Lifter clean/replacemernt and oil leak.

[The Cambelt Kid]

hi Guys,

Just noticed that since i started to change the oil every 200 miles for the past 1k miles that i seem to have taken another oil leak on board  

I changed the cam seals for genuine GM ones last april and it's been ok since then, so i'm a bit grumpy that a leak has returned now i'm doing short oil changes.

I'm not certain that the oil is coming from the cam seals, but being as this is the most common leaking point on the V6 lump i bet a few quid the leak is from the seals.  I don't mind taking the covers off once more as it wasn't too difficult to do the last time... but if it is the seals and i do need to do them i may clean out my lifters too, see below:-

http://www.omegaowners.com/forum/YaBB.pl?num=1163080380

MarkDTM (hi) noticed that i had a slight lifter noise at tickover a few months back so i may as well clean them out too if i'm to do the seals.  But my question is - Do i need to take the cams out to do one lifter, or can i take them out one by one and put them back as i go?

Also the oil leak seem to be at the front (passenger side) of the engine and seems to be near the power steering pump and below.  The sump is covered with oil top and bottom, so i'm not too sure where it's coming from and if it's near the timing belt can i damage the belt at all?

I will take the plenum off next weekend to identify exactly where the leak is coming from, so only then i'll know for sure.

Cheers

Marc

[kevinv6]

i had lifter problem's after the oil cooler packed up. the only way to get them out is to take the cams out.  send my lifters of to be stripped down and cleaned which cost me 70 quid better then buying a new set for well over a ton   i was quoted £7.50 each one and thats trade price not good once x24

[The Cambelt Kid]

Right i've just been out under the hood and noticed that there is a rubber pipe that has torn off (Arrghh)  The pipe comes from a breather box, splits into to smaller pipes like a 'y' shape and connects to pipes 1 + 4 of the plenum.  I'm guessing i disturbed this when doing the HBV a few weeks back...    The pipe has torn off from where it's clipped onto the box.

Could a tear in this pipe cause an oil leak?  or lead me to think so?

Cheer

[kevinv6]

you can mix the lifters up there all the same. in fact you can use lifters out of a 16v eco engines

[The Cambelt Kid]

i had lifter problem's after the oil cooler packed up. the only way to get them out is to take the cams out.  send my lifters of to be stripped down and cleaned which cost me 70 quid better then buying a new set for well over a ton   i was quoted £7.50 each one and thats trade price not good once x24

Hi Kev,
I see, i thought as much.   If the seals are not to blame (see my last post) then i would rather leave the lifters, even more so if i need to remove cams, belt etc...  

I hope the torn breather pipe is to blame as this is an easy fix.  The kind of fix i like when it's -55 deg's outside.

Cheers

[Marks DTM Calib]

i had lifter problem's after the oil cooler packed up. the only way to get them out is to take the cams out.  send my lifters of to be stripped down and cleaned which cost me 70 quid better then buying a new set for well over a ton   i was quoted £7.50 each one and thats trade price not good once x24

Interesting seeing as the later ones cant be taken apart.....they can be flushed through but, thats something anybody with a vice can do.

Cams have to come out to get to the lifters.

A torn breather might put an oil mist round the back but, also check the power steering pipes for oil and make sure the jubilee clips are nice and tight.

[The Cambelt Kid]

Thinking about it, if the breather at the rear will only spew an oily mist then the oil leak to the front of the engine probably isn't related.  I think i best take a closer look at the power steering equipment.  I must admit that the oil seems quite clean and not at thick as the engine oil...?

On the other hand, if i need to install a new set of cam seals (which were perfectly installed the first time round!) then i may well do the lifters too.  I'm guessing that to get to the lifters i'd need to remove teh following:-

Plenum, Bridge, coil per plug, LPG wiring and gas pipes, trumpets, cam cover, cam belt, cam sprokets, cams and then onto the lifters...  

WOW sounds like a big job.  What do you guys recon it'd take the average job bloggs like me to do?  I'm thinking start sat morning and complete sunday in time for lunch.

Cheers
Marc (spending more time taking care of my car than driving it)

[tunnie]

Thinking about it, if the breather at the rear will only spew an oily mist then the oil leak to the front of the engine probably isn't related.  I think i best take a closer look at the power steering equipment.  I must admit that the oil seems quite clean and not at thick as the engine oil...?

