Knock knock.... ping....

Anyone had a valve job done on their VX? Now that the weather is getting warmer out and I drive with my windows down, I am noticing some considerable knocking and pinging going on, mostly sitting idle. Checked fluids and they are good to go. It sounds quite similar to what my Amigo was doing before I took it in for a $3k valve job. Hell, I only just turned 40k miles this week and my Amigo was at 90k miles when it was done. When I take it in to get the blower install, I am gonna get their opinion on that as well. No sense in putting in the blower if it will help create an issue with something already going bad.

Any input on some further things I can check for the knocking/pinging? She still runs excellent, just with a construction crew under the hood.

You talking about a slight ticking/pinging noise? Kinda like a diesel engine but not as bad?

I have the same thing going on right now.

From what I remember from previous posts. Check and clean the EGR if needed, replace PCV valve, maybe add some fuel injection cleaner, check spark plug gaps etc.

How's your gas milage right now and what grade are you using? I find that even though the higher octane gas is not required in the VX, things seem to quiet down a bit when I use it.

That brings me to another thought. I would almost say that Isuzu recomended using lower octane gas as they didn't want people to be using the more expsensive gas in such a little piggy like the VX!!! Probably figured with gas the way it has been in the past that people would be turned off by this and either not buy it or sell it after a short period of ownership due to high gas costs.

What are your thought on this statment?

After I had my exhaust re tooled I was hearing some knocking and pining... My Isuzu dealer said it was valve knock and did a valve job on the right side. After they did the work the knocking and pinging went away for the most part.

What's included in a valve job? Never had this done before so curious about costs and what they actually do?

Thanks :)

I am under the impression that there is no way to check other than removing everything and checking. My mechanic took a educated guess and listened to the valves with a screw driver and some other things and told me how many tapits to purchase. I do not really know more that that.

I purchased 4 valve tapits ( Item #8971482961 - 14.05 Per Tapit) and new valve cover gaskets ( Item # 8971723940 - 21.49 ) from Merlin @ St Charles Isuzu. The job was around 300 bucks I think. I cannot remember at this moment can check my receipt later if you like.

Seem to quite her down a bit. My VX is S/C and has about 55K miles on it. They suggest checking the valves at 60K so I was due anywhoo...

If you're checking for burned valves, the obvious check is a compression test. Judging by the last post I guess you're just asking about valve guides. A theposcope will help you pinpoint the rattling. I would try adjusting the rockers first if they're adjustable (I haven't accessed mine yet).

I know on most of the Chevorlets I've owned, rocker adjustment is a delicate balance between science and art. Overtighten and your cam lobes disappear. Undertighten and get clackety-clack noise.

Part Dark Science- part Voodoo

I actually use midgrade fuel. Lower grade unleaded makes it tick louder from what I have noticed.

Anyways, a funny thing happened today. Pulled into a parking lot to meet some buddies. One of them who is a tech at a Mercedes dealer says to me "Damn man, your valves dont sound so good". Gee, go figure.

Gonna see what all can and should be messed with when I get the S/C put in. May as well get it all done in one shot.

Sounds like bad fuel to me!

Well, this weekend I took my VX to the speedshop. Had them check into it. After checking it out, they talked me into going with synthetic oil. I agreed and paid the excess cost to prime it and change it up. They didnt think it was bad enough to tear down and check the guts so this was worth a shot. Wouldnt ya know it.... the change-over took care of about 50% of the racket! I was quite impressed really.

I am gonna go woth this for a while and see how it goes. It may be a few weeks before it goes in for the blower install, so I have till then to decide if this is working or not.

I think it would be a good thing to test the compression of your cilinders.
If you have blow-by of bad oil it could be the cause.
Condensation of fuel in your sump could also cause problems!

Aye aye, capt. Just writing down all these ideas and will pass them on and talk with my tech about them. /salute

I have no idea if this is true or not but I heard it is bad for your engine to go back to using conventional oil after using synthetic. Something happens to the rings I think? I love using synthetic though so I wouldn't go back anyway. I just thought you might want to be aware of a possible issue.