Peugeot 306 "hydrolic valve lifter playing up"

I would assume your car has hydraulic tappets. The occasional tapping certainly sounds like it might be from 1 or more tappets. The knocking could be a slightly worn small end. Neither needs immediate fixing, unless they get much worse.

The cure for the tappets is to replace them. Expensive if you get the garage to do it. Personally I wouldn't bother, unless it was particularly prominent and annoying.

The small end, if that's what it is, could carry on like that for the life of the car, and neither fault is likely to result in a breakdown.

Light tapping from hydraulic tappets is certainly nothing to be particularly concerned about. My own car sounds tappety until the engine warms up. Mike.

cam followers which can and do wear ( out) Get a mechanic who can spell hydraulic to lift the lid off and check and reset the tappets. If it starts up again then it will be a cam follower. steve the grease

Doesn't the cam turn twice the speed of the crank? If so, try to work out the frequency of the tapping - if it's twice the engine rpm then it's something to do with the valve gear. A worn camshaft can make a car sound tappetty too and is easily identified.

I sincerely hope not. That would be a most unusual fault. ;-)

No, half the speed of the crank as anyone with even basic understanding of the four stroke engine cycle would know.

Half the speed.....

Tim..

The message from "Dave Plowman (News)" contains these words:

Seriously variable valve timing!

It was somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the drugs began to take hold. I remember " Tim \(Remove NOSPAM." saying something like:

Twice the fun....