Ive got a 1994 Legacy Wagon with the 2.2.

We bought the car with a loud tap which the dealer explained was b.c it was run low on oil expecting to replace the engine.

Got it home and it turned out to be noisy lash adjusters. I pulled em out, pumped em back up. Worked for a while. The noise came back and put new ones in... Worked for a while.... Im at a loss, I checked the oil pressure and it is fine. It has a Fram oil filter on it and Valvoline High Mileage 5W30 which I know is a combination that many folk on the BB decry. I have visted as many of the posts incolving this sort of thing as I could find but I still can't figure it out

 

What do Ya'll think? I kinda of want to scrap the hydraulic Lash adjusters and convert to solid if I can but that still won't address what is potentially an oil delivery problem....

 

HELLP

You might want to try a different oil, like Mobil 1. Or some sort of oil system cleaner, because you might have blocked oil galleries. This would starve the lash adjusters.

 

Get under the engine and examine the area around the oil pump, maybe a seal is leaking and you're loosing pressure here?

 

 

(I would like to point out that here in Europe we can get a 5W-50 M1, so please don't crucify me because the 5W-30 stuff available stateside is too thin!)

I did an engine flush when very first and there was no change. I was hoping it was just a clogged gallery or somthing like that. Perhaps I should try a "leave in" treatment instead??

 

Setright, I dont blame you for the country's automotive oil misfortune, But I am afraid to switch to mobil one on the engine (155K Miles) I think it might spring leaks like a screen door. everything is tight right now except one grommet on the left valve cover. I dont want to go messing with it ulness it turns into a worn our oil pump.

 

Thanks a lot I appreciate your input

see if you can find seafoam near by. http://www.seafoamsales.com The stuff works wonders, and you can leave it in the crankcase....at least for a little bit.....it doesn't say how long...but I ran it in mine for a little bit to clean things up.

 

Other possibility is that the lifters are just toast and you need new ones......

In the Seattle area you should find Seafoam at B&B auto parts.

 

As an Isuzu Trooper owner, noisy lifters are an all too commen problem. I've fixed mine but it is not a quick fix, it takes time. I used a couple of products with success called Rislone or Restore found at Schuck's (Schmuck's) Auto supply The Seafoam works but I don't like how watery it is. It 'waters' down your oil and it loses some viscosity. The other two products mentioned have a close viscosity with the oil already in your engine. What I've done to fix the problem is after an oil change I add the required amount of Restore or whatever and leave it in until the next oil change. I first did this three oil changes in a row (~9000miles). The valve tap went away. I still put some in every third or fourth oil change when I have about a 1000 miles left until an oil change. I have yet to here the tapping again.

 

On the other hand, in the Subaru a bad oil pump or oil pump seal will also cause valve tapping because the pressure at the lifters isn't enough to keep them pumped up. There are recent posts about this, look for them and read up. Good luck.

How do you know the oil pressure is ok? The idiot light on the dash? You really need to connect a pressure guage to the engine to check the oil pressure.

 

The 2.2 is known for clogged oil passages. A cleaner may work. AutoRX is supposed to be good. I don't think any cleaner that stays in the engine for only a few minutes or miles is going to do much good. The other cleaners mentioned may be worth a try too.

 

Mobil 1 is a really thin oil, unless you use the 15w-50, so I doubt it would quiet things down, it may even make it louder.

 

Fram filters are known for making engines make funny noises.

I have replaced the worst offending Lash adjusters so I hope the new ones arent toast yet.

 

I have checked the oil pressure with a gauge hooked into the block, and it read as being high enough.

 

The really confusing thing is that it comes and goes... It doesnt seem to matter if its a cold start or not. It may tap on cold start, it may not.... we may be driivng down the road and it will just start or stop tapping. It could do that after 5 miles or 105 miles. There is just no telling.

 

Is there anyway to test to see if the lash adjusters are getting the volume of oil they need?

 

It is my understanding that products like Rislone thicken the oil. i dont have any experiacn with Seafoam but it seems that if it thickens the oil it may decrease the oil pressure/volume to the lash adjusters and cause the tap whereas if the oil is thinned, it may allow them to bleed down.....

 

I thought I had a clue once.....

 

Thanks again everybody