Engine tick--lifters or something worse?

[fldrummer]

Originally Posted by jrhagen

If your tuner can't tell the difference between lifter noise and rod bearings, you have the wrong tuner.

Just one of the reasons I switched shops.

[BiggFoot]

Originally Posted by fldrummer

Just one of the reasons I switched shops.

So, you start from where you are. If you can afford to have the new shop check it over then do so. If not, then u roll the dice

[fldrummer]

Originally Posted by BiggFoot

So, you start from where you are. If you can afford to have the new shop check it over then do so. If not, then u roll the dice

'Decided not to roll the dice. 'Talked to Jay this morning. He did do some pulls on the dyno and check the tune (was very rich, apparently, and I'm not surprised). The power issue is still apparently belt slip, though the old shop claimed they resolved that issue...

Nevertheless, he said the noise was getting worse and decided to stop. Knowing the bill could be much higher if I roll the dice and it blows up, I decided to let him pull the motor and get to the bottom of whatever the source of the noise is. Despite the engine builder's claim of valvetrain noise, Jay is convinced it's something in the bottom-end and, knowing his respected reputation, I trust his word. He even told me some horror stories of some bad builds he's seen by TEC recently... It sucks, but I need peace of mind and won't have it until this beast is running right and reliably. I'll keep you all posted as things progress. Thank you all for your input and support.

[BiggFoot]

Man that is a good looking car!! For what it is worth, I think u made the right choice to "not" roll the dice. Good luck my friend!!

[Luvdamud]

Sharp looking car fldrummer. Hope it doesn't cost you too much to get straight.

[fldrummer]

Thanks, guys. With the engine coming out and apart, I'm getting prepared for another hefty bill. 'Good thing I have 850 credit and make extra dough on the side, or I'd probably have to sell it when it's back together.

[fldrummer]

I thought I'd give an update on my situation. After much debate, I've decided to bite the bullet and get a brand new 416 stroker. It will be forged, of course, with Molnar rods and Diamond pistons. The only thing we'll be reusing are my heads. It will be a couple more weeks until the new engine is ready.

I stopped by the shop Friday to check the progress. The engine and driveline have all been removed. While my cam is still in good condition and is a good N/A cam, Jay said I'm leaving about 30 rwhp on the table, due to the overlap (it's for sale if anyone wants it--only 7k miles of street driving), so we're going to go with a more blower-friendly cam. Now for the bad news. Apparently, they saw signs that 2 cylinders were running lean (see head pics, below). 'Not sure if it's a valve issue or bad injectors (they will flow-test them to check). They also showed me my clutch and it's pretty much toast, which really surprised me, because I've never dragged the car or did clutch dumps with this unit! They recommended going with an RPS carbon triple-disk, but I'm already waaaaay overbudget and those go for $3300+. I did get in touch with Monster Clutches and they said they could rebuild it for $200-700, but could not give me a timeline. However, they also said they could get me a deal on their LT1-S triple-disk for about half the price of the RPS. I never liked the LT1-SC from the beginning, but I'm told it's the old design I have and the new ones are much better. 'Not sure what to do here. Suggestions?

Also, while the block is out, they haven't yet taken it apart to be able to see whether the rod bearings were going bad, as suspected. When I find out, I'll let you all know...

[fldrummer]

Heads (notice the discoloration of the valves)...

[fldrummer]

Clutch...

[fldrummer]

Bottom-end...

[fldrummer]

Cam (in surprisingly good condition; I suppose we can eliminate another lifter failure as the cause of the engine noise this time)...

[mrimpala02]

It's unfortunate what happen to your other engine. Any plans of upping your compression? I would also suggest going e85, but I know you said your over budget so I guess that pretty much rules that out.

I've heard good things about the LT1-S clutch. I have also heard the LT1-SC sucks for the street. I have no experience with either, but my RXT has been doing well so far, but it hasn't been on the car long.

Either way good luck with your build!!

[fldrummer]

Originally Posted by mrimpala02

It's unfortunate what happen to your other engine. Any plans of upping your compression? I would also suggest going e85, but I know you said your over budget so I guess that pretty much rules that out.

I've heard good things about the LT1-S clutch. I have also heard the LT1-SC sucks for the street. I have no experience with either, but my RXT has been doing well so far, but it hasn't been on the car long.

Either way good luck with your build!!

Thanks. I actually asked Jay about CR on the new motor and he confirmed it will be tad higher than my previous one--10.3-10.5. He has no doubt I'll hit my power goals, with the higher CR, more cubes, and better cam. We'll probably be able to run less boost in the process as well.

[mrimpala02]

Originally Posted by fldrummer

Thanks. I actually asked Jay about CR on the new motor and he confirmed it will be tad higher than my previous one--10.3-10.5. He has no doubt I'll hit my power goals, with the higher CR, more cubes, and better cam. We'll probably be able to run less boost in the process as well.

Cool! I think you will be pretty happy with the CR bump!