Lifter tick? Guidance from here

[Nate2SS]

Hello everyone. Been a while.

Cars been running well until recently and now I’m getting what I am fairly certain is lifter failure.

I’ve pulled valve covers, all rockers are tight and nothing was collapsed. I am receiving no check engine light nor rough running. Noticeable tick that accelerates with engine RPM. I am going to put the covers back on and test the exhaust flange to see if the exhaust is leaking again.

Here is a video of the noise. Any confirmation on my worried would be appreciated. https://youtube.com/shorts/fjm-Vp47x...naDtyCKc2UphS_

Some further questions: how can I go about verifying it is the lifter before I pull everything apart? Ways to test if this might be pushrod or trunnion related?

[Aqua Blue RS/SS]

Exhaust manifold leak is where I’d start given the rockers are all tight still.

[Nate2SS]

Is that the thought or is it a wild guess? Not to be a jerk. I just don’t really know where to go from here and am frazzled over the idea of having to pull heads

[Nate2SS]

Here is a YouTube video of the valve lash. The assumption is this play is not normal but it is also not off the lobe of the cam for all the cylinders. https://youtube.com/shorts/pQV5UO8fV...REgVlImDbix-XV

Thanks in advance again everyone

[Aqua Blue RS/SS]

Some Side to side play isn’t a huge deal. Up and down play is what you are looking for. In order to check it correctly you need to bring each cylinder to top dead center compression stroke when both valves are relaxed. If there is significant play at that point you’ve likely got issues unless the rockers weren’t tightened down correctly. In the first video I don’t really hear a tick that is consistent with rpms it’s more at random but it very well could be that the audio didn’t pick up quite right on your phone. It sounds like you might be cammed, if so Did you do a trunnion upgrade? If the trunnions have failed it should be obvious that the rockers have vertical play at the pivots. If it’s a lifter the rocker will not have play, it will be in the pushrod assuming the rocker is torqued correctly.
I used to build engines professionally.

[Nate2SS]

Aqua Blue,

My signature is up to date with the parts on my car. The trunnion upgrade was not done but I do have a set of BTR trunnions I plan on throwing in the car once this is set and done. I also have stock LS3 lifters at ~90k miles. I have heard of the lifters failing with a "large" cam like the BTR stage 3 but this seems quite random as I keep oil clean and fresh and coincidentally happened after it had been garage kept for 2 months.

The noise does indeed increase with RPM but still is not quite as rhythmic as what I would assume a lifter failure would sound like (I am a college kid who just happens to work on his own cars.)

Here is my plan so far, any advice to this would help a lot:

Manually turn engine and inspect rockers for play:
If nothing turns up, remove rockers and inspect trunnions and push rods:
Still nothing, then button up and spray dawn soap mixture on exhaust and inspect for bubbles for leak.

Nothing else turns up, will have to remove heads and inspect myself or take to shop to have work done.

[102SS]

Mine has been ticking on start up for a while.

I still have great oil pressure and just let it warm up for a couple of minutes to get the oil flowing.

It seems to settle down after that.

Oil always looks clean with no sparkles.

[acammer]

It sounds like a lifter going away in the clip of it running - that chirp can be the lifter wheel sticking and sliding on the cam. It wouldn't be uncommon at all for that to happen, as it has been known to occur even with a stock valve-train. With the aftermarket cam you've added more spring pressure, more lift, more aggressive lobes, and more RPM - the lifter, now well into it's life at 90k miles, doesn't like any of that! So, it would not be a surprise to me that you've got one (or more) going away.

The side to side play in the second video is totally normal - you want to look for lash in the direction of the rockers travel when running, and you'd need to have each one you're checking be on the base circle of the cam lobe to get a meaningful idea if there is in-fact any abnormal lash.

You're next steps all sound right, definitely rule out items via the path of least resistance, but that little metallic chirp is a pretty strong indicator to me. Let us know what you find.

[chevy pilot]

Originally Posted by 102SS

Mine has been ticking on start up for a while.

I still have great oil pressure and just let it warm up for a couple of minutes to get the oil flowing.

It seems to settle down after that.

Oil always looks clean with no sparkles.

Same here.

[InFiD3ViL]

I am also hearing something. Not the usual LS lifter tick. Andrew (acammer) mentioned it sounding like a chirp. To me it does, but barely, like its the very start of lifter or lifter wheel failure. If you listen carefully you can hear a rhythmic metallic clanging noise that is not in sync audibly with the typical valvetrain noise.

Best of luck man. I hope you get to the bottom of this and that you caught it early.

[myold88]

Originally Posted by 102SS

Mine has been ticking on start up for a while.

I still have great oil pressure and just let it warm up for a couple of minutes to get the oil flowing.

It seems to settle down after that.

Oil always looks clean with no sparkles.

Always looks clean? Change your oil and change it often. I've never heard
a thing from my early '10 SS L99, but I've changed my oil 20 times in 15
years and 73,000 miles. No sparkles, I hope that was a joke.

[Aqua Blue RS/SS]

Originally Posted by myold88

Always looks clean? Change your oil and change it often. I've never heard
a thing from my early '10 SS L99, but I've changed my oil 20 times in 15
years and 73,000 miles. No sparkles, I hope that was a joke.

I see what you are saying and agree clean oil is very important, but your car is stock his is cammed. That’s not a straight up comparison at all.

[myold88]

Originally Posted by Aqua Blue RS/SS

I see what you are saying and agree clean oil is very important, but your car is stock his is cammed. That’s not a straight up comparison at all.

But even more reason to keep your oil clean.

[102SS]

I change my oil twice a year April and November.