Engine stuff

[z_chromozone]

The lifters in my RV8 are a little noisy at the moment, mostly I notice between 2000-3000 rpm (exhaust noise probably drowned out above this level). I run Mobil 1 15/50 which I consider to be the best oil for the V8S. In the last 5000 miles the problem has not got much worse, so do all RV8’s sound a bit tappety, or do I need to get mine sorted ASAP.

Secondly, if I do decide to bite the bullet this winter and strip out the cam and lifters what would you recommend for a replacement. I have looked into solid lifters, but I am not prepared to pay for new rockers etc, not to mention all the messing about with geometry. Hydraulic it has to be. What about bleed down lifters, has anyone had experience of these. I am fairly happy with my torquey cam, but are there any more interesting grinds on the market for the V8S.

With regard to replacing the cam (I have been told not to just replace the lifters), is it worth replacing the bearing shells etc at the same time.

Any ideas appreciated,

Z

[siwes]

read this lot should give you an idea where to start and whats involved www.rpiv8.com/engine-6a.htm
mine is tappity and getting worse its booked in to TVR power in jan for the upgrade
regards

[stesrg]

replaced mine with hydraulic high rev lifters with adjustable push rods fantastic.
from real steel.
Steve...

[GreenV8S]

Hydraulic lifters don't need adjusting, which is nice, but in my experience even the 'high rev' variants pump up at sustained high revs. Not a problem though unless you plan to use sustained high revs. Solid lifters allow you to use higher rev ranges but require routine adjustments. The Rhoades lifters are designed to tame wild cams by leaking at low speed to reduce the cam duration. Downside is they sound terrible at low speed! If I were you I'd get a good fast road cam and standard hydraulic lifters as a set, and there are various V8 specialists who can advise on the best cam for your application. Normally you would leave the cam bearings alone, if you changed them I think you would need to inline ream the replacements which is not a DIY job.

[Boosted Ls1]

GreenV8S said:

Hydraulic lifters don't need adjusting. Normally you would leave the cam bearings alone, if you changed them I think you would need to inline ream the replacements which is not a DIY job.

The lifters shouldn't need adjusting if you change like for like otherwise it may be worth checking the clearances and shimming/skimming the pedastals. If anything has changed, ie skimmed block, different head gasket then they really should be checked.

As for cam bearings being reamed, what Peter says is partially correct but I'm sure you can buy ready to fit cam bearings in which case they won't need reaming. It's not often you need to change them as they don't suffer much in the way of load.

[z_chromozone]

Thanks for the advice guys. My main worry about the cam bearings was that any small pieces of metal from the worn cam may have found their way into the soft metal, but if they are not usually replaced as a matter of course I will not bother touching them.

Stesrg, how easy are the adjustable pushrods to set up. I have heard that they can be very tricky. They looked like a great idea for getting around the shimming procedure. Do you have to reset the backlash every 5000 miles, or so. Or can they be treated like standard when used with hydraulic lifters.

Thanks for your comment Boosted, if setting the backlash with standard components is not needed I will not bother.

Peter, hopefully I can catch you at one of the Northants meets. I loitered around last time, but had to go before I had time to talk to you. Perhaps I will see you on Sunday.

Z