Hey all,

As the colder months have descended upon us i have unfortunately gained a lifter tick. Fortunately it does go away once the oil warms up but I’m still not a huge fan of it. I was running 10w-30 when i first noticed so i decided try 5w-30 which is definitely noticeable quieter. The tappet/lifter in question is on cylinder #8, all others are quiet.

That being said, #8 ate a bolt a couple months back, it's since been repaired and i’ve put about 3000 miles since swapping a donor piston, rod bearing & rings. I didn’t address any lifters during that repair, i should have, but neglected. The valves damn near came out unscathed (tiny nick) so i thought i’d be okay.

Im thinking either my exhaust, intake or both on #8 took some sort of damage that is causing them to leak down / struggle to prime with oil.

This engine has around 120k miles, what do you all think about my odds of pulling the lifters up & out are? my fear is i get the intake off and lifters are stuck in their bores. Say it goes well, would it make sense to do all 16 while i’m in there?

 

Given your circumstances, I would just replace the two on number 8. Problem becomes, I don't know if you can get them out without pulling the head.... If you have to pull the head, replace ALL of them.

 

You DO NOT have to pull the head to replace a lifter in a 5.2/5.9 magnum engine. Just the intake manifold... Sadly, I also have a lifter tick on my Jeep ZJ 5.9 engine (on the #1 exhaust valve it seems listening to it with my stethoscope on the valve cover). It may be a bent pushrod but since it goes away with warm oil (usually), I suspect a collapsed lifter.

 

Yeah i was under the impression you don’t need to pull the heads, my FSM only says the intake needs to come out. I was more worried about getting the intake off and not being able to remove the lifters, as in they have mushroomed and/or don’t want to come out of the bore up, and need to be dropped down.

 

Roller lifters, so, no mushrooming there. There is a cool tool for removing lifters, it isn't absolutely required, but it sure makes the job easier.

 

good info! thank you

 

+1 on the tool usage here.

Depending on the condition of the internals of your engine, a lip can form between the lifter and block/bore making it challenging to get your finger in there and push up the lifter from the cam and out of the bore.

I just went down and tried this on my old 5.2 magnum I pulled from my Jeep (275k miles) and sorry to say that I could only push out 2 of the lifters by hand and no tool. Prying with a hook tool or screwdriver can help but you risk marring the cam lobe, lifter roller and/or bore. If you are replacing the lifters don't worry about them but you don't want to deface the cam lobe or scratch the inside of the lifter bore - so be careful ...

 

is the tool you’re talking about kinda look like a slide hammer meant for the lifters? that’s the only one i’ve seen.

im kinda hoping at 120k they’re a little easier, but i guess we will find out.

 

Ya, there are a bunch out there - just google "lifter removal tool". Some are garbage as user reviews will suggest. Mixed results but worth a try if you can't get them out by hand or a non-marring pry tool - especially when considering the alternative of dropping the crank...

 

I bit late here but I wanted to correct myself on this one.. Depending on the head gasket you use, you MAY have to pull the head to replace a lifter(s). This also means dropping the exhaust y pipe and pulling exhaust manifold off as well (or perhaps pulling if together with the head as a single unit but that is a bit of a nut-buster to lift yourself).

Well, I just went through this process to replace a couple of lifters the other day. I have used the FEL-PRO #9898PT on the last couple of Magnum V8 builds and the problem is the gasket extends out beyond the block to where the pushrods are mounted and provides a set of "guide holes". These interfere if you try to pull the lifters out of their bore with the head gasket still in place. See attached pics... I suppose you might cut away this part of the gasket around the guide holes because I'm not certain it provides any structural support to the gasket itself sandwiched between the block and the head but be aware it is tough material. I tried to cut it with side cutters (after removal) and it is tough stuff.