1996 Chevy Cavalier testing hydraulic lifter

1996 CHEVROLET CAVALIER
160,000 MILES • 4 CYL • FWD • MANUAL
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MIKE T.
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I have a 2.4 L twin overheadcam engine in my Z24.
I removed the camshaft housings after a valve tap developed but noticed nothing unusual after inspecting the lifters and cam lobes. Trying to determine if i had a bad lifter, I filled three lifters with fresh oil (1 known good lifter and 2 suspect) blocked the holes and placed them inverted in a pan and applied heat by stove.(much to my wifes dismay)
Oil seeped from the 2 suspect lifters, but not from the known good one. Is this a way do determine if I have lifters that are not holding pressure ?
Jan 27, 2008 at 7:43 PM
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RASMATAZ
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Sir-you need a special tool called hydraulic lifter leakdown tester-

When a lifter/s goes-you also need to Mike the camshaft lobe for that lifter involved. The lifter and camshaft are partners one goes the other follows-just like the distributor cap and rotor.

Worn, leaky or dirty lifters can also cause valvetrain noise. If oil delivery is restricted to the lifters (plugged oil galley or low oil pressure), the lifters won't "pump up" to take up the normal slack in the valvetrain. A "collapsed" lifter will then allow excessive valve lash and noise.
Jan 31, 2008 at 4:59 PM