Lifter ticking and oil changes.

[Yooper-Al]

I've had my '95 Legacy Brighton for about 1 year now and it has 240,000 miles. I put on about 2000 miles a month. I try to go 3000 miles (75% highway) between oil changes but a lifter (maybe two) starts ticking at around 2000 miles when the motor is warm, at idle through 1500 RPM. I use a good 10w-30 in the winter and 10w-40 in the summer per the owners manual recommendations for our seasonal temps here in New Mexico. I hear about folks using Seafoam (I'm not convinced about that) and Marvel Mystery oil (don't think it could hurt) to help clean up the lifters, but I'm wondering about just using a thicker oil. Maybe even a high detergent like Delo (for diesel and gas engines in hard to severe service) to clean up the insides. Maybe 2000 miles between oil changes is all I can hope for from a motor approaching 1/4 million miles. Any thoughts? Once a month oil changes are not too appealing, although I can do it without jacking up the car. Thanks in advance.

[idosubaru]

it is always so consistent with oil age and fresh oil always makes it disappear?

 

I would try a thicker oil, even if only for one oil change and see what happens. I've used 20w50 in older EA/ER Subaru's with HLA's.

[Fairtax4me]

Lifter tick, while annoying isn't really going to hurt anything. Try switching to a high mileage oil such as Valvoline or Castrol. My cars seem to prefer the Valvoline.

A quality oil filter can make a difference as well.

[Rooster2]

Marvel Mystery Oil has been around a long time. I have used it for lifter ticking, and have found it to do a good job of quieting things job. Suggest you try using it.

[Ricearu]

just shut up a lifter the other day with 16oz of marvel mystery oil.

 

The heads in the car have 350k on them from a postal wagon and have been "freshened" up but that is it. Quiet as a mouse within 100 miles of adding mystery oil.

[johnceggleston]

i doubt seriously it is the condition of the oil that causes the tick. it is more likely it is the volume of oil, or lack there of, that causes the lifter tick. low oil level will cause HLAs to tick. really low like 1.5 - 2 qts low. this is why i love the 95 2.2L engine. add oil and off you go, no worries.

 

when the tick starts (around 2000 miles after the oil change you said) check the level and add a QT, maybe two. my money says the tick goes away. in my sons 95 this was a volume problem.

 

my son's 95 did this for years . we had a lot of leaks and as soon as the level got low the engine would tick. i eventually corrected the problem and it quit happening. (it is amazing how much oil will leak out of a bad cam seal.)

 

of course the mmo will not hurt the engine but i would not leave it in for 3000 miles. maybe only 1000. maybe add a pint when it starts to tick along with a pint or a qt of oil. then change it all at 3k.

 

i have read that the best, safest , way to ''clean '' your engine is to change the oil every 1000 miles, or so.

 

EDIT: perhaps loose screws on the backing plate of the oil pump causing lower than normal oil pressure is also a contributing factor.

Edited August 9, 2012 by johnceggleston

[Frank B]

I have a 96 brighton with 299700 miles on it. It had a random tick when I bought it(282,000 miles on it). The oil wasn't changed as often as it should have been because it had a lot of oil leaks and they just added oil more often than changing it. So, I changed the oil once a week( about 300 miles) for 4 weeks, after fixing the oil leaks. That took care of the tick. I use Delo 15w40.

 

I have used Marvels and SeaFoam on older subarus I've had with very good results. I had one that sat for over a year, once I got it running it sounded like all the lifters were ticking! I put half a bottle of seafoam in the oil and let the engine idle, the ticking got quieter and quieter until it just stopped after just 10 minutes of idling. I changed the oil again and never had another tick.

[Yooper-Al]

Thanks for all of the good ideas! I came to the right place!

I always use Valvoline or Castrol, so I don't think oil quality is a problem, unless I'm just wearing-out the oil additives. I use them coffee filters too (Percolator?).

Until my last oil change (almost 3k miles ago), the motor used abut 1 1/2 quarts of oil between the 3k mile oil change intervals. I've always watched the oil level because of that. When I change oil and add the 4.2 qts that the manual recommends (with filter), the oil level on the dipstick shows, what I would judge to be, about 3/4 quart high.

At the last oil change, I added a can of CD2 "black label", (old hillbilly trick) which is a thin, concentrated detergent; not a viscosity improver like STP. I thought it might help clean it up inside. I brought the oil level back up to ¾ quart high. Strangely, I have used very little oil these last 3k miles, less than 1/2 of a quart. But still, the tapping came back at about 2500 miles since oil change. But then, I did not bring the oil level back up to ¾ quart high either.

I think I'll put a can of MMO in her this evening, overfilling her by that much, and see if anything changes. If it does, I’ll keep doing what I’ve been doing. If it doesn't, I'll change the oil and filter in a couple of days to Delo 20w-50. The days are hot here (95-100 degrees) anyway. If the ticking comes back in 2500 miles, I'll try Seafoam for a few minutes, then change the oil again.

Thanks again for all of the good ideas!

[johnceggleston]

when you change the oil and filter and then check the level, do you run the engine before you check it or check it as soon as all the oil is in. if the filter is new and empty it may show more oil in the pan.

 

as i understand the dip stick, there are marks for cold engine before you start it in the morning and marks for a hot engine when you pull into a gas station. or something like that. the owners manual should tell you the difference.

 

let us know what you find out.

[Fairtax4me]

If the other additive is still in the oil do not add MMO on top of it. Mixing additives is bad ju-ju stuff. It's like mixing household cleaners, you don't know what you'll end up with, but it might kill you.

 

I'm not too keen on the idea of running 20w 50 oil in one of these engines but other people here have done it and their engines seem fine.

[ivans imports]

teh front crank seal seals the oil pump if tierd the seal will allow air into the oil trough the seal and make foamy oil just like the ea82 did and will tick the hotter it gets try a crank seal from subaru the brown one and see if that helps