Valve Clearance Check and Adjustment

come on guys!
this argue makes no sense as to the original post.

dimmi

 

thanks for all the help!! y'all are awesome!

 

Welcome to Usenet. *s*

At least we're talking about cars, and not discussing American eating
habits.

 

okay... so i did that valve clearance like i said, and run my car, and
it has this ticking sound... (for the life of me i can't remember
whether this sound was there before the valve adjustment-- it very
well could've been-- but now that i've just been inside the engine my
senses are heightened)
so the ticking sound is coming from either the engine or the
crankshaft or camshaft or alternator or steering pump pulley-- i can't
localize it more than that-- and the frequency of ticks is directly
proportional to the rpms.
soooo... could the ticking be from a bad valve adjustment? should i
be worried?
any ideas?
(the ticking sound is quiet enough so that when i'm in the drivers
seat i i don't hear it-- it's only when the hood is up that i'm able
to notice it-- and when i stick my ear next to the engine it's VERY
noticeable-- but maybe it's normal?)

thanks!
-mr speck

 

could be injectors. listen carefully.

eraser

 

Hard to know what you are hearing. The fuel injectors make a light
clicking sound as do (properly adjusted) valves. A loose valve (or
two) will make a louder tapping noise. If you have to put your head
next to the engine to hear it, it's probably nothing. You could try
taking the oil filler cap off to determine if the noise is coming from
the valve train. Keep in mind that there are 100 valve operations
every second* at idle speed - it will make some noise.

* for a 16 valve engine - can't remember what car this is.

 

To the contributors of this post, I would like to thank all of you for your
immense help. Special thanks to Mr Speck, David and dimmi. Just in case
you are wondering, I was able to successfully check and adjust the valve
clearances on my Civic. Most of the clearances were fine. I suppose this
was attributed to the fact that these have been checked every 20K.

Items of interest that I discovered that may be of use to anyone attempting
this procedure for this time are as follows:

To completely remove the valve cover, you will need to remove the PCV
hose connected to the cover. This hose needs to be removed from the point
that makes contact with the valve cover and not the middle join in the hose.
Use
pointy nose pliers to loosen the hose clip.

The TDC indicator on the lower crankshaft pulley can only be seen for
cylinder 1 and 4.

To determine if cylinder 2 and 3 are at TDC, remove the
Timing Belt cover and look and the camshaft pulley markings. This can also
be used for cylinder 1 and 4.

To visually determine which cylinder is at TDC without removing the
distributor cover is a difficult one to explain. I suppose you have to
conduct this operation to get a better understanding but here is my version.
Stand in front of the car and look at the camshaft and
lobes from the middle of the car. Have an assistant turn the crankshaft (as
per my original directions) and observe the shinny lobes move on the
crankshaft. When a cylinder is at TDC, there will be two lobes pointing
towards you. These two lobes are for the intake valves. That is it. Then
check the markings on the pulleys for accuracy. Again, if you are
attempting this for the first time, remove the distributor cover for peace
of mind.

The only problem I encounted during this procedure was with a seal. The
bottom part of the rubber valve
cover seals, where the nut is placed to tighten the valve cover had spilt.
As I did not have a spare one handy and Honda was closed for the weekend, I
had to re-use the damaged seal. It work but leaked slightly. However,
I did replace it with a new one today. Cost me $18 for a new one!! Other
than that, to check the exhaust valves was quite easy. The intake valves
were a pain. Right angle feeler are the go. Problem is, where do I find
them in Melbourne????

Once again, thanks to everyone and well done Mr Speck!





Vehicle = 1994 Civic 16 Valve SOHC 1.5l

Okay, this may be a lengthy post but if anyone can identify any flaws in the
following procedure for adjusting valve clearances would be much
appreciated. This post follows up on the Valve Adjustment Help post.

Stop the vehicle (obviously).
Put in neutral.
Allow the engine to cool for at least 4 hours so that the engine is cold or
let the car cool overnight and conduct this procedure in the morning.
Remove the valve cover.
Remove the distributor cap.
Place cylinder number one (this is the cylinder closest to the timing belt)
at Top Dead Centre (TDC).
To do so, jack the front of the vehicle closest to the timing belt and
remove the wheel.
Via the wheel cavity, using a ratchet with a socket extension, rotate the
crankshaft pulley clockwise until the timing pointer on the block lines up
with the TDC mark on the front pulley.
The distributor rotor must also be pointing towards the number one spark
plug wire terminal on the distributor cap.
Once in this position, the valve clearances can now be checked
Start with the intake valves and insert a feeler gauge with a thickness of
0.007 to 0.009 inches between the valve stem and rocker arm. As you withdraw
it, there should be a slight drag. If not, tighten the adjuster screw until
you feel a slight drag on the feeler gauge. This is done by holding the
adjuster screw with a screwdriver to prevent it from turning and tighten the
locknut. Recheck the clearance to make sure it is correct and repeat for
the other intake valve. Then do the same for the 2 exhaust valves but with
a thickness of 0.009 to 0.011 inches.
Once cylinder one is completed, rotate the crankshaft pulley 180 degrees
counter-clockwise until number 3 cylinder is at TDC, the distributor rotor
pointing to the number three spark plug wire and the camshaft sprocket on
the exhaust side. Check and adjust as per step 11.
Once cylinder three is completed, rotate the crankshaft pulley 180 degrees
counter-clockwise until cylinder number 4 is at TDC, the distributor rotor
is pointing to number 4 spark plug wire and the camshaft sprocket is
pointing downwards. Check and adjust as per step 11.
Once cylinder four is completed, rotate the crankshaft pulley 180 degrees
counter-clockwise until cylinder number 2 is at TDC, the distributor rotor
is pointing to number 2 spark plug wire and the up mark on the camshaft
sprocket is on the intake side. Check and adjust as per step 11.
Once all the valves have been checked, replace the valve cover and torque
the valve cover nuts to 9.5 NM

In addition, is there any other way one can determine where the distributor
rotor is pointing without having to remove the distributor cap? I have seen
mechanics adjust the valves without removing the distributor cap.