Ok, my 2.8 Camaro driver makes some racket from I beleive the passenger side valve cover when started. But when the car warms up its perfectly fine. It sound almost like a noisy lifter or loose rocker, but on my firebird that sound would always be audible when warm, even if quieter. This thing is silent when warmed up, but noticeable when the car is first started even with the hood closed. Should I rip valve covers off and start checking things? Those valve covers look like a 40 minute a piece job anyways and I was hoping to avoid taking them off.

 

Sounds like some of your oil holes may be blocked. I know this sounds real crazy (believe me, I said heII no the first time I heard it too) but the best way to sort that out is to drain the oil, put a gallon of diesel in the oil filler, run the car for 5 minutes, drain the diesel, replace the oil and filter, run the car for 1-200 miles and change the oil and filter again.

Honestly, that will unblock any blockages and it will not damage the engine.

Si

 

84TA,

That sounds typical of a lifter leaking down. You can either live with it, remove the lifters and clean or replace them, or try cleaning the lubrication system with AFT or some other solvent/detergent in the oil.

Chances are that the check valve on one of the lifters is leaking back or the plunger has excessive clearance. Usually, the chaeck valves are the issue unless the engine has a TON of miles, like 200K+. Using a cleaner and keeping fresh oil in the sump can prevent or even solve that.

 

Start using Synthetic Oil. Synthetic Oil is cleaner than regular oil. See regular oil has impurities in it and that turns into gunk after a while. And Synthetic does not have any impurities. Synthetic oil Also cleans the engine. Go to this website they have the best oil. http://www.auto-engineers.com/

 

If I ignore it will it harm anything? The motor is a goodwrench replacement thats 2 years old and has like 30K on it. I may try going to synthetic, but I drive this thing from Syracuse to CT (500 miles round trip) and I change my oil a little to often to go to synthetic, as its quite expensive. Actually I think its still under warranty, I should bring it in instead of ignoring it. I hate having to work on a car that I drive all the time, I dont trust myself and do some dumb things when i work on cars sometimes

 

#1. If you ignore it, it probably isn't going to get any better by itself. That's most probably how the noise started in the first place.

#2. If it's still under warranty and you DON'T report the problem, you won't have a leg to stand on if you discover something serious farther down the road.

#3. If you drive a lot of highway miles (and it sounds as if you do) then synthetic is a great choice as a lubricant.

With long trips, you can extend the drain interval to 6,000 miles or more without sacrificing protection and fuel economy. You may want to spin a new filter on between the changes and top off the sump, but synthetic is ideal for long-trip driving. Most of us do too much stop/start driving to be able to safely extend the change interval. However, long trips are the best mileage you can put on your engine/car. Synthetics are a perfect fit for your driving style and extended change intervals. Between fuel savings, power increase, and reduced wear, you could probably almost break even on absolute dollar cost if you do your own changes and buy at the right price. On top of that, your engine will be cleaner and last longer, plus start more easily in your cooler weather.

 

if it is under warranty take her back and let them look a it,

its things like this you have a warranty for,

take her back and let the them look at her

 

Im not even sure on the warranty deal, my father installed it himself. I think the goodwrench motors have a 3 year warranty though, so I should be able to take it in, only problem is no documented mileage for install. I may try synthetic on the next oil change, but I just filled it. And I do change the filter every single time I change the oil. The motor used to use a lot of oil, as it leaked out the distributor hole in the back. That seal was finally fixed. I do drive a lot of highway miles, probably 1/2 of what goes on the car. But the other part is all stop and go in traffic. But can you let a synthetic go in a car for that 6-7 thousand miles? It would be nice to have better cold starting. I also heard of synthetic working crap loose in an old motor and making it leak oil. This isnt a concern on the 2.8, but say if I went to synthetic in my 100K mile 350 in the t/a. Would I be safe in doing this or would I make it leak?

 

84,

Symthetics won't cause any leaks. The misunderstanding surrounding that legend is common. What the synthetic can do is clean away any varnish and sludge, some of which may be sealing or minimizing existing leaks. Once the sludge is cleaned away, the faulty seal or gasket is free to leak again. Synthetics actually tend to condition seals better than mineral oils, but if they are already damaged, they aren't going to get fixed by adding synthetic.

Still, that's a pretty lazy excuse to avoid synthetics. If an engine leaks, it needs repair, not Band-Aids. The benefits will far outweigh any potential problems, even on an engine with high mileage. 100K is nothing if the maintenance has been regular.