# Valve or lifter tapping



## KrAzY (Sep 29, 2010)

Hello i am new to this forum i found it on google while trying to research my problem and thought i'd post and see if i can get some help with this issue.

I have a 1992 d21 hb 2wd pickup with the 2.4L 4cyl i purchased it last year with only 74k miles on it and it ran and drove great. Then i had a brake caliper seize up on it and it was dragging the brake and squeaking all the time because it wasn't releasing. I didn't have the money right away to buy a new caliper so i parked it for a month or so and used another vehicle in the meantime.

Then last week i finally had the spare money to repair the brake caliper and went to start it and take it for a drive and when i started it i could hear what seems to be just 1 thing tapping pretty loud in the valve cover back towards the firewall so my first instint was that no oil was getting up there so i took off the oil cap to check and the valve cover seemed to be full of oil up in there like there should be but here is the kicker! When i took off the oil cap i felt ALOT of pressure coming out of it and it sounds just like what it would sound like coming out of the muffler and some oil was splattering up out of it all over the top of hood and such. I was told that it is most likely a stuck lifter or valve most likely the exaust valve on 1 of the cylinders not closing and it is letting the exaust into the valve cover and blowing it out the oil cap when i take it off.

Now my question is how could it run perfect before then after sitting only a mnth it now has this backpressure and tapping on what i consider a fairly lower mileage truck considering most of these things go 200k+ with minor maintenance of maybe starters and alternators ect. ) and other then the pressure and tapping the engine still runs smooth as a babys butt so i don't see how it could go from running fine to 30 days or so later magically doing this.

Does it sound like my friend is right and after sitting a month a lifter or valve magically decided to start sticking and allowing exaust blowby into my valvecover? And if so does that mean i have to have the entire head redone with having the head machined and new valves/lifters/springs ect done to fix it? 

Or can i try doing a crankcase seafoam and pray for a miracle? It says it can free up sticking springs/lifters ect and cleans the crankcase but do i really want to drive it around or run it long with it doing this in order to let the seafoam do it's thing ? Because on the bottle if i remember right it says to drive it 100-200 miles before oilchange with it in crankcase then do your oilchange and i don't dare even drive this thing 10 miles lil lone 100 for fear that pressure in valvecover will blow out something else most likely the valve cover gasket first then who knows what else.

Also i nearly forgot i dunno if this is important or not but when i checked the dipstick it showed over the full mark the last oil change prior to parking it put in 5 quarts and they said it was maybe half a quart over and shouldn't matter and not to worry about it so i thought nothing of it but it looks more then half a quart over on the stick though and in my book it says the 2.4l engine oil capacity is 4.1 quarts with new filter. But my wife drove it for a week or more and so did i for 1 day well after the oil change before we parked it for a month and it was running great and not making any tapping noise at that time.

Any help or suggestions would be great and i am hoping there is some kind of solution that isn't going to cost me a arm and a leg because honestly i can't offord to put alot of money into this and take it into a shop to have it checked out especially with this economy i can barely keep my bills paid as it is without having a huge pricetag on a major repair.


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## zanegrey (Dec 5, 2005)

that is way too much crap...

it is a ka24e engine with 200 k miles ...timing chain....


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## smj999smj (Jan 1, 2006)

Well, first of all, stop listening to your friends! Most, if not all, of these KA24E engines tap...some more than others, but especially when they sit. If you remove the cap when the engine is running, it is normal to feel pressure coming out and oil to be splattering all over the place. Every time a piston makes a downward stroke, it is pushing air, or crankcase vapor, if you prefer, around the engine block. If you suspect blowby, which I doubt you have, then perform a cylinder leakdown test to confirm. Personally, what you are experiencing sounds perfectly normal. The oil capacity for a 92 2WD KA24E Hardbody is 3.7 quarts. If you overfill the crankcase, the oil can become aerated by the crank fillets whipping through the oil in the crankcase and can cause air bubbles to be sent in the oil channel to the valvetrain, including the lifters. The lifters on these engines are tiny and integral of the rocker arms. It is recommend that you use 5W30 oil (as opposed to thicker viscosities) to better lubricate the lifters. Also, use a quality filter (ie genuine Nissan or Purolator, for example). There have been a lot of issues with the plastic, fixed timing guide breaking on these engines (guide has been updated to a metal backed guide), but your tap is more likely based on what you've mentioned due to lifter bleeddown over a long sit. I would drain the excess oil out. If you want to run some Seafoam or Marvel's Mystery Oil ( or even a pint of ATF), that's up to you. It may help some. The tap will likely lessen the more you drive it. If after driving it for awhile, you are still experiencing a lot of tapping, or chain rattle at startup, you may want to pull the valve cover and take a look at the guide.


