MHOWELL34

Well here it is on a cold start guys. I'm 100% sure the phasers are shot and the chain is stretched tapping the timing cover. Can anyone verify sounds from past experiences?

vintageman

Sounds like there may also be some lash adjuster and follower tap in there as well. Mine sounded a lot like that before I did my phasers. I changed out the phasers, timing components and all the followers and lash adjusters while I was in there. Sounds a lot better now. Yours is louder than mine was though, it may be that you have a better exhaust in yours, does it sound better after it gets hot? Just wondering if it gets better when hot if it is an exhaust manifold issue in there as well.

MHOWELL34

I do have a slight exhaust tick but i replaced the broken stud this afternoon and fixed most of it (Exhaust bracket broke in half and all the weight was on the manifold, Only thing holding up the back was the tip brackets lol. Had it welded and fixed). I know for a fact my chain has slack in it, i stuck a screwdriver in there and wiggled it, which makes me believe thats what the slapping sounding noise is. But when its hot its just the clack clack from the front nothing weird sounding. What gets me is sometimes itll crank up and make no noise, then once it idles down the clacking begins. If it was rocker arms and lash adjusters wouldnt it make it at all times? Not just when its low rpm

vintageman

I think you are right with the followers and lash adjusters making noise at all rpms, though sometimes it can be hard to tell with the engine revving high and the loud sound. When I checked mine, I ended up having 13 bad lash adjusters that was adding noise on top of the chain slap that I had going on. I did all of mine for right around $800, oem phasers, timing components, lash adjusters and followers. Really didn't want to go in there again if I still had noise after doing just the timing components. Let us know what you find out, hopefully someone will chime in with better knowledge of engine sounds than me.
Tom

MHOWELL34

I hope its not those not another 270 + tool that i want to spend lol, How did you check them for good or bad? Just pull the covers and wiggled rocker arms by hand? Then just squish the little lash adjuster to see if it has any spring to it? Also did you have to pull the cams?

vintageman

I pulled the cams and had 13 that had bled down and would not pump up even with new oil. I didn't have to buy any specialized tools for this job, the job is time consuming but not too hard. Just take your time if you do it. you can pm me with any questions if you need to. good luck
Tom

MHOWELL34

Well guys the fun has began, The driver side valve cover is every bit of a bitch and you will almost lose your family relationship with the partner who's helping you (My Dad). Clearly some chain slack, gotta do the power steering pump next so i can begin trying to get the timing cover off.. Im almost there at least lol

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vintageman

Good job, I do remember the drivers side vc being a pain in the ---, the passenger side was as well, I had to discharge the AC and also take out the wheel well shroud to get the bottom back 2 or 3 vc bolts as well as the trans dipstick bolt. Remember to set the timing mark on the harmonic balancer and check the cam lobe positions to make sure that they are good before you take off the phasers and chains. Mark the cam at various positions on the cam caps and a non-journal part of the cam to make sure it all lines up when you go to put it back together. The power steering pump was a pain, you have to kind back the bolts out almost evenly so that the pump will move out as well because the bottom bolt will end up hitting the pump housing if you don't loosen them all, same with tightening them back. Good luck, keep us up on your progress.
Tom

MHOWELL34

Thanks man, im dreading the power steering by just looking at it. Any other tips or tricks up your sleeves? And is it 3 or 4 bolts on these?

lewissa81

Just posted this to you on another thread, so I'll post it here too.
It's not so bad. Either take the pulley off, then the pressure line, or find a slender wrench (10mm if I remember) to reach through the pulley, backing the pump away from the motor as you loosen that last bolt. If you do take the pulley off, go ahead and drain as much of the fluid out as possible so you can put more fresh fluid in there.
It's 3 bolts. The backside on the bottom is a just a guide pin, no bolt. Taking the pulley off isn't a big deal if you have a pulley remover, but you also have to get a pulley installer to put it back on. They can be rented at parts stores, and it only takes maybe 20 min to get it and the pump off.
Looking good so far. If you didn't like the driverside cover, you're going to hate the passenger side!