On the other hand, if i need to install a new set of cam seals (which were perfectly installed the first time round!) then i may well do the lifters too.  I'm guessing that to get to the lifters i'd need to remove teh following:-

Plenum, Bridge, coil per plug, LPG wiring and gas pipes, trumpets, cam cover, cam belt, cam sprokets, cams and then onto the lifters...  

WOW sounds like a big job.  What do you guys recon it'd take the average job bloggs like me to do?  I'm thinking start sat morning and complete sunday in time for lunch.

Cheers
Marc (spending more time taking care of my car than driving it)

For us normal folk who breathe on air, its half a day to strip down to the cams and get the lifters out...

Even I managed to strip down there fairly easily... just out of interest where did you mount the evaporator? if its on the drivers side wing, then getting the aux belt tensionor off is a pain!

[Kevin Wood]

Plenum, Bridge, coil per plug, LPG wiring and gas pipes, trumpets, cam cover, cam belt, cam sprokets, cams and then onto the lifters

There you go. It's a little smaller now.

Kevin

[Kevin Wood]

Ohh, actually, maybe the trumpets will have to come off... :-/

Kevin

[tunnie]

Ohh, actually, maybe the trumpets will have to come off... :-/

Kevin

Its easier with them out...

[The Cambelt Kid]

Thinking about it, if the breather at the rear will only spew an oily mist then the oil leak to the front of the engine probably isn't related.  I think i best take a closer look at the power steering equipment.  I must admit that the oil seems quite clean and not at thick as the engine oil...?

On the other hand, if i need to install a new set of cam seals (which were perfectly installed the first time round!) then i may well do the lifters too.  I'm guessing that to get to the lifters i'd need to remove teh following:-

Plenum, Bridge, coil per plug, LPG wiring and gas pipes, trumpets, cam cover, cam belt, cam sprokets, cams and then onto the lifters...  

WOW sounds like a big job.  What do you guys recon it'd take the average job bloggs like me to do?  I'm thinking start sat morning and complete sunday in time for lunch.

Cheers
Marc (spending more time taking care of my car than driving it)

For us normal folk who breathe on air, its half a day to strip down to the cams and get the lifters out...

Even I managed to strip down there fairly easily... just out of interest where did you mount the evaporator? if its on the drivers side wing, then getting the aux belt tensionor off is a pain!

Evaporator is mounted on the subframe, just behind the drivers fog lamp, to the right of the rad.  There is even a wide hole in the inner wing, so no need to start cutting holes.   I tell you what, i'll take a pic in the morning if i remember and will post up.  This all depends how late i am for work though.  

The LPG examiner passed it and was happy it was strong and safe place to put it.  having seen my omega he went and bought one for himself an Elite few weeks later, so i can only image he put it in the same place when he converted his.  

As for the work i need to do.  If i plan to strip and clean one day and rebuild on a sunday morning i can't go far wrong.  I would try and do it in a day but i hate racing against time to get the job done before dark.

[The Cambelt Kid]

Ohh, actually, maybe the trumpets will have to come off... :-/

Kevin

Its easier with them out...

I was going to say... I can't even see much past the trumpets, let alone remove the aux and timing belt... oh f****ng hell i've got to remove the belt again  I'm not looking forward to that.

Do you know why they call me the cambelt kid?  

Anyway as soon as the outside temp starts to hang about double figures all day i will give it a shot.

Thanks for your input anyway guys...  

[The Cambelt Kid]

In fact while i have your attention:-

How common is a gunked up lifter(s), i take it this is directly related to the crazy 20k miles service interval from the Vx service book?

i've just done x4 changes in 1k, so that makes the 20k look like engine abuse to me.

[Kevin Wood]

Lifters are probably the first thing to suffer as a result of dirty oil.

The 10k service interval was too long for an engine with hydraulic lifters, let alone 20k. Several manufacturers went back to bucket and shim solid lifters when service intervals got pushed up to silly mileages, presumably on the basis that they wouldn't need adjustment until the car was out of fleet ownership anyway.

Certainly worth doing regular changes if they're DIY. Could do quite a few for the cost of a tank of petrol after all!

Kevin