92 Q45 sticky lifter / bad timng tensioners????

[dlozano10]

Ok. So I have this tapping coming from the engine that was present when i first bought the car 3 weeks ago, and it was pretty loud. I drove about 35 miles with it tapping all the way home. BTW the car is an Infiniti Q45 (1992). I changed the oil right away 10W30 convientional and a resilone additive to free up sticky lifters as this was my first impression when i heard the noise. Well, 3 days later it is only tapping at start up and fades completely out after warm up, but after driving at say 50mph or faster for just a bit it will come back. Now after doing some research I discover that 92 -93's have plastic backing plates on the timing tensioners and that this probably what i'm hearing and not a sticking lifter. The dealer has come up with a kit that replaces the orginal ones with an upgrade (not plastic)for like 700.00. Does anybody know where i can get such an aftermarket upgrade kit?

[elwesso]

The guides usually do not result in a noise, the engine normally goes from running great to destroyed when a guide related failure occurs..

I would of course check the guides, and also if something like this is happening I'd be checking your oil pressure to ensure oil pressure at idle is where it should be..

That price of $700 for the metal backed guides doesn't sound too bad, I'm not sure what Scottsdale is charging these days but Im guessing its in that neighborhood.

[Infinitiguy19]

Check the Infiniti Service History (Attainable at any dealer the car has been too). If the service history indicates the guides have been changed out then your in luck as the job will cost more than $1000 all said and done.

But check the oil pressure at idle in gear (Lowest RPM's possible) before spending money on the metal backed timing chain guides. As low oil pressure means engine replacement soon!

[dlozano10]

Wow guys! I appreciate the quick response and very helpful info. How would I go about checking my engine oil pressure?

[elwesso]

You're going to need to remove the oil pressure sending unit (behind the drivers side exh. manifold) and put a gauge to it... Shouldnt be too hard its not very hard to get to.

[OwnerCS]

Where are you located? How many miles on your Q?

[OwnerCS]

Here's a couple of videos about a VH45 with some noises..

This one

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5bGxPIx9mxI[/youtube]

then this one..

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aEcBnGo0Yk0[/youtube]

[tfvesquire]

Ok. So I have this tapping coming from the engine that was present when i first bought the car 3 weeks ago, and it was pretty loud. I drove about 35 miles with it tapping all the way home. BTW the car is an Infiniti Q45 (1992). I changed the oil right away 10W30 convientional and a resilone additive to free up sticky lifters as this was my first impression when i heard the noise. Well, 3 days later it is only tapping at start up and fades completely out after warm up, but after driving at say 50mph or faster for just a bit it will come back. Now after doing some research I discover that 92 -93's have plastic backing plates on the timing tensioners and that this probably what i'm hearing and not a sticking lifter. The dealer has come up with a kit that replaces the orginal ones with an upgrade (not plastic)for like 700.00. Does anybody know where i can get such an aftermarket upgrade kit?

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You are describing the very same issue I had with my 98 my friend. I posted a detailde thread on using several "over the counter" internal engine cleaners to sure an intermittent lifter ticking that turned into an embarassing nightmare. My car had only 90K on it and I wanted to sure a lifter ticking that would only come and go with no regular intervals. After trying most of the "valve/lifter varnish pour in removers" like CD2, Valvetech, SeaFoam, etc. I decided to try AutoRX since I read what I considered more good reviews than bad. Well, when I poured that in my engine, not only did things go from bad to worse in the oil flow department, but that stuff clogged up at least one HLA, maybe two and made my normally quiet engine sound like it had completely collapsed lifter. A loud and embarassing bang, bang, bang at idle. I wouldn;t even call it a ticking. I tried everything to clean out the clog from running Amsoil engine flush at idle according to the directions, to trying a quart of MMO, ATF and even Amsoil synthetic 5W30. It would go away after a hard drive down the expressway, but kept coming back at idle and/or next star-up. I was loosing my mind and ready to pull all the lifters out and clean them by hand.

As a last ditch effort, I came across a bottle of Lubri-Moly engine flush at th local NAPA for $8. I didn't even know they sold Libri-Moly products since you usually have to go through a distibutor mike the Amsoil products. I ready the directions o nthe bottle and they were the same as the Amsoil and most engine flush in a bottle products: Put on a new oil filter after warming the engine up, pour in the product and let it idle for 10 mins, then drain and replace oil and filter. I did this exact process with the Amsoil and during the cleaning process, it tapped like crazy even when you raised the idle to 1500. In fact, I let the Amsoil circulate for about 30 mins varying the RPMs and it did nto unclog the lifter. From my analysis, my engine (VH41) does not have enough oil pressure to force teh cleaning solution to the affected areas at idle or simply rasing the engine speed with no engine torque applied. The main reason they tell you not to apply torque to the engine while the cleaning flush solution is inside the engine is because if you drive it normally, you run a high risk of spinning a bearing because the solution works to literelly wash the varnish (and oil) off everything. At idle, there is limited oil pressure so there is a lesser risk of doing engine damage.
The problem in my case (and maybe in yours too) is that without enough oil pressure, the engine flush would never get inside the clogged HLA, but would take the path of least resistance and simply flow freely to the other open oil passages.

I DO NOT RECOMMEND MY METHOD TO CURE THE DREADED OHC ENGINE LIFTER TICKING!!!!

That said, since my ticking would go away only after I drove the car a short distance, I deduced that it must build up enough oil pressure to force the oil into the lifter, but since it was stuck open with either sludge or varnish, the oil would drain out at idle. Also, no one in my area would perform a pressurized engine flush. They simply had the 5 Min pour in engine flush which I already tried with no success. I decided to take a HUGE risk and put the Lubri-Moly engine flush in and take my car for a short drive on a flat stretch of road near my house. The goal was to build enough oil pressure to florce the solution into the affected HLAs, but not spin a bearing in the process. I was fortunate enough to have roads near my house that would allow me to drive 20-25 mph (or less) so I could shift into the gears at very low rpms. After driving like that for about 2 miles, I slowly creeped home with my flashers on and parked it in the driveway to idle fro another 20 mins. For the first time since I put that AutoRX my engine was whisper quiet like it was supposed to. Flash forward about 600 miles later and I have absolutely NO lifter sounds. I did decide to switch back to conventional 5w30 oil just in case I had to drain everything and try something else, but I do plan on switching back to 5w30 Amsoil oil. That oil is incredibly smooth and slippery. BUT, even with the best oil, that did nothing for my lifter issues.

I hope this helps you diagnose your issue. Like I said, my method is not for the faint at heart, but it may work for you if you do it right. If you ready online, you know how annoying (and embarassing) the lifter ticking on an engine can be. Plus, you know that if the oil is not getting to that HLA properly, eventually it will failure prematurely.

Take care. I will be posting some details of my other success -- used low-mileage transmission transplant.

Ted

[cientortas]

Ted, nice write up. What oil were you running when you added the Lubri-Moly? I've been chasing the dreaded lifter tick for years. 1994 G50.