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## KrAzY (Sep 29, 2010)

smj999smj said:


> Well, first of all, stop listening to your friends! Most, if not all, of these KA24E engines tap...some more than others, but especially when they sit. If you remove the cap when the engine is running, it is normal to feel pressure coming out and oil to be splattering all over the place. Every time a piston makes a downward stroke, it is pushing air, or crankcase vapor, if you prefer, around the engine block. If you suspect blowby, which I doubt you have, then perform a cylinder leakdown test to confirm. Personally, what you are experiencing sounds perfectly normal. The oil capacity for a 92 2WD KA24E Hardbody is 3.7 quarts. If you overfill the crankcase, the oil can become aerated by the crank fillets whipping through the oil in the crankcase and can cause air bubbles to be sent in the oil channel to the valvetrain, including the lifters. The lifters on these engines are tiny and integral of the rocker arms. It is recommend that you use 5W30 oil (as opposed to thicker viscosities) to better lubricate the lifters. Also, use a quality filter (ie genuine Nissan or Purolator, for example). There have been a lot of issues with the plastic, fixed timing guide breaking on these engines (guide has been updated to a metal backed guide), but your tap is more likely based on what you've mentioned due to lifter bleeddown over a long sit. I would drain the excess oil out. If you want to run some Seafoam or Marvel's Mystery Oil ( or even a pint of ATF), that's up to you. It may help some. The tap will likely lessen the more you drive it. If after driving it for awhile, you are still experiencing a lot of tapping, or chain rattle at startup, you may want to pull the valve cover and take a look at the guide.


tyvm for your quick response i really appreciate it. I haven't been using cheap oil but i also haven't been using the recommended 5w30 instead i have been using castrol GTX 10w30 with purolator pure one filters for every oilchange but i think when i drain the excess oil i am going to drain it all and put in 5w30 like you suggested. 
But i may also check to see if pcv valve is stuck because if i remember right it can also cause excess backpressure on valvecover if stuck. I have always been up to snuff on the oilchanges but i cannot say the previous owner did he said he changed it only once a year because he didn't put that many miles on it and i know that if oil change maintenance is neglected pcv can become clogged the only problem is i can't find the damn thing to check it lol haynes and chilton manual don't show the location and googling it i have found conflicting locations for the 2.4L engine if anyone knows the "real" location of the pcv on this engine i'd be a happy camper lol.


Thx again for your time and help it is greatly appreciated.


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## SPEEDO (Jun 9, 2003)

on the right side of the engine there should be a plastic box mounted to the t-cvr, it has a hose going to it, that hose slips on the pcv....


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## 95pickup (Jul 22, 2009)

*Oil is too much*

Sounds like way too much oil.

Marvelous Mystery oil should free the sticking lifter. Works on mine

I have a 95 4cy 5spd with 209,500 on it. I have used 10w30 for 8 years. No issues. I use 4quarts every 3000miles.
Took apart timing chain and replaced. Motor was almost spotless on the inside.

I live in texas and 5w30 makes the motors lifters really load. Sounds like its going to exploded. Its to hot and humid here. Nissan dealer recommend 10w30.

My truck makes noise when its first started. Last around 5-15 secounds each morning. Oil in pan. Never does it again. Till the next morning.

I did have a stuck valve once. The mystery oil did the trick. Freed it.


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## KrAzY (Sep 29, 2010)

95pickup said:


> Sounds like way too much oil.
> 
> Marvelous Mystery oil should free the sticking lifter. Works on mine
> 
> ...


Which is better in your opinion ? Mystery oil or seafoam ? actually i read somewhere that autoRx is better then both but i haven't found any proof of this yet. And how long do ya run the treatment in the oil ? Just leave it in or 100-200 miles before oil change as bottle suggests ? 

Also i am in indiana which is also very humid and hot in the summer but pretty cold winters and according to the diagram on my hood it says for hot and humid to use what i am allready using ( 10w30 ) but 32 degrees F and below for winter to use 5w30 and since it is getting down in the low 30's early this year here allready i think i should switch from the 10w30 to 5w30 for the winter mnths. What do ya think ? 

And thx for your response


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## GeoBMX4Life (Mar 25, 2010)

I have to agree with ZG, if its making noise then stops after a while, the guides must be shot. I'll be doing my T-Chain and guides in the next few months. The noise comes from the chain slapping.


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## KrAzY (Sep 29, 2010)

GeoBMX4Life said:


> I have to agree with ZG, if its making noise then stops after a while, the guides must be shot. I'll be doing my T-Chain and guides in the next few months. The noise comes from the chain slapping.


Naw ZG didn't wanna read the entire post and just "skimmed over it" and posted 200k miles and timing cover. 

When in actuality this engine only has 84k on it not 200k and has a tapping coming from backend of last cylinder towards firewall not front end so it isn't timing chain it is a lifter or valve. However as smj999smj posted i do get that rattle when i first start it for about 2-3 seconds then it disappears. That *might* be the timing chain or guide like he said doing that but not the tapping i was hearing. And it's been doing that 2-3 sec rattle at startup since the day i got it.

*Update:* I took the drain plug out and removed about a quart of oil and the tapping quieted down alot i can still hear it but alot more faint then before and i'm pretty sure it always had a slight tapping sound. I just dunno if i wanna switch to 5w30 when i have heard it makes the lifters and valves create more noise with a lighter weight oil even though it is what nissan recommends for winter temps.

Should i just stick with 10w30 like i always have been ? Or use 5w30.


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## zanegrey (Dec 5, 2005)

use the 10w30 ..

matbe the tappets have crud in them .. pull the valve cover and listen to them...


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## apmason (Jul 21, 2004)

How long should a person leave one of them engine cleaners in? Magic Marvel, Seafoam, etc. Sorry to hijack the post, but it seems a pertinent question. My HB does the chain rattle and valve tap. Am hoping a bit of cleaner might help out.


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