I have a 250 i6 and theres a pretty annoying tapping noise, i think its coming from one of the rockers. i tried to adjust it today but i found out i cant. (shoulda read my chiltons before) so... how do i make this stop?
Find out whether it is a lifter going bad, a bent pushrod or a worn valve. Then it just a matter of replacing the bad part. If it is a cam lobe going flat plan on getting a cam, lifters and timing gear and chain set.
when i had my 170, i drove it from ky to az in 2003. it has rel bad lifter noise.. i bought some rizlone... it worked great.. it just covers up the noise, it is not a fix, but it will make loose valve train be quiet by thickening up everything and coating it all nicely.. but yeah.. you will need to find the problem and fix it.. i used rizlone only to buy me a few months, because i was going to swap engines anyways
I was going to suggest exhaust leak, but I was too slow... I have one now on my car and it sounds just like a tapping lifter.
It is very common for I6's to make tapping noises. The owners manuals for both my '74 Grabber and '76 say that it's normal valvetrain noise due to the hydrualic lifters. The 250 in my car has done it for the past 51,000 miles that I have drove it..
In spite of it being a "factory accepted noise", hydraulic lifters should not make noise. If they are ticking there is a problem that can be fixed.
My 250 made that tapping noise a few times right after starting it. When I turned it off and restarted the noise would be gone. I dumped a quart of seafoam down the carb and in the valve cover, changed the oil and haven't heard the noise since.
Not to scare you but, last 250 I had made a lifter noise. soon after I had a 7th piston hole in the block. Try running it at idle for about 20 minutes with 5 quarts of trans fluid in it. Trans fluid cleans real nice. Just don't drive it with that stuff in there.
Valve stem seals tend to fall apart after age and get stuck in the lifters causing them to get stuck {the inside} that creates valve lash and the ticking noise. I just replaced the seals in my 200 that ticked alot now the noise is gone. I also removed the head and got all of those little peices of valve stem seal out, there was a ton of it in the lifter area. Good luck
If Ford said it's normal even back when these engines were brand new, I don't see the problem. I put new lifters, push rods, valve seals and everything in my 250 back in 2005, and it still does it. I have ran the crap out of the motor for the past two years with no problems what so ever, motor "only" has 260,000 on it...
Jamie, Ford has over-length push rods to get rid of the noisey lifters. They are marked with different color bands on them. The big deal is that if they are making noise then there is extra wear taking place on the lifters, cam and a reduction of power. So its not a big deal just that it is an agrivation that you don't have to put up with.
i think i'm going to just add some rizlone like someone said...the motor doesnt run bad...the lifter noist is just annoying...
I am going to add a scenario to this thread and see if the noise I have is the same you guys are talking about. About a year ago I had purchased a new fuel pump, was putting it back on and ( don't even ask me how) but I got a bolt dropped into the block through that hole where the pump fits. anyway long story short I had the oil pan off, then back on and dumped oil back in, Started it .. phone rings go in get sidetrack for a bit, come out and my motor is ticking very badly and I see a huge puddle of oil under the car.. ( apprently the gasket had slipped and oil leaked out. Anyway I shut the car off immediately but now i have a rattling noise coming from the valves/ lifters or what ever. Any way I had the car in for a bunch of work I had done and the mechanic that did the work said it is a stuck lifter. Is that possible if the valve train was starved of oil, what would be your opinions, is this a hard thing to fix, is this the kind of thing that while I'm at it might as well do a complete "valvejob" what is done in a complete valve job? What would a guy expect to pay to have this done, if I tackle it myself what parts should I buy? CAr runs starts right off drives fine but rattles. It is not a rod because it isnt a knocking noise, sounds kinda like a diesel truck.
