic (Nulon, Amsoil, Royal Purple, Redline, etc) and replace the filter with a high-efficiency one (Ryco Platinum, Ford Racing, Donaldson HE, Purolator One, Amsoil, etc). Most of the gunk should be disolved by then. If the lifters are still noisy, the only fix is to replace them, but the engine needs the oil TLC regardless. Good oils have high detergent content and keep your engine internals clean.

I bought my EF at 185,000 kms. I ran only Amsoil synthetic and Amsoil oil filters on extended (10,000-15,000km) change intervals until the head gasket blew at 250,000 kms. When we opened the engine, the internals were spotless - no varnish or sludge - and the wear surfaces were in excellent condition - no pitting or scoring. I have since switched to Royal Purple HPR oil and Ford Racing or Donaldson High-Efficiency filters (the local Amsoil distributor has gotten too greedy) on 10,000 km change intervals. Oil and filter costs me about $100. The old girl has 307,000 kms now and is still as strong as ever - not burning oil or smoking at all. Taking her to Drag Wars next week to see what she'll do.

Will be doing anther oil change soon

Have fitted a wade 1636 regrind and vernier gear and the inside of the motor was cleaner then i thought but all rockers are baked on with "sludge" the brown tinge i am unsure what that says ?

I didn't touch tappets should have really put them in a put of kero or petrol or metho for a night to clean them out then used a soft type of tooth brush and scrubbed them up inside out and rinse with fresh solvent and wipe dry, any opinions on that method ?

The HLA's have some plastic bits in them.....over time they become brittle, and break, especially when being cleaned......just fit a new set,....but first, if possible, disassemble the rocker gear and clean thoroughly.
New HLA on the right.

 

 

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You did install an extra shim in each rocker arm when the cam was installed? If not, you'll definitely have noisy HLAs. Also, I wouldn't recommend replacing the HLA retainers as they stop the HLAs moving freely with the extra shims (see a previous discussion below with arm79)

ford-4l-and-6-cylinder-f1/shims-for-reground-cam-t76713.html