98 V70 N/A How to prep and reinstall lifters

rwmm415 · Post by **rwmm415** » 05 Aug 2015, 19:13

Hi All,

After many weeks of a DIY head gasket redo and head reconditioning project, I'm finally at the reassembly stage. I'm wondering if anyone has advice on how best to prep the (pre-'99 hydraulic) lifters? Specifically...

Is it important to preload the lifter's hydraulic reservoir, and if so how? Is that the reason that some say you need to soak them in oil for several days? Is there a quicker way?

Will the reservoir fill automatically once the oil pressure comes up in the head? How critical is it to use an assembly lube (like AMSoil) to protect the parts on start up?

Do I need to align the oil port in the lifter with the supply port in the head, or can I just pop the lifters into the head any which way?

I've found little discussion on these points in my searches. Any advice would be appreciated.

Bob in San Jose

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 05 Aug 2015, 22:09

The best method is to keep the lifters soaking in oil from the time they are removed but absent that soaking them for a day or two will get you close. I don't know of any other way to speed up the process. It is not uncommon for them to be noisy for a couple of hundred miles anyway.

I use assembly lube on everything that moves but not so much that it blocks passages. It is one of those things that can't hurt anything and it can certainly help.

The lifters don't have a proper orientation. The lifters move around as the engine runs so, other than up and down, the position of the hole is unimportant.

...Lee

rwmm415 · Post by **rwmm415** » 06 Aug 2015, 08:59

Thanks, Lee! I'll get them soaking...

Post by **rspi** » 06 Aug 2015, 09:15

I was told by a Volvo indi mechanic that you can put them in oil and pump them to fill them with oil. Like Lee explained, I usually leave them soaking in a small bucket of oil all the time.

Post by **cn90** » 06 Aug 2015, 12:09

I was told by some gurus...

- Brand-new lifters: yes soak in oil before installation.

- But in lifters suspected of having sludge inside (extended oil change intervals!), then I remember reading somewhere that people soak lifters in seafoam for a day, drain it, dry it. Then soak it in oil. This should help people with noisy lifters.

Anyway, I may be wrong.

PS: I think Porsche tappets are very similar, you can see the internal design of the Porsche 944 tappets below:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche- ... appet.html