valve and crank maintenance

[93MTXSHO_STUD]

I was reading some of the previous posts of 60k services and had a few questions. My car is due for another 60k valve check(more like 85k). my car has always made a soft tapping sound. When i put castrol high mileage 5w-30 in, the sound is barely noticeable. I have the tools for the 60K (ford rotunda), but lack the shims. Is there a cheaper place than SHObros to get a set of shims? Should I even worry about valve adjustment? My situation is quite simple...i need the car for finishing up my MSEE degree(another two years + year of work to achieve financial stability). I'm on a tight budget, but i cant afford to buy a new car until i get a job. My car has around 160K miles on it. I also heard that when the car approaches this mileage the rod bearings needed to be replaced(oil light comes on when car is about to stall at very low RPM's)? What I need to know really is should I waste time and money to fix my SHO. I really like the car, but lack time to enhance the integrity of my car. I only put around 10K a year on it, but need it to be reliable to commute from school to home(400 miles). What to yall think?

 

[93rev2sev]

If it's due for another 60k, note all the clearances when you do the work. The noisy ones will be farther out of spec than the others, pull them and mic them. If the inside thickness is not to spec, it can be flipped. If it IS to spec, you should replace it with a thicker shim. You might get lucky and be able to flip a few of the bad ones.

 

[93rev2sev]

As for Rod Bearings, yes, it should be done. It's $60 piece of mind. Just soak the exhaust ****** studs with PB blaster and let it sit overnight. This will make the toughest part of the job a lot easier. The added benefit of doing the rod bearings is that you get to clean the oil pan and pickup as well as having a nice tight oilpan seal. The rod caps should be tourqued to about 37 ft lbs...consult a manual.

 

[SHObill]

I would do the Rod Bearings BEFORE ANYTHING ELSE! Otherwise you have wasted time & $$ when you spin a rod bearing or two! Rod bearings will keep it running for the next 3 years. you can at least drive it with oil in the plug wells & a few shims out of spec! Get that done & then I will set you up with a shim kit.

 

[93MTXSHO_STUD]

ok that sounds like a good plan! I have taken the oil pan off before, so this job will be trivial as long as the y-pipe isnt a PITA. it seems like clevite is the way to go? I couldnt find the bearings for 60 dollars...seems that advance auto has them for 70. I couldn't find them on rockauto. should i stick to the standard size?

 

[Electricat]

Agreed on the rod bearings!! The SHO engine is very solid, but those bearings are a weak point that can potentially cause catastrophic engine failure.

I am all for doing maintainance on a regular basis, but honestly, a few shims out of spec isn't a big deal....many SHO's go their entire lives without a shim job. Do it when you have the time and money, but putting it off isn't going to destroy anything.

The source of your noise may not even be a shim out of spec....the SHO engine normally makes a bit of valvetrain noise, due to it being a solid valvetrain. Another possible source is the fuel injectors...they make a soft ticking as they cycle, and it is noticable at idle. It could also be a timing chain slapping a bit, which could be diagnosed by tracing the noise to the rear end of the valve cover.