> Darn! Got back from a trip and now North Texas has cooled off enough to
> make it FUN to drive my non-Airconditioned early Beetle (daily driver)...
> but when I went to start it the slight tapping noise from the #1/#2 side of
> the motor is a loud knock. Sure it might get quieter when the engine warms
> up a bit, but it was WAY too loud to sound healthy. Now I have to find the
> time to troubleshoot it. It has only been 40,000 mi since the last rebuild
> so I HOPE it is OK.
>
> I had been hoping to get the carpet in and finish the headliner (sides)
> before the Bug Swarm on the 19th/20th.
>
> Step 1: Check valve lash.
> Step 2: Change oil to fresh multi-weight (for Fall)
> Step 3 ??? (look in manuals I guess)
>
>
................When checking the valve lash, you may discover that it has a stuck valve and that it can be squirted with penetrating oil and manually compressed enough times to free it up again. With solid lifters, a tapping noise that eventually goes away is possibly just a stuck valve...........BTDT