3100 sfi ticking...

[SwiftDrift]

its at just about 200k miles and has rather noticeable ticking. about how long will the engine last under normal driving conditions? i hope its not piston slap. if its lifter tap i can just adjust the rockers right?

[robertisaar]

piston slap = will probably last another 200K.

anyways, what i thought was lifter tick for the longest time turned out to be injector ticking.... just something you may want to listen to/feel for.

[SwiftDrift]

the idle is a little odd in the cold. how would you identify whether its piston slap, lifter(s), or an injector--without ripping the engine apart?

[robertisaar]

a ghetto "stethoscope" could be used to track where the noise is loudest. for the injectors.... depending on how well you can reach them, unplug one while running for a second or two, see if the sound goes away or changes frequency.

[SwiftDrift]

if it is the injector, chances are i will need to replace it right? or do they get noisy when clogged?

[robertisaar]

mine have been noisy for ~50K miles..... i don't think it is indicative of a problem, just something that happens depending on the design of the injector. they've actually quieted down, the last time i drove it, from what i remember.

[caffeine]

My brand new 550cc injectors are pretty loud. Pretty normal.

[SwiftDrift]

when we got the car i dont even remember hearing the ticking, only had it for about a year... if it is the lifters ticking, i can always adjust the rockers right?

[trotterlg]

when we got the car i dont even remember hearing the ticking, only had it for about a year... if it is the lifters ticking, i can always adjust the rockers right?

No, ther rockers are not adjustable. Larry

[SwiftDrift]

i thought there was a remedy like that, idk thats just what i heard from my neighbor.

[trotterlg]

i thought there was a remedy like that, idk thats just what i heard from my neighbor.

Only way to tighten up the lash would be to put a washer under the rocker nut or put in a longer pushrod. The rocker bolts tighten down on top of a sholder on the rocker stud and there is no adjustment. The washer would have to be larger than the sholder on the stud which is about .398 inch. Larry

[SwiftDrift]

ohh okay thanks. how long do you think this will keep it from ticking again?

[caffeine]

Valve lash is supposed to be automatically hydraulically adjusted. Any method other than replacing bad lifters just sounds ghetto to me.

On older engines with non-hydraulic lifters valve lash is adjusted manually and can get rid of ticking.

Before assuming its the valvetrain listen for where the noise is coming from. If it's between the intakes then it's probably injectors. If it's from the valve covers it's probably lifters.

[SwiftDrift]

we r selling the car probably within a year. even if its fine, its noticeable. if the washer method is safe i might do it

[caffeine]

But make sure the injectors aren't what's ticking at least. Ticking injectors are completely normal.