Repair And Fix it

Lifters in a car engine are part of the valve train, which operates the opening and closing mechanisms of the cylinders intake and exhaust valves. As the name suggests, they are the parts that physically lift and lower the plungers that allow the cylinder to "breathe."

Types of Lifters

Lifters fall into three types: hydraulic, mechanical and roller. Hydraulic lifters, the most common, are filled with engine oil that pushes the lifter plunger up and down as it is compressed by the camshaft. Mechanical lifters are fixed metal pieces that push the lifter plunger as the camshaft moves. Roller lifters contain a roller in conjunction with either a hydraulic or mechanical mechanism to reduce friction.

96 Honda Lifters

The lifters in a 96 Honda engine are hydraulic. The number of lifters in the engine depends on the Honda model and engine size in question.

Honda VTEC

In 1989, Honda introduced a more efficient valve train mechanism called VTEC with an extra specially adapted cam and pin attached to each pair of lifters. The cam pushes the lifters to open the valves further at higher engine speeds to increase engine performance.

Replacement Lifters

Replacement OEM (original equipment manufacturer) lifters and other parts for the valve train are readily available. Mechanics may also be able to suggest alternative parts that should work just as well.

Engines are equipped with one of two types of cameras and lifters. A standard cam uses a cylindrical lifter that is flat on the end. They slide into the lifter bore and operate independently of other lifters. On the other hand, roller cams, which are used in high-performance engines, use roller lifters in pairs, connected by a tie. While a conventional lifter rotates in the bore, roller cams are held in place by a tie bar because if they rotate the roller on the bottom of the lifter would not stay in contact with the cam, causing catastrophic engine problems. The only difference in removing conventional lifters and roller lifters is the roller lifters come out in pairs.

Instructions

1

Disconnect all carburetor linkages electrical wires and vacuum hoses from the intake manifold. Loosen and remove the bolts that connect the intake manifold to the cylinder heads, using any wrenches necessary for the job from a toolkit. Remove the intake manifold from the engine.

2

Loosen and remove the bolts that hold the valve cover to the cylinder head. Remove the valve cover. If the valve cover seems to be stuck on the cylinder head, tap It lightly with a ball peen hammer from the toolkit.

3

Loosen the rocker arm nuts, but do not remove them. Loosen them only enough to turn them far enough sideways to remove the push rods. Remove the push rods.

4

Grasp the tie bar that connects the intake and exhaust lifters, and pull it up at the same angle that the lifters operate to remove the lifters.

Although valve lifters do not often go bad, sometimes they do fail and need replacement. When a lifter does fail, the replacement lifter must be properly prepared and pre-load tested before being put into service. Following the proper procedures to test and prepare a brand-new lifter prior to normal operation is required to validate the warranty by most lifter manufacturers. Proper lifter preparation will not only help prevent lifter or camshaft failure in the first few minutes of operation, it will ensure countless hours of dependable valve lifter performance.

Instructions

1

Apply cam lube to the external surfaces of the lifter as well as the lobes of the camshaft for non-roller cams. Fill the push rod seat of the valve lifter with motor oil. Use a high quality non-synthetic oil to coat all the lifter surfaces when a roller cam is used.

2

Install the rocker arms and set the initial valve lash, following the procedures in the manufacturers service manual.

3

Rest a scribe on the valve cover gasket surface of the cylinder head. Scribe a mark on the push rod that is seated in the new valve lifter.

4

Remove the rocker assembly from the cylinder head, following instructions in the engine manufacturers shop manual, but do not remove the push rod.

5

Scribe another mark below the first mark on the pushrod after removing the rocker assembly, using the valve cover gasket surface of the cylinder head as a reference point. The difference between the first and second marks is the pre-load distance.

6

Adjust the pre-load distance, if necessary, by using either longer or shorter pushrods to ensure that the pre-load distance is within the lifter manufacturers specifications. Repeat the procedure for all new lifters.

7

Reinstall the rocker arms and reset the initial valve lash after the preload test, completing the preparation of the new valve lifter.

8

Prime the engines oil pump, following the instructions in the engine manufacturers shop manual. Fill the oil filter with fresh non-synthetic motor oil to ensure proper lubrication on start-up.

9

Complete the reassembly of the engine, following the procedures in the manufacturers shop manual. Fill the engine with 30-weight engine oil, and the radiator with engine coolant.

10

Fill the carburetor float bowl with gasoline, or prime the injector pump to facilitate fast engine start-up, ensuring that engine oil reaches the new valve lifters as rapidly as possible.

11

Start the engine and reset the valve lash, if necessary, and the ignition timing following the instructions in the manufacturers shop manual. Perform initial break-in procedures for new lifters following the lifter manufacturers instructions.

12

Drain the engine oil after the engine cools off. Remove and replace the oil filter, following the instructions in the engine manufacturers shop manual. Replace the engine oil using the correct weight of non-synthetic motor oil, following the recommendations in the engine manufacturers shop manual. The lifter has now been prepared for normal operation.