jeep 4.0 infamous valve tick

[TurboII]

So, i noticed when its really cold out, my jeep has a valve tick. i been reading everywhere that their really known for this. Any one else going threw this. its annoying. what are you guys doing?

Joey

[black86glhs]

So, i noticed when its really cold out, my jeep has a valve tick. i been reading everywhere that their really known for this. Any one else going threw this. its annoying. what are you guys doing?

Joey

Replacing the lifters. The exhaust will cause the same noise too.

[shackwrrr]

i noticed when its really cold out

It could be a manifold leak, metal contracts opening a leak, warms up no more leak.

[black86glhs]

It could be a manifold leak, metal contracts opening a leak, warms up no more leak.

Sorry, should have been more specific. Like he said, a manifold leak will sound exactly like a lifter tap.

[turbovanman²]

Yep, they are infamous for the exhaust manifold leaking.

What weight oil are you using?

[TurboII]

factory spec 10-30

[TurboII]

how could i tell if its a exhaust leak/manifold crack?

[shackwrrr]

how could i tell if its a exhaust leak/manifold crack?

Take a length of fuel tubing and put one end up to your ear and then take the other end and move it around the exhaust manifold flange listening.

[TurboII]

hmmmmmmm you mean like a stethoscope. i see. ilm almost positive that's is a possibility it is a manifold leak.

[shackwrrr]

like that, but you want the rush of air from the leak to tickle your eardrum lol

[TurboII]

mmm i see. ive been reading up on it, and i heard its a very common thing on a 4.0

[turbovanman²]

like that, but you want the rush of air from the leak to tickle your eardrum lol

No kidding, lol, nothing like hot exhaust gas in your ear, :p

[TurboII]

if it is a manifold i have my eye on headers. i'll install it in the spring since its really cold now!

Joey

[Shadowv4l]

the manifolds liked to crack where the two pipes meet, at the "Y". I believe there is a redesigned manifold, it uses sections of flex pipe. 5 years ago i would do at least one of these a day, easy $$.

[TurboII]

and it'll make is sound like a valve tick?

[Shadowv4l]

yeah, it goes "tap tap tap tap tap" at idle and picks up with revs to a certain point. I was at work today and a 4.0L came in with NASTY crank walk, the only thing keeping the crank in the motor were the rods and piston skirts, hahaha, sounded like hell as everything knocked around, the customer said it overheated on them.

[TurboII]

yeah, it goes "tap tap tap tap tap" at idle and picks up with revs to a certain point. I was at work today and a 4.0L came in with NASTY crank walk, the only thing keeping the crank in the motor were the rods and piston skirts, hahaha, sounded like hell as everything knocked around, the customer said it overheated on them.

jeez i dont recall 4.0 having crank walk issus, weird.well i havent look to much into it, because its like 20 degrees out, but i have my eyes on headers that i found. In spring my truck is getting serviced. i have to do timing chain, water pump, thermo, upper/lower hoses, shocks (bilstein HD), and i would love to get the upgraded sway bar's from addco, service the transmission. and she golden. now lets say i need a valve because it wasnt the manifold. i will pull the head and have that over hauled with better stuff I.E maybe a mopar purple cam and/ or swap over to a roller setup or maybe both purple cam and roller setup with Harland Sharp rockers with supporting mods:p

Joey

[Shadowv4l]

well, if you are doing everything else you might as well take the head off. Those motors are cake to work on, swap in your fancy stuff and bolt the head back down!
note: dont forget to use thread sealant on the head bolt that goes down through the water jacket :thumb:

[TurboII]

well, if you are doing everything else you might as well take the head off. Those motors are cake to work on, swap in your fancy stuff and bolt the head back down!
note: dont forget to use thread sealant on the head bolt that goes down through the water jacket :thumb:

well, only way im digging into the head is if it is a ticky valve or valve train is still their. I really thinks its a exhaust manifold. Now that you mentioned it, it does sound like a leak.

Joey

p.s- any good jeep forums you guys know?

[J&H Ryan]

NAXJA and Cherokee Forums are good places for tech info. I'd bet its the manifold too, though at 181k, I can hear my lifters a little too. Not enough to worry about though.

[TurboII]

i just joined jeepforum.com. okay i guess nothing like turbo-mopar.com

[RoadWarrior222]

I say for any motor with lifter tick, if from cold, you let it idle until it drops off high idle, then raise RPM to 2000 for 5 seconds, and go back down to idle, if lifter tick has gone, ignore it. If it takes until your engine is warm to go away, you're probably running too heavy an oil or have filled it up with lucas crap to try and quieten it.... personally I find the "High Mileage" oils from Pennzoil and Castrol great for limiting start up tick (probably by cleaning 'em out) and generally helping with oil consumption.

[22shelby]

yeah the lifters tic, the manifolds leak/(crack) its a jeep th...... well u know....

they burn oil, but it will run forever like that....

if you decide to just replace it w/ a OEM mani and not a header....get the dorman one... they kinda revised it the relieve the stress point that make it crack....

lil food for thought...

[ljbprrfmof]

Gee, nobody mentioned wrist pin. Back in 1997, when I sold them, the factory boasted about gixing that problem by redesigning the wrist pin, stregthening the lower webs on the block, and making the piston skirt stromger and deeper. I do remember we had new ones that would tick at idle. The latter 4.0's did not tick.

[black86glhs]

Gee, nobody mentioned wrist pin. Back in 1997, when I sold them, the factory boasted about gixing that problem by redesigning the wrist pin, stregthening the lower webs on the block, and making the piston skirt stromger and deeper. I do remember we had new ones that would tick at idle. The latter 4.0's did not tick.I thought that was to take away them sounding like a diesel after getting a few miles on them. Stiffened the block to eliminate some of the block flex. Well, I guess that could help the lifter tap, also.

[picklesgarage]

well it would help to know what year and model jeep

[TurboII]

well it would help to know what year and model jeep

2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee I6

[black86glhs]

Did you ever fix it?

[TurboII]

lol, NO. weather is just getting better. i will be looking into it

[black86glhs]

lol, NO. weather is just getting better. i will be looking into itI completely understand.....lol.

[rbryant]

My cherokee has 210k miles on it and a cracked exhaust manifold. It just isn't bad enough to make me want to fix it.

The engine runs just fine, burns no oil. I changed the VC, pan, and rear main gasket one night a few years back.

I still had a leak so I found that the oil filter housing was the worst leak on the engine. I fixed that and it leaks no oil at all on the engine but the rear diff gasket needs to be changed..

-Rich

[TurboII]

,I just pretty much service maintance my jeep. this past week at 128,500, i did my timing chain, water pump, thermostate, hoses; upper/lower and heater hoses, power steering hoses, and installed much stiffer shocks, pro-comp mx6. while i was burping the coolant i poked around to see if i had a leaky manifold, and i couldn't feel anything against my fingers. Now that the weather is nice my valve tick is pretty much gone.

Joey

[RoadWarrior222]

Now that the weather is nice my valve tick is pretty much gone.

Prolly just bleed down a bit while it's warm and off and take a few mins on cold oil to pump up.