Hey Guys..having some issues here maybe someone can shed a little light on my problem.I am adjusting my valves on my 3.1 and searched some past threads on this procedure.Not really finding any answers for me.My question is ,why do the lifters bleed down quickly?..is this normal or signs of bad lifters?..and my manual says 1 1/5 turns after zero lash.That doesnt seem right?..other V6 owners like 1/2 to 3/4 turns.So you should back off the lash till you get an up/down movement on the pushrod and then do your half to three quarters of a turn before they bleed down?..is that the correct procedure?..

 

zero lash plus one full turn when valve is closed,

which means lifter is on backside of lobe journal

sometimes some lifters act differently than others

depends on mileage and other factors

its ok if they bleed

theres no oil pressure to keep them pumped up when its not running

so the plunger inside of them will move when you tighten the rocker nut

howcome you are messing with yours ?

did something happen ?

good luck

 

yeah its 1/2 to 3/4 turn. and just to make sure, you are doing it with each cylinder on top dead center so the valves are closed arent you?

 

Yeah I am adjusting them while watching each one hit TDC..I didnt want to remove the stubborn #1 cylinder plug.I am doing the procedure wrong...cause the lifters are bleeding down.SO I will try the lock nut completely loose, checking up and down on the PR ,then adjust them quickly...cause I did it wrong and had to completely tear it back down cause it lost compression and ran like crap.The only reason I am doing it is cause my valve covers were leaking and decided to adjust them while I was there...no real problems.I also installed some wrong size injectors and was having problems starting.So I am trying to cover a few problems while I am in there.

 

So after adjusting the valves...I now have a dead cylinder...rechecked the adjustment and still dead hole...great ...thats what I need right now..more work.So now its yank the heads..had enough of this cheap junk these engineers put in these motors.Sorry lifters and junk springs..thanks GM engineers for your overpaid ideas..thats one reason I hate being a mechanic dealing with crap like this.

 

I just wanted to follow up on this Valve Adjustment procedure for future guys..the V6 springs have very little seat pressure, so you cannot adjust them like a V8.Dont use the turning of the pushrods you will end up having the valves stay open and never close.You have to adjust them ,by loosing the nut until the rocker starts to move and the push rod has play up and down(not rotating it) and then slowly tighten until the rocker is tight again and stop..do your 1/4 -3/4 turn from that point ..dont use the rotating rod adjustment.Of course I adjusted each valve while the opposite one was open..or TDC which ever you prefer.I had to remove the top end 3 times before I got it right.Runs like a champ ..and I just installed the gray 15LB Ford Injectors in it..needs a test drive but it sounds a lot better.

 

man you want to know the best way to adjust them. what i do is take off the valve covers and adjust them with the car running. its messy but what i did was take a pair of junkyard covers and cut out the top so i oculd get to the nut and it helps with the mess big time. but first tighten them all so the there is no clakcing and then one at a time losen it so it starts clacking and slowy tighten till it goes away. works every time the first time.

 

ive always done it by moving the pushrod up and down till it stops, then turning it till it stops, and then 3/4 turn after. ive done them probably a dozen times on my engine and never had a problem. hmmmmmmm. but if you found something that works, good work man.

 

Yeah...that was diffently a learning experience ..The car was down for a few days and I thought I might have overtightened them and bent a valve or a spring..but after a little research I figured it out.It did make a little noise once I fired it up but it went away..and smoothed out.I installed some new injectors and noticed a increase in throttle response..have yet to test run it.Didnt have time today...I just wanted to post my experience for other guys attempting this task.I done lots of valves motorcycle ,cars,trucks..but this one stumped me.Even the blasted manual explained it as you were doing a V8...Has anyone seen a difference in performance between setting them at 1/4 to 3/4 or visa-versa?..

 

So how did you adjust them. I have to put mine back in tomorrow. I just got a head back from the shop to get some exhaust manifold bolts drilled out.

 

I did mine this way..after the third attempt.I removed both valve covers and rotated the engine around watching either the first cylinder on the pass. or drivers side which ever one opens first ..say the intake on #2 ..I would keep rotating so its about the full open position and adjust the #2 exh. valve..and when you do this I loosened the nut until the rocker got loose,and could feel some slight play up/down on the push rod.I started to slowly tighten the nut until the rocker got snug and stopped and from this point ..you can either go 1/4 of a turn to 3/4 of a turn depending on what you think works best...Once you decide how many turns ..LEAVE IT..if you continue to tighten past the 3/4 of a turn you will leave both valves open and lose compression on that cylinder..dont mess with the push rod, only to check up/down play when you losin the nut...dont adjust the valves by the rotating push rod technique...again you will leave valves open and never close which will give you a dead cylinder...The lifter will bleed down and then the push rod will rotate again..The valve springs dont need very much pressure to open them...good luck.

 

I will post it again...
I wish they would fix the search function , it took me several minutes to find this and get it here.

 

Thanks for posting that. I am at the point where I need to adjust my valves but there is a bad storm blowing in so I called it quits for now.

 

I just got back from a test run with the valves adjusted and new injectors installed..what a difference!!..dont know if it was the injectors or the valves that made it run smoother and quieter ,maybe both but ...YES..another noticeable improvement in the performance..If anybody wants an upgrade to their injectors you can run the Ford V6 injectors...they are a little shorter then the stock GM ,but they still work..just used the o-rings from the stock GM injector cause the Fords seem smaller in diameter..connectors fit right on no mods needed...

 

ya a buddy of mine did them when it was running i thought he was crazy at first, it's really something to see.

 

It's just a pain to do with the fbod v6's because the intake manifold has to come off to get to the valve covers (and it makes a mess). If you can find 0 lash properly, i like the rotating pushrod method better.