expertise advice found but lost!! Help w2.9L

[inkspot]

Hey 1st off I have too say what a great site this is for my sore eyes and nuckles! I have been driving my '88 XLT 2.9L A-tow-matic 4x4 for 6yrs got it from the orig. owner whom wasn't sure if it had 83k or 183k on it! Wasn't too sure on how to maintain the thing either! But after putting the love and care it needed into place i have managed to click off 2 turns back to zeros on my oddometer! So be 283k or 383k it has been running strong til this previous Xmas when I took it on a hell ride to Ohio to visit my dying mother! While pushing 85mph I heard my lifters over the cranked up Black Sabbath! Scared the jesus right out of me! So I pulled off in bum truckin Indiana and gave to lookin under the hood. All fluids were up and i wasn't overheating. Hadn't changed oil before leaving so i got it done. Took off again and since then whenever I go 70mph plus for any length of time it repeats. I read a forum or 2 that had only mention of these symptoms but offered no resolve. I am running w the factory gauge, cash flow is a problem these days! So w/my high miles could my oil pump be dying, warpped out heads, cam wearing, or clogged rockerarms?? Who if any can relate? I'm wantink to keep her going to the 500k club if yah can help me out Great!

 

[Cyberbeer]

Sounds like you're not getting enough oil to the upper end. Try reving the engine to whatever rpm's it would be at doing 70mph after its fully warmed up..does the noise still occur?

If the tick does not happen it probably something else.

If it does its the same kind of lifter tick most of us deal with. I believe its due to the cam bearings wearing...and poor oil flow. Obviously the only true way to fix it would be to tear the engine down and replace/clean out whats causing the problem. However, many have had success with a product called Seafoam. Basically, it just dissolves the carbon that is built up. Do so at your own risk, if a large enough chunk breaks free your problems will only get worse.

 

[AllanD]

Put a full quart of Marvel mystery oil in it and drive normally for a week, but avoid high rpm operation.

Drain, change oil AND filter and repeat

After changing back to normal oil (with another fresh filter)
cautiously test at high speed to see if the problem is still there.

If the engine still ticks stick a fork in it, it's done.

It isn't the lifters and it isn't the oil pump.

There are thee basic types of oil problem in a typical wet sump
lubricated four stroke engine.
1)Oil PRESSURE problem (I.E. bad pump)

2)Oil CONTROL, Meaning it leaks internally before it gets to
all the places it needs to go (this is the typical problem on a tappy 2.9)

3)Oil SUPPLY, either there isn't oil in the engine OR the
pump can't get it, Clogged pickup screen This is the problem
MMO can correct. (this is the typical problem on a 4.0 coupled
with worn pushrod sockets on the rocker arms)

AD

 

[RangerJ]

Put a full quart of Marvel mystery oil in it and drive normally for a week, but avoid high rpm operation.

Drain, change oil AND filter and repeat

After changing back to normal oil (with another fresh filter)
cautiously test at high speed to see if the problem is still there.

If the engine still ticks stick a fork in it, it's done.

It isn't the lifters and it isn't the oil pump.

There are thee basic types of oil problem in a typical wet sump
lubricated four stroke engine.
1)Oil PRESSURE problem (I.E. bad pump)

2)Oil CONTROL, Meaning it leaks internally before it gets to
all the places it needs to go (this is the typical problem on a tappy 2.9)

3)Oil SUPPLY, either there isn't oil in the engine OR the
pump can't get it, Clogged pickup screen This is the problem
MMO can correct. (this is the typical problem on a 4.0 coupled
with worn pushrod sockets on the rocker arms)

AD

Allen, how do you fix the oil control and in regards to mmo did you mean to run 2 cycles of mmo

 

[AllanD]

Yes.

If you have an "oil control" issue you need another engine.

The oil pump is NEVER bad in a 2.9.

I'm giving you reason to hope that you have a sludged engine
and a gummed up pickupl, not much hope, but hope...

I've actually had TWO 2.9 engines lock up...

One literally less than a truck length from the two post lift
where on a friday night at my brother's job we were planning
to remove and replace it.

It Shut off, he said "start it back up and pull it in the rest of the way..."
I Said: I can't it just seized.
He said "bullshit" and tried it himself... that engine never turned again.
It went directly on the junk engine pile.

I wasn't even remotely interested in looking inside it.

AD