AUA tappet replacement

Davidkinton

Member
I took my car for an MOT recently and suspected that it wouldn’t pass as all the lights were on the dashboard, as they have been intermittently since I bought the car. I have long suspected that this is a mechanical issues as the car is very tappety. Sure enough, the car failed and a chap specialising in diagnostics confirmed it was likely to be a valve issue due to it having low compression on one cylinder.

So, I decided to do the tappets. This involved removing the poly v belt, timing belt and cam cover. Having got to the tappets, it was obvious that 3 had failed completely as they were not holding any oil at pressure. Alarmingly, the whole area was also covered in a black paste, probably the result of a lack of regular oil changes in the past. No wonder the hydraulic tappets had failed.

Having got this far, I was in two minds whether or not to pull the head off and check the valves too. In for a penny, in for a pound, I removed the inlet and exhaust manifolds, thermostat housing and removed the head. I’ve taken that to a local engine reconditioner, to have the valve seats reground, new valve seals and the head faced.

I’ll let you know when it’s all back together whether this has cured the intermittent mis fire and low manifold pressure which have been problematic for a long time. Fingers crossed, otherwise it might be up for sale!


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My engine 1.4 petrol is also very tappety but the compression is good and it runs fine. I am unsure if it is worn tappets or piston slap I hear. I have heard Both are common problems.
 
Hi.
Did you manage to get this issue sorted after? As a relatives' car is suffering from a similar problem. Noisey tappety engine on tick over, then when engine up to temp the low oil pressure warning sounds?
Thanks
Steve
 
Hi.
Did you manage to get this issue sorted after? As a relatives' car is suffering from a similar problem. Noisey tappety engine on tick over, then when engine up to temp the low oil pressure warning sounds?
Thanks
Steve

Yes, I’ve done the tappets and had the head refurbished. Had new exhaust valve guides fitted. Car is much quieter now, but I’m still being plagued with a check engine light. This is throwing up a throttle valve malfunction, so I’m replacing that. I’ve also just noticed a hissing noise from near the injectors. I think the injector seal on cylinder 1 is leaking which may be part of the issue.


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Crikey David - if you had a car with OSS I'd suggest jacking the roof up and replacing the remainder underneath since you've changed damn nearly everything else since I've been following your threads in the past year and a half (with my own saga of a marginally less troublesome AUA).. fingers crossed you have a breakthrough soon! all the best in 2021, Robin
 
Crikey David - if you had a car with OSS I'd suggest jacking the roof up and replacing the remainder underneath since you've changed damn nearly everything else since I've been following your threads in the past year and a half (with my own saga of a marginally less troublesome AUA).. fingers crossed you have a breakthrough soon! all the best in 2021, Robin

Yes, I feel like I’ve replaced virtually everything possible to replace and still have not achieved a completely fault free car. I feel like I am now close though, with just the injector seals, throttle body and front anti roll bar bushes to do. I think only the OSS is the one original part left on it!


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