Best oil to quiet "tapping"

[mdocod]

3.2L V6, isuzu. notorious "ticking" issues, can be attributed to the non-adjustable hydrolic lifter design. The lifters wear down, then tap back and forth rather than copmletally fill the gap.

I've noticed, that, heavier oils, tend to provide the best "help." in this department.

Would an oil heavy in Moly help? (i've heard havoline might have pretty high moly, true?)...

Currently experimenting with 15W40 delvac 1300. Would the synthetic version possibly help with this noise? I've tried other synths, without any significantly different performances.

Lots of isuzu fenatics with this engine swear by Mobil-1, being the only oil that seems to quiet down their ticking. I have a hard time rationalizing $23/5qt on something that I change the oil in every few weeks (lots of driving), and that consumes about 1qt/800miles. I don't think longer OCI is a good idea for an engine with this kinda age, even after 2,500 the oil comes out looking oxidized. (the consumption comes from blowby in the valavetrane/cylinder walls, meaning I am constantly introducing impurities)..

I've also tried 20W50 supertech on a 1500 mile try-out for cheap fun. It ran quieter than 10W30s i've used in the past- But I don't think I could consider a 20W50 cheapo for winter use around here.

I've heard a lot of mention of "GC" and "delo 400"... are these acronims, what are their full names? Sold where?

thanks in advance for any advice.

 

[JHZR2]

delo 400 is just that, chevron delo 400 diesel spec oil (15w-40). GC is German Castrol, a castrol syntec 0w-30 variety found at autozone, which, suprisingly, says, "made in Germany" on the back.

Givn the apparent frequency of your oil changes, and the fact that M1 may be an excellent choice for you, Id highly suggest that you se oil analysis, probably dyson analysis would be your best value, to determine how much further youc ould run the oil, with at least equivalent protection offered. This will let you know if you can justify longer drains, etc.

JMH

 

[AndyH]

quote:

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Originally posted by mdocod:
I have a hard time rationalizing $23/5qt on something that I change the oil in every few weeks (lots of driving), and that consumes about 1qt/800miles.

...

I've heard a lot of mention of "GC" and "delo 400"... are these acronims, what are their full names? Sold where?

---

Might as well scratch "GC" ("German" Castrol Syntec 0w-30) off your list...it usually sells for about $5/quart.

 

[Triple_Se7en]

Try Havoline or Motorcraft in 15W-40 with a 16-oz bottle of Marvel Mystery Oil in the engine -- another 16 in your tank. On the next OCI a month or two down the road, substitute one quart of oil with a quart of Rislone. See what happens! By that time, colder weather will begin to arrive & you may be able to weane it off the thick oils.

 

[Ramblin Fever]

I too have the 3.2L V6 Isuzu engine, mine is a 97, what year is yours?

For all of it's initial 140K miles, it ran on 10w-30 Havoline and an OEM filter without an issue.

Had every 3K mile oil/filter changes, and never uses more then 1/8 qt in 3K miles.

For the last few thousand miles, the tapping has started.

Since I am keeping this truck indefinitely, it's been a good vehicle and has never left me anywhere - I don't mind the extra cost of exploring different oils.

I have spent many nights, hours of researching this particular issue - and as you may know yourself, there's not many resources revolving around the 3.2L or 3.5L Isuzu engines.

From what I have read, these engines do not care for a "thicker" oil as it can't get into the valve train nearly as fast as a thinner oil.

I 1st tried the High mileage 10w-30 Havoline oil, for it's extra detergents - ticking got REALLY loud. Only ran it for 500 miles, truck just sounded like some areas were not getting enough lubrication.

I then tried Rotella 5w-40 for 900 miles, greatly assisted with the tapping - however, the oil itself, even when 1st purchased, had a horrible fuel/burnt smell to it. I had never purchased a heavy duty synthetic oil before, so I didn't know what to look for in terms of "smell".

After 600 miles, the dipstick smelled REALLY bad; finally dropped it at 900 miles, the whole truck was beginning to smell bad while running.

