matts87glsedan Posted August 10, 2006 Share Posted August 10, 2006 well the title says it - i have an on and off valve tick on my 87GLsedan. Sometimes its quite loud, other times quiet, most of the time not there at all. but when it is there, it bothers the hell out of me. are there bad consequences to running it in this condition? . A heavy duty mechanic friend speculated that it could be valve guides - sound right? thanks to all the knowledgeable posters on this site - i've learned so much off here - it rules! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted August 10, 2006 Share Posted August 10, 2006 check out the TOD or tick of death. use the search function and you'll get tons of information. it is not the guide seals or whatever he said. no it is not cause for alarm and it won't cause damage. change your oil all the time. the HLA's are great because the valves never need adjusting but the down side is you need to change your oil all the time or they get dirty and stick. when was the last oil change? do you change it often? how many miles? more than likely your tick is due to an oil pump gasket. reseal the oil pump or buy a new one and you're golden. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
revbill Posted August 10, 2006 Share Posted August 10, 2006 If you search for Tick of Death, or TOD, you'll find tons of information about this. It's a hydraulic valve lifter sticking and making that racket, and it won't damage your engine by itself (but it could indicate that you need to replace/rebuild/reseal your oil pump.) Tick of Death is really an unfortunate misnomer for this, becuse despite sounding like a grave condition, it's not that serious of a problem. Running Seafoam in the oil for a while can make it go away by clearning the gunk out of the lifters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matts87glsedan Posted August 10, 2006 Author Share Posted August 10, 2006 ok. I just changed the oil yesterday (along with the waterpump which was toast), and that was after about 4000miles . too long i 'm sure. i'll keep on top of it better now, more like every 2500 miles or so. I drive nothing but highway with this car right now - like 9 to 12 hr trips to my work . (2 weeks in and one off, on an oil rig), so thats better than all city miles at least. i'll go search for info about the oil pump gasket now... not too sure why the tick would indicate that, and i'd like to know.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted August 11, 2006 Share Posted August 11, 2006 Oil pump seals get old and hard, and the pump can't put out enough pressure for the lifters to stay fully inflated - thus they tick. Happens a lot actually. GD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ozsubie Posted August 11, 2006 Share Posted August 11, 2006 Also, the oil pump seals may break or wear causing air to be drawn into the pump and aerate the oil resulting in tappet noise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subiejunker Posted August 11, 2006 Share Posted August 11, 2006 hey.....like everyone says keep up on the oild changes.....the noise is the oil pump....to keep it quiet use 20-50 castrol gtx and a little lucas oild stabalizer. feel free to mail me....i work for a subaru only auto wrecker....i know tons Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted August 11, 2006 Share Posted August 11, 2006 hey.....like everyone says keep up on the oild changes.....the noise is the oil pump....to keep it quiet use 20-50 castrol gtx and a little lucas oild stabalizer.feel free to mail me....i work for a subaru only auto wrecker....i know tons "keeping it quiet" with band aids doesn't exactly speak volumes about your "tons" of knowledge. Replacing the seals (possibly the pump as well), and R&R of the lifters would be the correct fix. Running other than recommended oils, and additives will shorten the life of other key engine components. But I guess since you work for a wrecker you probably just shrug and get another engine huh? :-\ GD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matts87glsedan Posted August 11, 2006 Author Share Posted August 11, 2006 well, i had to check out the 20w-50. on page 111 of my owners manual, theres a chart listing recommended oils and their temp ranges. 20w-50 is listed on it as basically a summertime oil to run - from freezing to 100f . I am currently just running castrol 10w-30, but i may switch to 20w-50 next time around. I do rock this car down the highway sometimes. yo subiejunker, wheres ladysmith? all sube autowrecker you say? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted August 11, 2006 Share Posted August 11, 2006 additives or chaning oil types/brands/viscosity is not a one size fits all solution. it works sometimes, but not always and usually covers up a problem that will come back. the most common problem i've seen out of the dozens i've pulled apart is the oil pump-to-engine-block gasket. there are two ports, hence the "mickey mouse" nickname you'll see. you can check out the gasket at http://www.thepartsbin.com, they have a picture. one of the two ears or o-rings that is part of this gasket will get sucked into the oil passage. at first it may only slightly deform at certain times/temperatures but eventually it will permanently deform and can rip as well. this will add air bubbles into the system since that seal will no longer be there. air is compressible and oil is not. hydraulic systems don't work well with air introduced and the HYDRAULIC valve lash adjusters will not operate properly, they will partially collapse due to the air in the oil. additives and gimmicks can temporarily solve this sometimes, but usually an oil pump reseal should be scheduled sometime in the future unless you like the noise! a new oil pump isn't a bad idea as well. some over at xt6.net have problems even after a reseal, but i suspect that the thin aluminum housing of the oil pump may deform with time, heat, etc. this prevents the gasket from having equal pressure all around it like it should and causing the issues to resurface again sometime later. this is all speculation though, i recently thought about this after some have complained of repeated failure at these ports even with new gaskets. i haven't mic'ed an oil pump though i'd like to if i ever incur this problem myself. actually my oil pump is new. if you replaced a water pump you can reseal the oil pump. i think resealing the oil pump is about the same as a water pump. remove timing belts and there it is. remove 5 bolts. use a 1" socket on the impeller so you can bust the 12mm nut loose off the oil pump sprocket to replace the seal. replace the gasket and o-ring and reinstall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matts87glsedan Posted August 11, 2006 Author Share Posted August 11, 2006 hey youre right i can re seal my oil pump. I just am hoping to put it off for 2 weeks or so, because i just did that pump, and helped my friend put a 2nd hand engine in his toyota - so im just sick of mechanicing right now is all. and that oil , it is listed in the manual so... it may be worth trying in the mean time ya know? anyway, cheers all, i'm goin to a music festival. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subiejunker Posted August 12, 2006 Share Posted August 12, 2006 well, i had to check out the 20w-50. on page 111 of my owners manual, theres a chart listing recommended oils and their temp ranges. 20w-50 is listed on it as basically a summertime oil to run - from freezing to 100f . I am currently just running castrol 10w-30, but i may switch to 20w-50 next time around. I do rock this car down the highway sometimes. yo subiejunker, wheres ladysmith? all sube autowrecker you say? 20-50 is also good for higher milage engines...and because of the boxer configuration, It helps during cold start to keep a thicker layer of oil on your cylinder wall. Ladysmith is located in B.c on vancouver island about 1 1\2 hours north of victoria. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingbobdole Posted August 12, 2006 Share Posted August 12, 2006 heres a trick NEVER use a engine oil stop leak. EVER... in my 6, even tho its well sealed and such if I use that stuff it'll make it tick... also if the car has been sittiong of just old, especially if it doesnt leak much... just try some MMO or seafoam in it... I'm trying seafoam ATM, but I'm not quite on the boat, MMO in thhe past has worked faster for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted August 12, 2006 Share Posted August 12, 2006 I just am hoping to put it off for 2 weeks or so, you won't have any problem waiting. i know people have driven with mad ticking for a long time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matts87glsedan Posted August 14, 2006 Author Share Posted August 14, 2006 hah, thanks all, i'm going to put off the oil pump for sure because i get to do my CLUTCH now! It was slipping like crazy coming over the mtn passes between here and castlegar. If i put my foot into it at all the rpms would go way up, but not the speedo.. grrr. I didnt think i was going to make it home. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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