mb2hurley

i have a ticking in my motor..i have pretty much figured out that it is not my exhaust leaking. the sound is coming from the motor but i did a couple quick tests and im pretty sure its not the exhaust...but ive never done anything like that to tightin down the rockers.. its a v6 motor..do i need to be a TDC and to a certain torque for each one. or do i need to get a feeler gauge i think there called.

camaronewbie

What your doing is called "setting valve lash" - there's many posts here about it, search "valve lash" and you'll come across many that explain how to do it with engine not running.

You can also do it with engine running, but makes a mess. You need cardboard or something to make a splash guard on each side of the heads, so that the squirting oil doesn't squirt out all over you, the fender, the intake, etc. Then, you simply start the car, and very slowly tighten the rocker that's ticking just until it stops ticking, then back off just a hair. It's not a perfect method, but suffices.

BUT - before you tighten anything - check the rocker arms where the valve stems hit to make sure it's not worn, I've seen some wear so bad there's an actual hole in the rocker. If there's much wear on the rocker, you might want to replace. When loose, the valve stem constantly hitting the rocker in the same spot a gazillion times a minute wears them down - when lashed properly there is no 'hitting', just smooth pushing.

ALSO - note that sometimes they will tick when they are too tight as well, so sometimes it's a matter of loosening rather than tightening to set them correctly.

torque_is_good

you must have a high flow oil pump............ I always set mine with the engine idling. I get a few spits of oil ono the headers but that's about it

to add to what newb said, do one at a time. Loosen the rocker nut until you hear a clacking. Then, tighten until it just goes away, and then another 1/2 turn after that and move on to the next one. I know nothing of the sixers and whether they are rollers or not. if they are, I'd be wondering why one might have loosened. Flat tappets that wear, that's another story.

mb2hurley

i cant start the car though. i had to take alot off just to get to the covers. top half of the intake plenum and fuel rail, coil, egr, alt. there are a couple that wiggle around pretty easy. im not sure how much is normal, and my book has a torque spec for them but all the bolts are tightended to different amounts. any ideas?

camaronewbie

Your book has torque specs for the head bolts, not the rocker arm bolts - they are adjusted slightly differently on each and every car. Search "valve lash" and you'll see threads about doing it with engine off. But - there is no reason to have taken all that off to get valve covers off - you have to be able to adjust lash with engine running - you just have to get creative with wiggling the covers out of the mess.

torque_is_good

or, remove what you must, remove valve covers, and temprarily re-install what you need for the engine to run