My story
06-22-2008, 04:17 PM
#1
5th Gear Member
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Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Cary/Charlotte, NC
Posts: 3,791
My story
Well here it goes..... this is my story so far from start to finish.
It starts out that I am going to get a nice set of CMS stage 1 cams. I installed them and loved them, for about two days. Then I started to get a horrible ticking/tapping noise, I assumed that the noise was the normal 4.6l ticking noise that we have a stickey about. but to be safe i took it to three mechanics one of which is a personal friend. Two of them said it sounded like PVC and one said he was sure it was rod knock.
I started by taking things apart and seeing what was wrong I took the timing cover off and found that one of the tensioner arms was broken off. So I replaced that he assembled it and hoped for the best. After I reassembled the engine I had the exact same problem so I took it apart again and re-timed the cams. The passenger cam had skipped a tooth at some point and re-timing them seemed like a good idea. With the cams retimed I once again started it up and the exact same thing occured. I talked to my friend the mechanic, one of the ones who thought it was PVC, and he said I definately needed to take the heads off and at least inspect them. He said if a valve is bent then then it could be hitting the valve seal or something I really dont remember what he said rignt now but it was a fairly good explination on what could have gone wrong.
So I removed the heads and and took a look at the pistons and and valves along with looking at all of the rod and main bearings. All of the rods, rod bearings and main bearings looked fine. BUT Pistons 2 and 3 mostly 2(see picture attached) had a two little tiny nothces cut into them. At this point I wasnt sure the full extent of the damage so I had my mechanic come over to my house to see if he thought there was a problem with using the rotating assembly. He didn't think there was a problem with using that rotating assembly but he did tell me I may want to take the heads to a machine shop and have them inspeceted.
I took the heads over to a Apex Sales, a local place that would inspect them for me, and they told me the heads looked ok. at this point I figured that I already have the entire engine apart I might as well built the top end a little bit. So I got a set of Patriot Stage II heads a set of BBK Valve covers Some new gaskets. I finished the reassembly of the engine last night and after finding a small electrical problem started it up and being the genious that I am I forgot to put one of the plugs in the back of the drivers side head [8D] which was just AWSOME!!! when oil sprayed allover my garage floor the second the thing turned on. After about an hour of navigating throught the headers i finally got that plug in and the car turned over fine, it idled ok.. I didn't want to rev it up because it was like 1:30 in the morning when i finally got everything done.
Today I wake up feeling geat that everything is fixed and i figure I am going to drive the car around a little to get the computer use to the cams after a couple of miniutes the car is running great without any wierd noises. i go around the block and the second i took it up to 3500 rpm I hear TAP TAP TAP TAP TAPP!!! At this point I am a little bit frusturated. I idle all of the way home without even hitting 2000 rpm and pull into the drive way and walk out of the car with it on to see if i can determine where the noise is coming from. I get a long screw driver and use it as a stethoscope to check each one of the cylinders....... and LUCKY ME it is number 2 making that ever so sensual CLANKING noise ............
So in short I believe that the one mechanic who was sure it was rod knock was absolutely right and now I need a new rotating assembley....
I really should have seen this coming because the machine shop told me that the heads were ok and there was clearly some visible damage done to the piston which had the valve contact.
Cylinder #ing PIC
Edit Pic wont work here is a link
It starts out that I am going to get a nice set of CMS stage 1 cams. I installed them and loved them, for about two days. Then I started to get a horrible ticking/tapping noise, I assumed that the noise was the normal 4.6l ticking noise that we have a stickey about. but to be safe i took it to three mechanics one of which is a personal friend. Two of them said it sounded like PVC and one said he was sure it was rod knock.
I started by taking things apart and seeing what was wrong I took the timing cover off and found that one of the tensioner arms was broken off. So I replaced that he assembled it and hoped for the best. After I reassembled the engine I had the exact same problem so I took it apart again and re-timed the cams. The passenger cam had skipped a tooth at some point and re-timing them seemed like a good idea. With the cams retimed I once again started it up and the exact same thing occured. I talked to my friend the mechanic, one of the ones who thought it was PVC, and he said I definately needed to take the heads off and at least inspect them. He said if a valve is bent then then it could be hitting the valve seal or something I really dont remember what he said rignt now but it was a fairly good explination on what could have gone wrong.
So I removed the heads and and took a look at the pistons and and valves along with looking at all of the rod and main bearings. All of the rods, rod bearings and main bearings looked fine. BUT Pistons 2 and 3 mostly 2(see picture attached) had a two little tiny nothces cut into them. At this point I wasnt sure the full extent of the damage so I had my mechanic come over to my house to see if he thought there was a problem with using the rotating assembly. He didn't think there was a problem with using that rotating assembly but he did tell me I may want to take the heads to a machine shop and have them inspeceted.
I took the heads over to a Apex Sales, a local place that would inspect them for me, and they told me the heads looked ok. at this point I figured that I already have the entire engine apart I might as well built the top end a little bit. So I got a set of Patriot Stage II heads a set of BBK Valve covers Some new gaskets. I finished the reassembly of the engine last night and after finding a small electrical problem started it up and being the genious that I am I forgot to put one of the plugs in the back of the drivers side head [8D] which was just AWSOME!!! when oil sprayed allover my garage floor the second the thing turned on. After about an hour of navigating throught the headers i finally got that plug in and the car turned over fine, it idled ok.. I didn't want to rev it up because it was like 1:30 in the morning when i finally got everything done.
Today I wake up feeling geat that everything is fixed and i figure I am going to drive the car around a little to get the computer use to the cams after a couple of miniutes the car is running great without any wierd noises. i go around the block and the second i took it up to 3500 rpm I hear TAP TAP TAP TAP TAPP!!! At this point I am a little bit frusturated. I idle all of the way home without even hitting 2000 rpm and pull into the drive way and walk out of the car with it on to see if i can determine where the noise is coming from. I get a long screw driver and use it as a stethoscope to check each one of the cylinders....... and LUCKY ME it is number 2 making that ever so sensual CLANKING noise ............
So in short I believe that the one mechanic who was sure it was rod knock was absolutely right and now I need a new rotating assembley....
I really should have seen this coming because the machine shop told me that the heads were ok and there was clearly some visible damage done to the piston which had the valve contact.
Cylinder #ing PIC
Edit Pic wont work here is a link
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