dc rasta
TYF Newbie
Hello everyone,
I am a new member here on the site (thanks captain obvious) but I have spent a lot of time reading and researching answers to my previous questions here in the forums and FAQ's. I also have received a substantial amount of help from a once new, but currently punished, Haynes manual along with YouTube videos. All of these resources have provided me with just enough information to be dangerous.
Among other improvements and upgrades, I have been chasing an engine oil leak beginning with the easiest fixes as I move towards the most difficult/expensive possibilities. I am currently at the point of replacing both valve cover gaskets, with the intake manifold gasket and oil sending unit being next up if the leak continues. Since I was pulling both of the valve covers, I also decided to try and fix a persistent lifter knock issue (which seems to be a common problem) that I have been listening to. With both covers off and soaking in degreaser, I pulled the rocker arms so I could visually inspect them and the push rods. I also wanted to take the opportunity to chemically clean the lifters through the rod tubes while everything is exposed.
After organizing the rocker arms upon removal, I noticed that everything looked good except for one rocker arm and it's corresponding rod end. Both mating surfaces were rough and unpolished with the rocker arm cup being visually enlarged compared to the rest. The opposite rod end that seats on the lifter appeared identical to the others (smooth, polished, and round) so the problem seemed to be isolated to the connection point between the arm and rod. This would appear to be a no brainer in the noise department and there would be no better time to resolve this then right now.
While looking for a rocker arm and rod replacement at a local used parts shop, I used a syringe to inject 5ml of B12 Chemtool down each push rod end to soak and clean the lifters below. Now that I have scrubbed the valve covers and am preparing to reassemble the valve train, I have only one major question left that I have been unable to find an answer to.
I have either over simplified the question, or I am too stupid to understand the methodology, but this is the point of this post.
When I am reinstalling the rocker arms and valve covers, do I need to perform a Top Dead Center procedure? If so, then why? It seems to me that I should be able to bolt the corresponding rocker arms back into place. I know the 8mm bolts need to be torqued down at 22 ft lbs and I will put assembly lube on the rod ends and rocker arms before install. But every time I read anything about rocker arms the TDC process comes up. Is this a blanket statement or is there a more situational approach? Every time it is mentioned, there never seems to be a reference to why this should be done. If this is a necessary step then knowing why would better help me understand how the engine operates. I thought that I could just reinstall the rockers after inspection by reversing the removal steps.
Sorry about the long post but I wanted to be as accurate as possible with what I had done, and where I am at, if it matters at all to the answer.
Thanks
I am a new member here on the site (thanks captain obvious) but I have spent a lot of time reading and researching answers to my previous questions here in the forums and FAQ's. I also have received a substantial amount of help from a once new, but currently punished, Haynes manual along with YouTube videos. All of these resources have provided me with just enough information to be dangerous.
Among other improvements and upgrades, I have been chasing an engine oil leak beginning with the easiest fixes as I move towards the most difficult/expensive possibilities. I am currently at the point of replacing both valve cover gaskets, with the intake manifold gasket and oil sending unit being next up if the leak continues. Since I was pulling both of the valve covers, I also decided to try and fix a persistent lifter knock issue (which seems to be a common problem) that I have been listening to. With both covers off and soaking in degreaser, I pulled the rocker arms so I could visually inspect them and the push rods. I also wanted to take the opportunity to chemically clean the lifters through the rod tubes while everything is exposed.
After organizing the rocker arms upon removal, I noticed that everything looked good except for one rocker arm and it's corresponding rod end. Both mating surfaces were rough and unpolished with the rocker arm cup being visually enlarged compared to the rest. The opposite rod end that seats on the lifter appeared identical to the others (smooth, polished, and round) so the problem seemed to be isolated to the connection point between the arm and rod. This would appear to be a no brainer in the noise department and there would be no better time to resolve this then right now.
While looking for a rocker arm and rod replacement at a local used parts shop, I used a syringe to inject 5ml of B12 Chemtool down each push rod end to soak and clean the lifters below. Now that I have scrubbed the valve covers and am preparing to reassemble the valve train, I have only one major question left that I have been unable to find an answer to.
I have either over simplified the question, or I am too stupid to understand the methodology, but this is the point of this post.
When I am reinstalling the rocker arms and valve covers, do I need to perform a Top Dead Center procedure? If so, then why? It seems to me that I should be able to bolt the corresponding rocker arms back into place. I know the 8mm bolts need to be torqued down at 22 ft lbs and I will put assembly lube on the rod ends and rocker arms before install. But every time I read anything about rocker arms the TDC process comes up. Is this a blanket statement or is there a more situational approach? Every time it is mentioned, there never seems to be a reference to why this should be done. If this is a necessary step then knowing why would better help me understand how the engine operates. I thought that I could just reinstall the rockers after inspection by reversing the removal steps.
Sorry about the long post but I wanted to be as accurate as possible with what I had done, and where I am at, if it matters at all to the answer.
Thanks