Went back to Havoline for a very short run just to help flush out the Rotella, which I will NOT use again - switched to GC (German Castrol) 0w-30 on Friday with a Napa Gold oil filter.

Never got to even turn the key - not yet anyway. The oil dipstick snapped in half, leaving part of it in the dipstick tube.

Soon as I get her "tube" cleaned out, I'll update to the sound of her "tapping".

I, too, will continue every 3K mile changes until the tapping clears up, then staying with synthetic, I'll probably go to 4K oil changes.

I will NEVER do a longer OCI on this particular engine - Isuzu's love really clean oil.

If given the fact that you don't care to spend $23 dollars on 5 qts, try using Castrol GTX (regular oil) - some Isuzu owners have stated that the GTX oil has helped.

You could try the Havoline, but I've heard other owners of the 3.2L saying it actually made their tick louder.

I think I may have had good luck with the Havoline oil because it always ran on it, and I never went over 2,500-3K mile OCI's. Sometimes they were even as short as 1K miles, depending on where the truck was at for a particular summer weekend.

I have also heard some newer 3.2L engine's like the Vavoline Durablend - don't know the cost of that oil.

My best advise to you is to shorten your OCI intervals, and do not use a fram oil filter on these rig's - they don't like em.

 

[Drew99GT]

If you've got excessive valve lash, shoudln't you just get it adjusted? It'll certainly make the engine run better!

 

[goodvibes]

Havoline SM with a qt of Redline is very quiet in my motor. Don't know how the SL version would have been. Sounds like you may need a cleaning.

 

[mdocod]

quote:

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If you've got excessive valve lash, shoudln't you just get it adjusted? It'll certainly make the engine run better!

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I thought I stated this originally- these engines are non-adjustable. They have a fixed position for the valvetrane.

So- I might give a wirl of thinner oil again, 5W30 (manufacture recomended) to see if anything happens with the clicking. Really thinking about some sort of "flush" to get the gunk out of the oil galleys.

thanks for the replies so far. much apreciated.

 

[416Rigby]

Redline is very quiet, but very expensive at $7 a quart. Schaeffers 9000 5w-40 may work for you, only $13 a gallon. Check the site sponsors section for dealers.

 

[AEHaas]

My wife's '04 Murcielago had a nasty valve tap when new. At 575 miles I dropped the OEM Agip 5W-40 and changed to 0W-30 Mobil 1. The tapping stopped and the whole engine became more quiet. I have used it since, very quiet.

It varies between oils and engines. You have to experiment a bit.

aehaas

 

[Ramblin Fever]

Yeap, these lifters are hydraulic & self adjusting.

Just switching to a different oil may not "cure" it right away - I've heard some people say it can take a couple thousand miles on a new oil.

I would've given Rotella that couple thousand mile run, but it smelled horrible.

 

[pscholte]

quote:

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Originally posted by AEHaas:
My wife's '04 Murcielago had a nasty valve tap when new. At 575 miles I dropped the OEM Agip 5W-40 and changed to 0W-30 Mobil 1. The tapping stopped and the whole engine became more quiet. I have used it since, very quiet.

It varies between oils and engines. You have to experiment a bit.

aehaas

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I guess since it stopped, no biggie, but I am sure most if not all Murcielagos must come with the Agip...do they all have the valve tap with that oil?

PS Not just to stay "true to form," but because I believe it is true: I bet GC would quiet that engine.

 

[JohnnyO]

Valvo Max Life, my decrepit work van is much quieter with it than any other oil. I use 10w-30.

 

[clutcher]

Hey Mdocod,
I checked TSBs at work for the ticking noise on your Isuzu the number is SB00-01-S009. Do a google search enter the SSM and you'll find it. In a nutshell, the cause is not fully pumped up lifters due to contamination.

