Ok, so i pulled my driver's valve cover off to check for slight knocking. the first pushrod(#2 cylinder bank) was way too far down..not even close to the rocker arm and the rocker arm beside it was split by the pushrod.I tried to remove the 1st lifter out and the pushrod seat, and a small clip/ring came out,now all I can see is the inside of my lifter and the small hole in it that the oil is pushed through...is there a way to remove the rest of the lifter without removing the head..oh..btw..its a 1992 camaro rs..any help would be great!!

 

no , it sounds like time for a major tear down . who knows what else may be gone or going . good luck .

 

Well you could try a powerfull magnetic pick up tool or a hydrolic lifter puller eather way it should come out.

 

I tried a magnet and got the parts described,lots of gunk on the wall,may be time for a rebuild,,got it for $500.tired of driving my 1991 eclipse.Can I take the intake off to push it up?..with those two problems I described it ran pretty good..180,000 miles on it btw.

 

You don't even have the intake off yet? Yes, you need to do that. Your engine has roller lifters which are held in place by "dogbones" and a lifter retaining "spider" that's bolted down in the middle of the lifter valley. No way to get the lifter out without removing that stuff.

Plus, you really need a good look at things to see if there's an schrapnel laying in there, plus a good look at the cam lobes through the lifter bores to see if they look OK or if they have been obviously chewed up necessitating cam replacement.

 

took off the intake...found the rest of the lifter(stock) in the valley...the cam wore a hole in the lifter body,I guess I will replace the cam(lobe worn) and lifters..pushrods are decent but mite as well replace them too.It is easier workin on this rather than my eclipse gs(gonna sell it)...keep it all stock since it's a 25th anniversary camaro..my twin has 1 in the same year so it will freak people out when they yell his name at me and vice versa,btw,LOVE THIS FORUM!!!!...people who actually know what they're talking about!!!!

 

since its a roller cam you probably dont have to replace the roller lifters - take a look and see if they are still good - although with a flat lobe you are probably right.
by any chance did someone put a flat tapit lifter in it. very unusual for roller lifters to wear out. got a 90 since it was new and they are in good shape.

 

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yes,,this lifter was a standard type(not roller)..they all are,,,did it supposed to have rollers from the factory?...it's a 3.1 v6

 

Thought we were talking about a V8 (305 TBI engine). Not sure if the 3.1 came with roller lifters from the factory that year. Maybe someone can chime in on that.

Anyway, with a flat tappet cam if the lifter face is chewed up you can take it to the bank that the cam is roached too.

 

I know right..got the stuff on order and even called a dealership to confirm mine had flat lifters..yup..gonna change the timing chain and gears,water pump too while I'm on a roll..

 

My only suggestion is maby its time for a complete ovehaul? I mean at 180k miles its probably pretty tired especially concidering all the sludge you said you saw. However if you wanted to toss in a cam and be done with it make sure you break it in properly or it will grind down your cam/lifter again very shortly. These new modern oils dont have the high levels of ZZDP that these old motors with flat tappet cams like. So ide say use break in oil and an a motor oil like rotilla t desil oil. From there just follow the normal break in procedure.

 

gotta remember that,thanks...gonna take it easy on the engine when she is together,should i go synthetic after or just oil?

 

Yes, the 3.1's ran flat tappet cams & lifters.

RBob.

{edit in} I wanted to add, that you may not be able to pull the lifter out through the top of the lifer bore. When they wipe a lobe many times they will mushroom on the bottom.

In this case need to hold the lifter up (or flip the engine upside down), and pull the cam. Then let the lifter fall out the bottom of the bore.

 

well i'm going to remove the intake and push it up (hopefully),i need to check the valley for debris from the lifter and others possibly anyway.

 

Personally ide stay away from synthetics atleast untill your through with the break in and a while after just to be safe. After that its really up to you. I would just try to get something that has a high concentartion of ZZDP like valvoline VR1 oil. Personally i run rotilla t all the time. Ive found they do make it in the 10-w30 and with the high concentations of ZZDP you cant go wrong as long as you change your oil regularly.

 

does what you use keep good oil pressure?

 

Oh yea 10-w30 is the recomended weight for it. Really its the same basic stuff with a little different formula rated for desle motors. The reason they got away from it was because of emmissions.