Valve/lifter tick

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Stang40

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The Mighty Max has had a tick for the whole time I've had it, which has only been about 6 months. It comes and goes and doesn't seem affected by oil viscosity. I changed the oil last night and it has gotten worse. I'm not saying it was the oil, as it is usually always worse for the first 100 miles after an OC. It's terrible now though, worse than it's ever been. It doesn't stop around 1500 rpm's anymore, it keeps doing it up to 3000 or more and is really embarrassing. Other than adjusting the valves or lifters(old truck, not cost effective), is there ANYTHING else I can do? It's driving me crazy.
 
My Buick ticks like crazy with PU 5w30 but is quiet on defy. I would try a high mileage or conventionalooil and see the difference. The sound is annoying but doesn't mean much for wear.
 
Have you been using only synthetic oils in it ? Does it tick with dino oils as well ? I agree with 901 - use a high mileage oil or dino (PYB) and see what happens.
 
adjusting the valvetrain could be as simple as taking off the valve keeper and using two wrenches. Could be just an hour job. Hopefully they are. I'd research it a bit cause am unadjusted valvetrain could lose you major power and fuel mileage. Im gonna check now cause you will be able to bend pushrods on those types of engines. And you can aquire a collapsed lifter from to much valvetrain clearance.
 
My 3000GT hated synth. Ticked like crazy on every startup in cold weather. Good old dino and it never ticked,ever. Drain and refill with your fave dino 10W30 and see what happens. It's a cheap experiment before you go taking it all apart.
 
A varnished lifter will tick on synthetic or dino, if one or more is sticking/stuck the type of oil is irrelevant. You very well may end up taking it apart but start with the cheapest and easiest solution first.
 
Originally Posted By: 901Memphis
My Buick ticks like crazy with PU 5w30 but is quiet on defy. I would try a high mileage or conventionalooil and see the difference. The sound is annoying but doesn't mean much for wear.
That's unfortunate, I was kinda looking forward to trying it. Its a pain to find synthetic MaxLife in my area and when I do they want $35. I was thinking about trying Mobil 1 on my next change. Might just do that then.
 
Does your Mitsu engine use the classic hydraulic lash adjusters? Great for making noise over time. New ones fix it up, and are not too expensive at all. Very easy to change. You have to pump them pump and bleed them in oil with a paper clip before you install them wink If they are mechanical adjusters, they are simple to on the Mitsu's also.
 
Thank you guys so much, especially for the links, it does have hydraulic lifters that are notorious for noise in these engines. And if it's as easy as it seems to fix though, I may just fix it. This is the 1st time I've ran syn in it(found ultra on clearance $4/ qt). It's the worst so far, but it's also had castrol 10w30 and rotella 15w40 and ticked with those as well. If winter wasn't coming in a few months I would try 20w50 just to see, cuz the radio doesn't work lol
 
This uses a lifter/lash adjuster similar to the old Subaru EJ22 engine, IIRC both Subaru and Mitsubishi both recommend running it at 3K RPM for about 15 seconds. This sometimes quiets them down, it happens often after an oil change. The oil feed hole in these lifters is tiny and gets blocked easily.
 
That makes a lot of sense, as that's been my experience also. I've pretty much decided that I'm going to change them out while I'm changing the valve cover gasket. I've never done anything this involved with an engine before but it seems pretty straight forward. Wish me luck!
 
Originally Posted By: Stang40
Should I clean them or just replace them?
I've replaced hundreds of these. They are very easy. Just replace them. Also, you can sometimes find OEM's online for a decent price, but if you are going aftermarket try to stay away from Chinese no-name's. Ones I've seen have much softer internal springs and are extra spongy - which is what you don't want. I've had good luck with OEM, Sealed Power, and Ajusa branded parts. You can pick them up online less than in the stores (of course) It is hit and miss with any of the generic ones online. I've had some that seem ok, others are definitely not as high quality as the OEM parts. That being said, it is hard to beat a set of them for $30 off eBay. If there is that much of a difference in cost, I would take a chance to with the cheaper ones. Basically remove what needs to in order to remove the valve cover. Loosen the rocker shaft bolts. You don't have to take them out. Lift up on the rocker arms and slide out the lash adjusters. Be careful because sometimes they like to slide out and fall into places you don't want them to go. Prep your new adjusters by putting them in a tupperware or something similar filled with oil. Pump them a bunch of times and stick a paper clip in the hole to release air. Small air bubbles will come out. Keep doing this to bleed out all of the air in the lash adjusters. Insert on at a time into the rocker arms and make sure you push the rocker arm back down so the lash adjuster is touching the valve stem. Again, this is because they like to fall out. There is a tool that is designed to hold the adjuster in the arm during installation, but it is not necessary. Just make sure you don't have the rocker arm sticking up in the air where the adjusters can fall out. It's pretty straight forward and easy. After you put it all back together, start it up and run it between 2-3k for a few min to get oil flowing through them and to bleed out any air that might still be in the rocker arm oiling system. After that, you should be good to go. I've built a highly modded G54B in my '89 Conquest. I had done this probably 50 times with that engine. Also during my time at Chrysler dealers I replaced a bunch of them on the 3.0l Mitsu engines widely used by Chrysler back in the day. And then I worked at a Mitsu dealer for a few years. Same thing. I have total confidence that you can do this.
 
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