Noisy Tappets after head reco - Ford Forums - Mustang Forum, Ford Trucks, Ford Focus and Ford Cars

XplodEd EA · 06-17-2003, 01:49

I've read all the other threads about this but have not found what I've been looking for in them.

After doing a head gasket on my engine the tappets have become noisy. They never made a sound before I pulled the head apart, it's only now that its done it. I've heard that if all the oil is drained out of them air pockets can form which can also cause the noise. How true is this? If it is what can be done to rectify it?

I thought it might have been a normal thing since I had all the rocker gear off the head and it had been sitting for a few weeks so I thought I'd leave it for a while to see if it goes away. It's been 2 weeks and about 800km later and it's still the same.

And does anyone have any detailed information on how to re-co them, I am yet to find a workshop manual or anything that goes into it in detail. The instructions on the plastic bag arent very clear, "remove and replace", doesnt say where, what and how.

Bass Crazy · 06-17-2003, 17:12

The reco is easy.. I have done EA twice, and EF once.

Grab yourself a reco kit, pretty sure repco have them, making sure you say its for an EA as the lifters are bigger.

Remove all lifters from the rocker gear using a center punch to tap them out of the rocker arm.... take your time.

Have a little container filled with paint thinners nearby.

Take apart each lifter by removing all the plastic clips, they will probably all snap into bits, thats normal. As you remove the plastic, place all metal parts into the thinners.

Each lifter should have a flat little piece of steel that makes contact with the valve, as well as a housing, piston type insertion and a small spring. DONT LOOSE ANY!

Give them all a nice swirl around in the thinners to get all the oil off, is ok, you can mix all the parts up.

Then take them all out and let them all dry.

Its now time to put the things together again.

There are two replacement plastics for each lifter.
Place the spring inside the housing, and then the piston like piece inside the housing. Then just clip on the little plastic ring to hold them together.
The next step is to attach the little flat piece of steel (valve contact) using the other larger clip.

Once they are all done, re install into the rocker arms, and bolt it all back onto the car.

When you start the car, every lifter will be making noise, and you will probably shit your self. This is normal as they all need to build up pressure, takes about 15 mins of running for them to stop tapping.

A picture would help me explain this soo much better, but I guess once you take it apart you will know what im talking about.

Hope this makes a bit of sense.

Ciao.

cArSiK · 06-17-2003, 17:33

ExplodEd EA - maby before you do what bass crazy said , give an oil change a go with a thicker oil?
May just do the trick..
james

XplodEd EA · 06-18-2003, 01:23

Thanks Bass, I thought they might need to be punched out but I didnt want to try anything without knowing what I'm doing incase of breaking something. How hard are they to get back into the rocker arms? I'm assuming they wont just slide back in if they need to be punched out

I've changed the oil twice now and I'm using the exact same oil that I used before pulling it all apart so I can't see it being an issue with the type of oil I'm using as it never made a sound before pulling it apart.

I've already got the kit, just didnt know what to do with the parts, I'll give it a go when I can be stuffed doin it.

Bass Crazy · 06-18-2003, 02:12

The reason a punch is used is so that you are pushing them out from the center most point. If you dont use a punch in the center, you can damage the rocker arm.

You can put them back in by pushing them, and giving them a slight tap with a hammer if need be. Remember to keep the stopper (That remains in the rocker arm) the right way round when putting them back in.

Good Luck

NZ · 06-19-2003, 08:21

I can vouch for simons instructions here, I have a set of his old EA rockers on my snafu'd 3.9 at the moment Never make a noise

RustyEB · 06-19-2003, 20:05

Mine made noise after a head gasket as well but havn't bothered to fix it.

Will the noise cause any uneccessay wear or damage anywhere.

qwikcorty · 06-20-2003, 00:07

hey simon are u sure u can get them at repco because ive tried b4 on my ea set and they didnt have any, so i put the ef set on which have been quietish until a few months ago.
where do u buy them and how much are they?

Bass Crazy · 06-20-2003, 02:26

Another place you can pick them up is from an engine reconditioner. Prices range from $25-60, depending on who you get them off.

The tapping should not cause any damage as far as I know (someone correct me if im wrong).
However, I reckon the tapping makes the car sound like a shitbox.

qwikcorty · 06-21-2003, 21:37

just ordered a rebuild kit for my ef lifters in the ea, cost $23. bought from repco.
u are right about it making it sound like a shitbox!
might replace them when its oil change time in a few more weeks.