Originally Posted By: PalmSpringsSCal
Ive got a 3.0 montero Sport 2001,about 135k on it.
The valve train is only recently louder than usual at start up when the ambient temp is below 50 degrees. After running for 2 min, the noise quiets way down to "normal" . When its above 50 degrees, theres never excessive noise.
Just going off of what you've described so far, I'd say you're suffering from normal valvetrain wear on the rocker assemblies. Granted, it may be abnormal when compared to previoius engine's you have owned, but that is normal for some engines out there (to have poorly designed/manufactured parts which wear out prematurely under normal operation).
If that's the case, you can stop searching for a miracle fix for it, as there is not one...except for hardware replacement of course. And the engine would still be fine to drive as you have been for daily commutes, etc. In other words, it should NOT suddenly break down on you or suddenly leave you stranded on the side of the road because this finally "broke".
The rockers slowly eat into the mounting posts on either side of themselves, and gradually get off line from the cam lobe they're following, so there's not going to be a sudden failure of the part, just gradual wearing down and more noise as it goes.
Originally Posted By: PalmSpringsSCal
For the last 20K miles I have been using 5-30 "high mileage" oil
You can continue to use a HM oil if you want, but the things that make an oil HM versus one that is not HM will not affect this issue much either way (better or worse). The HM vs. non-HM ingrediants are more for keeping the seals on the engine in good health (or better health than they were before).
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Originally Posted By: PalmSpringsSCal
My next move might be to something lower than 5 to see if that reduces noise when below 50 degrees for morning starts.
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I understand your thinking there, but you won't get any advantage by doing that. The 0/5W difference is just not applicable in such mild temperatures.
You might see/hear a difference if you were running a 10W-30 and then went to a 5W-30 , but the difference between 5W-30 and 0W-xx won't be utilized until the temps are 20 or 30 degrees BELOW 0F, not 50 degrees ABOVE 0F.
Originally Posted By: PalmSpringsSCal
Anyone had this issue and solved it with oils or even"snake oil" additives?
There are no chemicals you can add or motor oils that you can run to replace the worn hardware. That will be the only way to truly fix the problem.
Originally Posted By: PalmSpringsSCal
Until then Ive put a lightbulb next to lifter cover over night when nights are expected to be,below 55 so and that does eliminate the start up lifter racket .
I commend your creative thinking, but that would NOT have an effect on the ticking at startup. If you truly wanted to mitigate the ticking at startup by pre-heating the engine oil, you would need a block heater or build a small fire under the oil pan before the morning startup takes place.
But even then, depending upon the age and condition of the oil, pre-heating it will have diminishing returns as you go through the OCI. At some point, it would just be more trouble than it was worth I think.
Originally Posted By: PalmSpringsSCal
Any suggestions other than trying an oil less than 5/30 or using the light bulb?
Anyone had this issue and solved it with any additives?
You will have to experiment with different oils, but yes, you can try others to see if the ticking isn't as bad on them.
Different engine oils will absolutely behave differently, and you'll know the ones your engine likes based on the ticking noise. More/louder ticking means don't use that oil in any more OCIs. Less/quieter ticking means you found an oil your engine likes, make a note of it and keep using it!
One more thing, someone mentioned that a synthetic might not be advisable in this case. I would tend to agree, and mostly for the reasons they surmissed in their post. But you can certainly throw in a few synthetics into your experimentational OCIs to see if we're right nor not.