Hi guys,

This one's also pending on the dutch forums but I have very good experience with the knowledge here so i'll give it a try

Currently my BA 1.8 has done ~260k km's, which is roughly 161k miles, and the sound of the hydraulic valvelifters rattling away makes me go insane. Ofcourse, this is nothing new looking at the mileage but for me it's time to look for a sollution. I'm already past the "change oil and add Wynn's", been there done that didn't work. Came up with a couple of ideas:

- Replace the valve lifters. Costs about 45 euro's each.

- Replace the entire engine for one with lower mileage (and hopefully no rattling valvelifters). This means looking for an entire engine somewhere for a decent price.

- Replace the cilinderhead only for one with lower mileage (and hopefully no rattling valvelifters). This means getting a cilinderhead from somewhere, altough my thoughts are that this is cheaper than an entire engine.

I got a couple of questions about the 3rd one:
- Is it possible to replace the cilinderhead with one from a different engine, or is this impossible because of the 2 engine parts not fitting together properly or something?
- When replacing the headgasket, I believe the cilinderhead has to come off. In this process, replacing the cilinderhead with another one shouldn't give me a lot of trouble (i do have the right tools and manpower to do this job, just not the knowledge) or should it?

Thanks in advance.

As you would need to take of the head in order to replace the headgasket, you would also need a head that is shaved to ensure that it seals properly.
If you have a serious problem with the hla, then you can have a oilpump on its way out. not enough oil in yout system, or just the hla buckets which are going to die shortly.
the later case can only come from improper engine servicing.
I have knowledge of several bp engines with more than 400k km on the clock and still run smoothly.
To replace the buckets you would "simply" need to take out the cams (yes both) and the hla buckets come up. you probably need a grip to take em out, but that is that. You can drop in new ones, mount the cams back in their place, get the timing done and by on your way again.
buckets cost nearly 14 gbp on [url=http://www.fordprobestore.co.uk/store/product_info.php?cPath=106_107_140_110&products_id=1326]ford probestore[/url]

If compression test does tell you that you ve lost compression in 1 or more cylinders, then you can best look for a new engine repairbill would get high to repair everything up to spec.
Before you mount this engine do a leak down test, compression test and all other things you need to know about the state of an engine.

If you have a head, empty it, shave it and then install everything you need to have.

Do however a check on your oil pump to be sure.
i haven't heard too many cases of died oilpumps, but it is one of the most vital parts of your engine.

[quote="ph3n1x"]
If you have a serious problem with the hla, then you can have a oilpump on its way out. not enough oil in yout system, or just the hla buckets which are going to die shortly.
the later case can only come from improper engine servicing.
I have knowledge of several bp engines with more than 400k km on the clock and still run smoothly.
To replace the buckets you would "simply" need to take out the cams (yes both) and the hla buckets come up. you probably need a grip to take em out, but that is that. You can drop in new ones, mount the cams back in their place, get the timing done and by on your way again.
buckets cost nearly 14 gbp on [url=http://www.fordprobestore.co.uk/store/product_info.php?cPath=106_107_140_110&products_id=1326]ford probestore[/url][/quote]

i'm not sure if it's a 'serious' problem. I can hear them rattling over the entire RPM range, first time starting the engine in the morning the sound doesn't appear but as soon as I hit the throttle it's there.

I recently checked the oil and filled it up, I do this often en never notice any form of oil loss or anything. as far as I know, the engine has always been serviced properly (although the fact that the HLA's are rattling could tell the difference..)

The thing with replacing the buckets is that I have no idea which ones are bad and which ones are good. I'm not really looking forward to buying 16 of these babies..

I know you are in Amsterdam, but if you have the means to ship a complete motor, I have one you are welcome to have for free. BUT it is one I have just removed from a BA which was run without oil and the big end bearings are kniocking. The head is complete with intake manifold and seems to be ok. The motor wasou can get it to yourself for free or cheaply, may be worth o if y still running when I removed it. So, if you can get it over to you for free or cheaply, its worth haveing. I am in North Wales, near Wrexham.

Hmm, might be a solution..

But then I would have to shave the head to fit on my engine. Don't know if it's more effective to replace the HLA's or to get your engine and make the cilinderhead fit..

have you flushed your engine recently?

