Engine Checking rod bearings and lifters

Checking rod bearings and lifters

I can hear a few of my lifters ticking so I know I have some that have collapsed. I am now in my Jetta so I want to replace them. I'm just going to pull the rocker assembly out after I pull the valve cover off and then check each lifter. Then I'm going to replace all that are needed. All I need to do is oil the lifters up when I put them back in/put new ones in, right? Also, does anyone know the torque specs for the rocker assembly?


I was also told by a mechanic that I had a bad or bad bearings. He was listening to the oil pan with a stethoscope. I personally, and obviously don't hear it, but the lifters are obvious. Will I have a problem pulling the pan while the engine is still in the car and checking them out? I want to look for any scarring or any other obvious indications that they are bad.

TIA

Well, I wouldn't say that. The 1ZZ-FE engine is NOT a notoriously quiet engine. My 2003 has always had some audible knocking....but that's just the way the engine is designed. I popped the hood on my '03 Corolla one day with it idling (forget what I was doing) in the Exxon parking lot near my home....some guy was all "DUDE...you're rods are knocking...I'd trade that car in or get rid of it somehow....those rods are gonna blow through the side of the block anytime now". The car had 20,000 miles on it and had ALWAYS made that noise. The only DEFINITIVE way to check the bearings is to pull them apart and look...use some Plastigage (-gauge??) to measure bearing clearance....THEN go from there.

The head isn't complicated at ALL once you take it apart and look at it. The valve cover is easy to get off....just go ahead and pull it off and take a look. The valves on the 1ZZ-FE tend to be rather loud at idle...mine is and always has been since brand new. The fuel injectors and VSV's make lots of ticking noise too, which just adds to the ensemble of ticks and knocks and rattles. Don't take just one person's opinion, either...that's just what I've learned.

Late,
Trav

Probably will not have a problem pulling the pan with the engine still in the car. You might have to drop the center member and front/rear engine mounts, but that shouldn't be a problem. They technically don't support any weight - they just control the rocking of the engine during accel/decel.

Before pulling the pan, I would check the oil pressure. Sometimes, that will give you a good indication of what kind of shape the bearings are in. Too low, they're worn down, too high and the clearance is too small and will eventually wear. Often times, just one bad bearing will cause a system-wide drop in oil pressure and then the others are sure to follow.

What year Corolla do you have? Don't know about pre-88, but all Corollas 88-up have DOHC 16-valve engines (with the exception of the 4A-GE 20V)....right?
In which case, there are no rocker arms. You have the valve, valve spring, valve tappet (or lifter bucket), and the cam lobe rides directly on the lifter - no rocker arms. If main/rod bearings are bad, then you're probably going to have wear in the head also due to low oil pressure. The tappets tend to wear down on the skirts and rattle around in their bores when they get scored and worn. It may also be as simple as checking the clearances and getting new shims to correct.

Late,
Trav

It's an 01. Ok, well, I've never messed witht that type of head. I just assumed. Damn... guess my car is fucked then.