 

[mdocod]

i did the search, with some results, but i can't seem to get to any actual article... any links??


from what you are saying "in a nutshell,",... theoretically.. these self adjusting lifters might just not be getting enough oil pressure due to buildup. i'm going to try some serious seafoam treatment, i've heard this stuff is a solid performer for cleaning.

 

[mdocod]

more spacifically, looks like I would have to pay for access to the articles... maybe you could copy/paste? or would that be a breach of "contract" with your "subscription" to the service? hehe, idunno... i'd love to hear more about this. If the "nutshell" of this issue is in fact just issues with oil not flowing well enough, seems like I should maybe do a heavy cleaning and then maybe run a nice mobil 1 0W20 for a little while to continue to aid in the flow and cleaning, then switch back to something heavy again. idunno. would like to read the TSB

 

[tweeker43]

the noise in my car diminished when i switched to pennzoil. i throw in a quart of ll 15w-40 with my normal oil and it's better.

not perfect, but better.

 

[mdocod]

I've tried penz and QS. I pretty much stay away from supporting them though. I'm not a big fan of the horror stories of the jiffy lube service. (owned by penz/quaker)...

I'm not saying penz is bad oil, their dinos and synthetics are all very decent oils with good packages and good performance. suprising they would put their name on a fram filter though. I guess they are in bed with fram or something.

 

[Anthony]

GC seemed to work the best in keeping my moms 3.2 trooper quiet but I came across 6 free qts of Maxlife synthetic 5w30 and just had to try it.
With this oil the noise comes and goes so I will probably go back to GC in a 2k or so.
I dont know if the GC will do as well as it did since many here say it has been reformulated and is no longer green but ill give it a try anyway.

 

[mdocod]

gona drag my tapping post up for an update...

I took some serious consideration on the TSB recomendation to use a 0w30 synthetic to help the ticking... my understanding at this point, is that the tick is a result of a lack of oil flow(pressure) to the adjusters.... The fix is to get it to clean out....

After spending awhile around on these boards- I decided that as long as i'm going to use a full synthetic 0w30- it might as well be GC, i've gone on the "hunt" and dug through the shelves and made out with 54 quarts of green german castrol. At $4.39/ea, I can rationalize. It's pure POA base stock with a near HDEO add-pack that everyone on these boards seems to praise as if it were the true holy grail of motor oils. The UOAs back it up very nicely. And it's less pricy than Mobil 1.

I switched the zoozoo over to the GC 2 days ago, i've only had the chance to drive about 50 miles since then- I can't say I have noticed any significant difference in the tapping at this point, but I doubt that I should expect to for awhile....


After putting the GC in the zoozoo- I pulled my recently purchased 2001 suzuki swift into the garage to top off the oil (it has started to consume a slight amount since switching to Mobil 1 EP)... While I had it in the garage- I was peering down the fill hole- and saw something I really didn't want to see on an engine with only 57k on it... http://photobucket.com/albums/b72/mdocod/zooki before arx/
sludge and varnish

So I decided- I've got an isuzu with an infamous tick that could theoretically "clear up" with some cleaning, and I've got a sludged up suzuki.

ordered 6 bottles of ARX...

here's the plan..

I'll take pictures of the valvetrane on both vehicles before I begin the ARX treatment. Also I'll bust open filters from before the treatment, and any filters I use throughout the treatment and rinse phases and take pictures of those filters. And then finally- i'll remove the valave covers again after the rinse phase is complete and take more picts... As you can see- we already have "starting point" picts on the swift... I'm going to run the GC for about 2k in the isuzu before I start the cleaning phase on that oil. both vehicles will be switched to dino oil for the rinse phase.

I'm hoping, praying- that ARX can do it's magic on these vehicles.... the swift runs great, even with all that sludge. I haven't seen under the valve cover of the rodeo so I have no idea there... but my oil consumption, and fuel economy, and lifter tapping, all seem to be getting worse and worse latally.

After all this is done, we'll have one more testimonial on the ARX with picts to backup any results!!!

Knew that digi cam could come in handy for something!!!