The head would simply need to be skimmed (shaved) not expensive and then a new head gasket. will happily remove the head as well if you want that only.

[quote="ph3n1x"]have you flushed your engine recently?[/quote]

nope, will try that in combination with a can of Wynns.

Maybe found the sollution, member on the dutch forum contacted me about a 1.8 engine with 86k miles on the clock, and wanted to talk about both selling and mounting it.

[quote="Shayne"]The head would simply need to be skimmed (shaved) not expensive and then a new head gasket. will happily remove the head as well if you want that only.[/quote]

if the other plans turn into shits you're the first one that i'll contact, really thanks in advance for your offer!

Well that deal with a new engine is almost certainly gonna fall through as it's gonna cost me €300 for the engine and €350 for labor costs which just isn't the money i'm willing to spend on it.

i'm not looking for an easy fix but €650 is a bit out of my budget. Now i'm looking at replacing the faulty HLA's, thing is I have no idea if it's easy for me to both inspect which are faulty and then replacing them. Any how-to on this?

turn the cams (preferably 1 by 1) and you should see the faulty ones pop up, where the normal one just go up when the cam lobb comes up without any delay.

the ones with delay should proof to be faulty.

if you order them all, it is going to cost you 260 ish euro + shipping from the link i sent you above (the ford probestore link)

(14gbp * 1.14 (current exchange rate))*16 = 255.36 euro + shipping costs.

that way you should have payed less then you would with an other engine and labor.

Exactly. So i'm able to see the faulty ones without having to remove my cams?

Really hoping I don't have to change them ALL..

[quote="MrKikker"]Exactly. So i'm able to see the faulty ones without having to remove my cams?

Really hoping I don't have to change them ALL..[/quote]

anyone that can give me any certainty on this?

You don't need to replace the lifters or 'tappets' as they are commonly called. This engine has solid lifters with a 'shim' that fits snugly on top. You buy these shims from mazda for about £6 each. They come in various thickness's. The hardest part is finding out which thickness shims you need.

These are the shims
[img]http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j250/RobbieRx-7/323F/avalveshims4-c.jpg[/img]

allright, could you tell me more about those shims?
do i have to remove the cams in order to replace them?

I have a few Hla's that I could send to you I think I have 16 and they all seem to be in working order from what I can remember,

Give me a P.M and we can talk about prices.

You have to remove the cams yes, unless you can lay your hands on the Special Service Tool (SST) as mazda call it. This enables the the lifter to be pushed down without the need to remove the cams.

I would image the SST would cost a fair bit from mazda though.

So the only way to know which HLA's need replacing is to remove the cams, and thus remove the cambelt, which is a shitty job.

[quote="MrKikker"]So the only way to know which HLA's need replacing is to remove the cams, and thus remove the cambelt, which is a shitty job.[/quote]Yes in a word.

Not as shitty as removing a cylinder head or engine

After taking a look at the FSM (section B1-4 Valve Clearance), you would measure the gap with a feeler gauge to determine which size shim you need. The SST makes the job a million times easier. It might be worth asking mazda how much the tool would cost. After looking at some of my older posts, the tool costs in the region of £150 and is made by SPX tools.

[img]http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j250/RobbieRx-7/323F/Capture1.png[/img]
[img]http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j250/RobbieRx-7/323F/Capture2.png[/img]
[img]http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j250/RobbieRx-7/323F/Capture3.png[/img]

EDIT: Just realised you have the BP engine. This is for Z5 only. Best bet is to buy the HLA's off this chap then.

If you want the HLA's give me a p.m mate

Yeah i'm gonna send you a PM right now, sorry been off the grid for a while, had other pressing stuff.

So by the looks of it, i'm going to replace the HLA's and the cambelt while i'm at it (the mileage dictates that it's time for a replacement), hope that some guys in holland can help me out on this one..

Just had a look for SPX tools, no listing for Mazda on it

Prob best off asking Sanj then http://www.club323f.com/club323f/forum/ ... hlight=spx

Well if it all goes as planned i'll be receiving 16 'new' HLA's. together with an order from FPS for a cambelt and some other stuff i'm gonna tackle the problem myself..