3.2 hydraulic valve train noise

[Kevin Mac]

Just completed tearing down my 94 rodeo to inspect and repair a noisy engine. Ended up replacing all of the lifters on the right bank (thanks to this forum for providing a source to get these at $5 a piece new) as well as the intake rocker arm shafts on both sides since they were grooved pretty bad due to clogged oil holes. Put everything back together and it ran good for just a few hours and then suddenly the noise returned on the right side only much louder than before as well as black smoke pouring from the tailpipe. I decided that the timing must have slipped due to the timing belt being installed incorrectly so I broke it down and reset the timing and reinstalled the timing belt. Again it ran good and quite for just a few minutes agian the loud noise returned as well as the black smoke (I believe this is just raw gasoline). Of note I also checked the timing belt hydraulic tensioner and it was tight and running smooth so I believe I eliminated that as the source of the problem. I have not installed many timing belts but this one seems to be a real bear. Praise be to anybody who has any idea as to what the problem may be. Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

[Kevin Mac]

Just a follow up on my posting. Believe it or not but all I had to do was change the oil to 10W30 and use an ISUZU oil filter and presto-after just a few minutes running it quited back down. I had changed the oil to mobile 1 0w30 synthetic before I did all of the work and just left it in. I guess the reason it ran quite for the first few hours was that the new hydraulic lifters had the oil from the factory and as it was replaced by the 0w30 they got noisy. Go figure. Glad I tried that oil change cause I was just about to tear it down to find the source of the noise.

[danforth45]

did you get the 5$ rocker arms from aluminum head service? if so how was their quality, I mean did they look worn out? I also have noisy lifters on the right bank and need to do something

[Kevin Mac]

Originally Posted by danforth45

did you get the 5$ rocker arms from aluminum head service? if so how was their quality, I mean did they look worn out? I also have noisy lifters on the right bank and need to do something

Yes I did buy them from aluminum head service and they were brand new parts.

[danforth45]

thats cool, I wonder how they can sell brand new rockers for 5$ they are 50 - 60 from the dealer

[Kevin Mac]

Originally Posted by danforth45

thats cool, I wonder how they can sell brand new rockers for 5$ they are 50 - 60 from the dealer

My error. I meant lifters not rockers. The lifters are what goes bad and they are easy to replace.

[lovemycamaro]

The lifters on my 93 Rodeo were noisy, and I changed the oil and filter and added some Marvel Mystery Oil. Ran the thing for about 50 miles, and the engine is purring along without the noise.