I posted about a problem I was having with one of my valve lash adjusters before. To make it more convenient, here is my previous post:
Originally Posted By: Falcon_LS
The engine in question is a 12-valve Mitsubishi 3.0L (6G72) in my truck - current mileage is 291,000 km (182,000 miles). When I did my valve job at 284,326 km (177,703 miles), I put in 5 quarts of Motorcraft Premium Synthetic Blend 10w30 with a Hyundai 26300-35503 oil filter.
My owner's manual recommends 12,000 km (7,500 mile) oil change intervals, so I reckoned I would run this up to 10,000 km (6,250 miles) before dumping it and finally putting in 5L from my stack of Mobil 1 0W-40 with another 26300-35503 filter.
At the 5,000 km (3,000 mile) mark, I drained a quart of oil from the engine and replaced it with MMO. The oil currently has 6,674 km (4,172 miles) on it, and I can hear my briefly hydraulic lifters ticking. It's not loud, but you can hear them when the sound echoes off a wall or vehicle next to you. I reckon this is because MMO has thinned the oil down.
For the past 6,674 km, the engine has not used any oil at all (checked daily). But I'm wondering if the light ticking of the hydraulic lifters is anything to worry about.
Should I just go another 3,000 km (1,875 miles) on this oil or just dump it out now?
Thanks!
Edit: Correction - it's a valve lash adjuster, not a hydraulic lifter.
Initially I reckoned the oil was too thin, as I was pretty much running a 5W-20 weight with the MMO added. But then I remembered Mitsubishi has a 'cure' for noisy valve lash adjusters, which has helped me before. The adjusters are engineered to respond to a revving exercise to flush the oil out of them. With the engine fully warmed up, you gently rev the engine up to 3,000 rpm over a time frame of exactly 15 seconds and drop the throttle. Then you let it idle for another 15 seconds, and this completes one cycle. Usually when I did this 2-3 times, the engine would be dead quiet. But this didn't help, so I thought the oil was definitely too thin.
At 294,195 km (183,871 miles), I changed my oil and filter (Mobil 1 0W-40 with the Hyundai filter and 130 ml of ARX) but the ticking was still there. I pinpointed it to be coming from the left side (when you're looking at the engine from the front of the vehicle), and with the hood shut, it would echo ever so loudly. If you were parked next to another vehicle, it would sound even louder. You could hear it clearly from behind the right front wheel.
The other day, I noticed the engine was quieter than before. With the engine running, I tried to listen to the ticking from the right front wheel and it was so faint...but MUCH, much faster. I reckoned it was on its last legs, and I would have to replace it ASAP.
Fast forward to today, with 295,900 km (184,937 miles) on the clock and 1,705 km (1,066 miles) on the oil, the ticking has completely stopped. The engine's dead quiet now. Not sure what it was, but this engine's definitely running a lot smoother on Mobil 1 0W-40 than any other oil I've used before.
Would it still be a wise idea to replace the adjuster (never been replaced before), or should I just forget about it since the ticking has gone away now? Thanks!
Originally Posted By: Falcon_LS
The engine in question is a 12-valve Mitsubishi 3.0L (6G72) in my truck - current mileage is 291,000 km (182,000 miles). When I did my valve job at 284,326 km (177,703 miles), I put in 5 quarts of Motorcraft Premium Synthetic Blend 10w30 with a Hyundai 26300-35503 oil filter.
My owner's manual recommends 12,000 km (7,500 mile) oil change intervals, so I reckoned I would run this up to 10,000 km (6,250 miles) before dumping it and finally putting in 5L from my stack of Mobil 1 0W-40 with another 26300-35503 filter.
At the 5,000 km (3,000 mile) mark, I drained a quart of oil from the engine and replaced it with MMO. The oil currently has 6,674 km (4,172 miles) on it, and I can hear my briefly hydraulic lifters ticking. It's not loud, but you can hear them when the sound echoes off a wall or vehicle next to you. I reckon this is because MMO has thinned the oil down.
For the past 6,674 km, the engine has not used any oil at all (checked daily). But I'm wondering if the light ticking of the hydraulic lifters is anything to worry about.
Should I just go another 3,000 km (1,875 miles) on this oil or just dump it out now?
Edit: Correction - it's a valve lash adjuster, not a hydraulic lifter.
Initially I reckoned the oil was too thin, as I was pretty much running a 5W-20 weight with the MMO added. But then I remembered Mitsubishi has a 'cure' for noisy valve lash adjusters, which has helped me before. The adjusters are engineered to respond to a revving exercise to flush the oil out of them. With the engine fully warmed up, you gently rev the engine up to 3,000 rpm over a time frame of exactly 15 seconds and drop the throttle. Then you let it idle for another 15 seconds, and this completes one cycle. Usually when I did this 2-3 times, the engine would be dead quiet. But this didn't help, so I thought the oil was definitely too thin.
At 294,195 km (183,871 miles), I changed my oil and filter (Mobil 1 0W-40 with the Hyundai filter and 130 ml of ARX) but the ticking was still there. I pinpointed it to be coming from the left side (when you're looking at the engine from the front of the vehicle), and with the hood shut, it would echo ever so loudly. If you were parked next to another vehicle, it would sound even louder. You could hear it clearly from behind the right front wheel.
The other day, I noticed the engine was quieter than before. With the engine running, I tried to listen to the ticking from the right front wheel and it was so faint...but MUCH, much faster. I reckoned it was on its last legs, and I would have to replace it ASAP.
Fast forward to today, with 295,900 km (184,937 miles) on the clock and 1,705 km (1,066 miles) on the oil, the ticking has completely stopped. The engine's dead quiet now. Not sure what it was, but this engine's definitely running a lot smoother on Mobil 1 0W-40 than any other oil I've used before.
Would it still be a wise idea to replace the adjuster (never been replaced before), or should I just forget about it since the ticking has gone away now? Thanks!
