[acammer]

I've heard it both ways - if you suspend use of the mechanism maybe they will last longer - but also they are more likely to get gunked up if they are never cycled. I land with the former, I think the less "on-off" cycles they have, the less likely they are to fail completely. BUT, I think they are a fairly weak lifter because of that design, and are more likely to fail than a non-AFM lifter. Still - have seen plenty, not treated well, go 200,000 miles and keep working fine. So, until you're ready to do a cam, just keep the oil clean and enjoy the car!