Bad lifter or bad oil pump?

[RECHRGD]

A few weeks ago I was low on oil for some reason and had to put one quart over the 440s' capacity before the lifters would quiet down.  I've had the car out two times since then.  Last weekend I went two a show about 40 miles away and everything was nice and quiet getting there.  When the show was over I started up the car and had the ticking noise again.  After about a mile or so it quieted down and was fine the rest of the ride home.  Today I took the car out again and had more of the on and off noise.  After driving about 10 miles to a store all was fine and then when leaving the parking lot it started again and after a mile or so of normal driving it stopped.  After another 15 miles or so of both traffic and highway driving it started again and then again stopped after a mile or so.  On the way home after a few miles on the highway it started knocking again in normal traffic driving.  This time it did not quiet down until about 6 miles had gone by.  After a few miles of quiet I was nearing where I store the car, so I jumped on it for a few seconds.  The noise returned and oil pressure dropped down to about 20 pounds at idle.  I didn't think to watch the pressure while jumping on it.  Pressure is right at 60 pounds most of the time, but will drop to 40 pounds at idle while driving normally.  The dipstick still was showing well above the full mark, so I'm guessing there's close to 8 quarts in there. (6 quart Hemi pan).  It seems to me that it's acting like it's low on oil.  Could the pump be on it's way out?  It's a high volume unit that has never given me any trouble.  Would a bad lifter keep bleeding down and pumping back up like that?  Bob

[Charger RT]

a bad lifter will bleed down but first I would get the oil level back down to where it belongs. Too much oil can be as bad as too little. Too much oil and air can get whipped into it causing all kinds of issues.
Tim

[charger Downunder]

I had a ticking noise for a long time it would come and go. I did notice when i started the car cold it would idle poorly like on seven cylinders until it warmed up. I changed all the lifters to a set of new ones and it made a huge difference car now runs like it should.

[flyinlow]

Change the oil first. If you ran the engine low on oil, the oil remaining can get hot  and degrade.  If you have 6 qts of fresh oil and ZDP see what preasure you have and if your tick goes away. Some oil filters bleed down while sitting. I use wix,Mobil one, K&N or Napa Gold.   

[TylerCharger69]

Judging by what you are telling me of the differences in oil pressure.....theres a good possibility that your main bearings may have lost their "crush"  (meaning the tightness of fitment between the bearing and main caps/block)  It will cause oil to seep in between, thus causing the pressure loss.  Ive had that problem before once.  The bearings themselves should fit tightly in their cradles.   It may be taking its toll on the lifters as well.  But if it WERE the oil pump,  it would always be low across the board.

[RECHRGD]

Thanks for the replys guys.  I'll change the oil out first and take it from there.  I sure hope I don't have a bearing issue.

[firefighter3931]

It could be a bad lifter or the oil is losing viscosity as it warms up. Bob, get some Brad Penn 20/50 racing oil and try that. It's loaded up with zzdp/phosphorus so you don't need to add any additives.

What oil are you using in the engine right now and how old is it ?


Ron

[RECHRGD]

It could be a bad lifter or the oil is losing viscosity as it warms up. Bob, get some Brad Penn 20/50 racing oil and try that. It's loaded up with zzdp/phosphorus so you don't need to add any additives.

What oil are you using in the engine right now and how old is it ?


Ron

Ron, it's Valvoline racing 20/50 plus the CompCams additive.  Probably only 1500 miles or so on the oil.  That's why I couldn't understand why it was low on oil to begin with.  There are no leaks and the exhaust is fine.  Bob

[RECHRGD]

Well, I changed the oil.  Put in the proper amount of of the same stuff I've been using for four years.  No luck!  It started up quiet and after a couple of minutes the noise started again and the idle got a little rougher.  After a few miles it got quiet again, then after a few more the noise came back.  Oil pressure stayed between 40 and 65 pounds.  It's time for new lifters.  These are CompCam ProMagnums with less than 10K miles on them.  Anybody else have issues with these lifters?  Bob

[firefighter3931]

It sure sounds like some of the lifters are collapsing intermittently. I'd change them 

This is why i like solid cams. 


Ron

[RECHRGD]

I put in new Lunati standard high performance lifters and all is well.  Nothing appeared to be visibly wrong with the Comp Cam units buy they've been troublesome from the get go.  The engine has never been quieter.  Bob

[68n70]

Hmmmm...I have new comp lifters in my new motor and have lifter noise on startup.
Stops after a few seconds but does it after only sitting overnight...
Anyone else with issues???

[RECHRGD]

Hmmmm...I have new comp lifters in my new motor and have lifter noise on startup.
Stops after a few seconds but does it after only sitting overnight...
Anyone else with issues???

Lifter noise on a cold start up is pretty normal and nothing to worry about.  Bob

[1BAD68]

I rebuilt my engine about 3 years ago and a couple lifters just started making a ticking noise.
Once in awhile when I first start it the lifters makes a tick tick tick tick sound, if I put it in gear for a moment it stops then I put it back to neutral and it will be quiet for a minute and then sometimes starts ticking again.
Most of the time it doesn't make any noise but I noticed that sometimes when I floor it and then let up the ticking starts.
How much damage can be caused by lifters that bleed down?

[RECHRGD]

I'm no expert, but I don't think it really causes much if any damage.  Mine was doing more than just ticking.  It was flat out banging and there was no apparent damage to the cam or lifters.  When I got the old ones out I could only move the plunger down on one of them (very easily), so I assume I just had one bad unit in there.  I've noticed with the new ones that it runs smoother at idle and above.  It used to stumble sometimes under light acceleration, but not now.  I had chalked that up to carb adjustment problems, but now I'm thinking that even when the lifter wasn't making a racket it may still have not allowed the associated valve to open or close properly.  I jumped on it a little yesterday and it seemed to even have a bit more power.  Probably my imagination though.  Bob

[flyinlow]

One or more of my Lunati lifter takes a couple seconds to pump up after sitting a few days. Runs ok after that.

Like Ron said , solids do have some advantages.

[Bigun426]

If you are running 8 qts. of oil in a 6 qt system the oil is probably getting aerated. The oil level is to high and the crank is whipping it like an egg beater making it foam (adding air to it) which ain't good. Drain a couple of quarts and see if that helps.

[RECHRGD]

The eight quart deal is history now.  The oil has been changed 2 times since then.  It was definitely a bad lifter.  I've since found that I've got a grounding problem with the instrument voltage regulator that has it giving me false readings from time to time and that's what led to the original diagnosis of being low on oil.  The oil was actually fine, but the noise was just that damn lifter bleeding down again.  Bob