First of all I am new here so hello to everyone. My signature may show it but I have an 03 QC 4x4 5.7L hemi. It has over 80k on it.

I have limited experience with chevy V8 engines.

It started knocking this morning. I shut it off after looking at the oil pressure that was halfway on the gauge as normal. I checked the oil and it is fine. The dealer put in 10w-40 last oil change so I just changed it to 10w-30 today and when I started it it is still doing it. I was afraid to drive it to see if it went away because it is so loud but did take it around the block and it didn't go away. It has had a very slight tick before but this is way louder and new. I use 91 octane and this is no fuel ping. I don't rip around or tow. It sounds like a lifter to me but loud. It isn't the loud clunk clunk bang that I would think of as a rod but is still loud and metallic. It sounds like it's on the passenger side.

I checked the forum here and it sounds like it very well could be a lifter...possibly collapsed? If so does this plug the hole in the middle so no oil gets to the lifter or pushrod?

I took it to the shop but won't hear untill tomorrow. If it is a lifter is it ok to replace just one or should all of them be done? Is this common on these motors?

Any help is very greatly appreciated. I am new to the Hemi. It's great to see such a nice forum for us.

Thank You,
Jim

 

i too have an 03 and did some searching on this. apparently it is a normal thing for these engines. why, idk. i don't think an engine should sound like that at all, but some people say they have the tick and xxxxxxx whatever miles and no problems. recently i seafoamed and my tick went away. just a few days ago it came back. i've also tried using this stuff called valve medic just out of curiosity. it did make it go away. this makes me think it could be an oil passage that frequently gets clogged and/or sludged.
on a different note others have also claimed that there is something wrong with the push rod guides or their design. some ,when doing mods, have changed either their rods or entire top end and have had good results. i also found a vid on youtube with some kid who found that one if his lifters on the # 8 cylinder was hung up for some reason. that really scares me. if i can find the vid again i will post.
i know this isn't really too much help, but if you do a search here this pretty much sums up what you will find.

 

you did make sure its not an exhaust leak right? i mean if its really loud, id look at your headers and make sure theyre not leaking.

 

Thanks for the information.

I think a lot of people are hearing a slight tick and I'm ok with that and it probably is normal. This one I have is a loud noise that started very quiet. I have done a pretty thorough search and will keep you updated with my mechanics results. I am leaning towards the oil being too viscous or thick.

I think the number 8 cylinder is on the passenger side. Does anyone have a pic of the cylinder locations?

1 8 4 3 6 5 7 2

 

I started it cold and ran my hand all over the exhaust connections while laying under it to be sure until it got hot to touch. I have had a lot of cars and a fair amount of exhaust leaks but this one isn't that. I sure wish it was.

 

There was a problem with early 03 Hemi's, dropping valves.
An issue whereby the springs would crack/snap.
Does the truck idle rough?
If not a cracked spring, it could be a collapsed lifter?
I certainly would not run the truck until I found out for definate.
You might not yet have dropped a valve but are just "on the limit" of it and a lifter/spring is goosed?
Take her in if she's under warranty and make sure they pick her up if she is.

As for the Hemi tick, it is the push rod valve guide tollerances.
Even though the guides/push rods come within the manufacturers tollerances, some are a tiny bit slacker than others.
As these rods move up and down through the heads etc, the metalic "tick tick tick" is amplified through the engine.

Keep us posted as to what you find?
Hope this helps?
Al.

 

Make sure that you don't have a loose spark plug. That would cause a loud noise as well.

 

I sorta doubt its a loose plug ,more than likely its a collapsed lifter. When that happens it has to be torn down and replaced ,had a 350 chevy we did it too.

 

This reply is long but has good information.

I got my truck back today. My mechanic, who used to work for dodge, said this noise was caused by the dealer putting 10-40 in the engine. I did the right thing by changing the oil with the correct 10-30 oil. I just didn't run it long enough to clear it out. He said to NEVER use the 5-20 that the newer ones use because that causes problems too. So the thicker oil on startup(40 instead of 30) when it was cold and it's thickest wasn't getting up to the valve train quite enough. He got on a mechanics only forum where a lot of current dodge techs get on to solve their problems and this is no new issue. A lot of them said they have never heard of this failing an engine and some of them have had brand new showroom trucks do the exact thing.

He recommends using an oil additive to clean out the valves, lifters ect, but to make sure not to use one like Lucas that just raises the viscosity...that makes sense. Then change the oil to remove any deposits that that could clear out.

He said for this year I could not have a collapsed lifter because mine are solid and cannot collapse.

I asked if a check valve oil filter would help and he said that was the next thing he was going to tell me. The check valve oil filters only allow flow one way, the normal way, so when the engine shuts down the oil stays up in the motor instead of draining back in reverse. I'm going to get one. This solved noise issues during startup for my 7.3 diesel.

I still have the very slight "hemi tick" but nothing like before and almost nothing at all. My mechanic says royal purple should eliminate the hemi tick. Had I driven the truck more the problem would have gone away with the new oil. I idled for about 2 minutes. I was just afraid to turn a tiny problem into a HUGE one. AAA towed me for free and the shop only charged me $40.

BTW a new engine would be $6000 because they are not a "rebuildable" motor they call them "remanufacture" engines....basically they just put a new one in. I think I'm going to go buy an entended warranty.

Thanks for the help guys I'll be in here a ton because I am one of you now.