a little off for some groups: 1989 Mazda 626 clacking from top of engine

I wonder if flushing and refilling with lighter weight oil will prevent me from having to rip out the Lash Adjusters...

Interesting:

There is a Horrible ticking from under may valve cover. What is it? How can i fix it?

This is your Hydraulic Lash Adjusters (HLAs) starving of oil. HLAs are essentially maintenance free and as soon as they start to tick they are supposed to be replaced. Unfortunately Mazda/Ford wants an arm and a leg for them. There is a way to squeeze some life out of them.

1. Pour some ATX oil into your engine. DO NOT USE A LOT, 300ML WILL BE SUFFICIENT. Auto transmission oil/fluid is VERY high in detergents so it will remove most of the gunk from the HLAs and anything else that oil has contact with. Drive on this oil mixture for a day or two, no more. 2. During an oil change, get yourself some engine flush(readily available at any Auto parts retailer) follow instruction on the can/bottle 3. Put new oil in.

If this procedure did not fix your HLA tick (not to be confused with injector tick which is normal) you ether will need to clean HLAs physically or replace them.

This procedure is not recommended for engines which have some oil consumption, as this will clean out all the gunk in piston rings as well, and you might end up using more oil and smoke badly too

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I was approaching an oil change anyway. I wonder if adding more MMO might have a similar effect...

try it. i have no idea what that mystery oil stuff is, but there's a reason motor manufacturers say not to use additives like that...

Never tried Marvel Mystery Oil?! I started using it in 1978 on a '78 Corolla. Engine went about 65,000 miles...then a guy in a Mustang pulled right out in front of me!

However, it's replacement went 6 years and 244,000 miles, and IT'S replacement went 20 years and 259,000 miles...and more if I ever fix the rust...

The 1.8 in the '80 Corolla and the 1.6 in the '85 Corolla GTS both hold 4 quarts with filter. I put in 3.5 quarts of Castrol GTX 10W-30 or 40, and 1 quart of MMO. No oil problems at all!

It's a very light oil, red in color and smells a bit funky, but with returns like that I'm a believer! It's kind of like ATF. I add it to everything now...snowblowers, lawnmowers, etc. When I park my power equipment for the summer/winter, I spray a little into the spark plug hole to keep the cylinders and valves from rusting.

so what's in it? if you don't know, you're out of your mind using it.

and a corolla engine will do 259,000 miles on walmart house brand oil, let alone gtx. ascribing longevity to something on which you have no testing, no controls and which is proven unnecessary is quite ridiculous.

That's OK. It works for me! Last compression check I did, all the cylinders were between 120-125 PSI. Considering that's what they were in

1991 when the car was six years old, I'd say that's pretty good.

There are a lot of people who use MMO regularly, and most of them are driving high-mileage vehicles, Japanese or not. (One I know has an '88 Chevy truck with 350,000 miles on it, and has never had to mess with the engine)

Thanks to everyone who responded! Ray O wins the prize: It looks like a collapsed Hydraulic Lash Adjuster. These look pretty easy to remove and replace, but I have found a number of resources on the web as to how to clean them.

Also, I will try the 'lazy man's' way suggested by another poster, ie adding ATF or Marvel Oil before the next oil change. It was due in 500 more miles anyway, so I'll try 'flushing' it and see what happens. One method suggests simply sliding the rockers and pulling the HLAs out and cleaning them, another prescribes removing the rocker cams and arms and a thorough cleaning. Since the car is so clean, I will probably do this after I park it for the summer!

Pray for me...(I can be a Gumby at times!)

LOL... Welcome to the club...

If the lifters are easy to pull, let them soak overnight in solvent or kerosene and re-install.

Oh, My God!!!!

So the Captain, he let it all out at once....

Prone right down on the wheelhouse floor...oh, this brings us up to what's happenin' again, folks!

The Titanic, she's sailing around in and out between the icebergs; The _______ people are having parties and trading wives, Cadillacs and diamonds; The sail people are hoistin' up landlubbers and battenin' down hatches; The First Mate's hangin' over the rail havin' himself a little smoke and diggin' the icebergs;

AND THE CAPTAIN'S OUT COLD ON THE WHEELHOUSE FLOOR!!!!!!!!!

(that last line was my yearbook quote...!)

i'll ask again, do you know what's in it?

now read this:

in your case, excess solvent will /increase/ metal to metal contact. if you get decent mileage and compression, that's a testament to the quality of toyota motors and castrol oil, /not/ your massively over-priced xylene solvent.

And here's one for you:

am i missing something? how does vintage poster art /not/ make your over-paying for wear-increasing solvents proof of gullibility?