impac Posted May 9, 2023 Share Posted May 9, 2023 I just purchased this car from a museum collection. Probably sitting for years. Cleaned fuel system and got started. Idles nice, blows a bit of smoke. I lubed all cylinders prior to starting which may be the cause of the smoke. My concern is a loud tapping noise. I suspect a value and hope not. Need help diagnosing and remedy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stude Light Posted May 10, 2023 Share Posted May 10, 2023 I would start by grounding out each spark plug ( one at a time) and see if that changes the noise. You can just ground the plug with a screwdriver. That will isolate it to a particular cylinder if it is in the lower end. Quick and simple test. Next I would perform a compression test on each cylinder. Again, that will isolate it to a single cylinder and give an idea on valve or ring issue. This is another fairly simple test but does require a compression tester and removal of each spark plug. Please let us know results and we can direct from there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
impac Posted May 10, 2023 Author Share Posted May 10, 2023 Stude Light, Thanks for the suggestions. Video to hear the tapping...... I did a compression test. results: 100 80 90 120 110 118 100 100 2 & 3 are low, however, the tapping seems to be coming from the other side, drivers side. Also the motor idles smooth. How do I ground a plug with a screw driver? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldtech Posted May 10, 2023 Share Posted May 10, 2023 Well the compressions are pretty good for a car that has been sitting. It does sound like valve noise so I suspect stuck lifters. It may just need to be run with some additive in the oil to hopefully loosen them up. I'm not the expert on what additive that might be, others will have experience in that. I would keep engine speeds moderate until it quiets down. You will have a problem grounding those plugs with a screwdiver with those boots on them. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stude Light Posted May 10, 2023 Share Posted May 10, 2023 (edited) It does sound a lot like a lifter - higher pitch tick vs a thud. With the large plug boot covers you could just pull a wire instead. One at a time and start it up. The best thing I’ve found to free something up without disassembly is a couple of quarts of ATF in your oil and run it for a while. The additives in ATF are pretty good at cleaning and freeing stuff up. Personally, I would pull the oil pan and scrape out all the gunk first if you haven’t already. Could it be a fuel pump tick? If you can reach the fuel pump you may be able to feel that or stick a long screwdriver against the pump will often allow to to feel or hear it. Chassis ears work well too. Scott Edited May 10, 2023 by Stude Light (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
impac Posted May 10, 2023 Author Share Posted May 10, 2023 ATF, good idea..... have not yet pulled pan but, as said, prob needs it. Need to source gaskets. Speaking of sourcing, any suggestions? Fuel pimp tick? Could be... a prior owner installed an inline electric fuel pump. I tried starting w/o the electric pump at no avail. What are your thoughts on keeping as is or new fuel pump? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
impac Posted May 10, 2023 Author Share Posted May 10, 2023 picture of fuel pump.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avgwarhawk Posted May 10, 2023 Share Posted May 10, 2023 Sounds like a lift issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty_OToole Posted May 10, 2023 Share Posted May 10, 2023 If it was stored unused in a museum for many years it is not surprising a lifter is stuck. There may be other things the matter as a result of sitting. Suggest you have a mechanic check tires, brakes, hoses, etc. before driving. Change the oil, grease the chassis, change brake fluid etc. Add a can of Rislone, Seafoam or your favorite additive to the oil. Something that says "frees sticky lifters" on the can. Then take it for a short drive of 5 or 10 miles being alert for funny sounds or smells. If nothing goes wrong take it for a 50 or 100 mile drive and chances are the lifter will come free. On the other hand if you don't want to chance it you could take the intake off and check the lifters. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stude Light Posted May 10, 2023 Share Posted May 10, 2023 For your gaskets https://www.olsonsgaskets.com/ It is better to use the original mechanical pump. Less risk of over pressurizing the carb, less risk of fire, etc. I run the original equipment on all my cars. That said, I do have an electric fuel pump installed on my 1939 LaSalle that I use for priming/starting as modern gasolines tend to vapor lock or boil out of the carb after a hot soak. I run on the mechanical pump. It is also smart to hard plumb the fuel lines when adding an electric pump and avoid rubber fuel lines. I would rebuild or get a refurbished pump. If the electric pump you have allows to free flow through it when not running, go ahead and keep it and you can use it when needed to improve starts….just put it on its on switch if it isn’t wired that way already. That pump looks pretty accessible so should be easy to diagnose for the ticking noise and/or service it. I agree with Rusty above on the tires and brakes. Museums are a terrible place for cars if they don’t have a regular maintenance program and take it seriously, which includes occasional driving. Most do not. I hate to say it having managed a museum in the past, but from a preservation perspective, it is far better for a car to be sold to a conscientious owner than donated to a museum. I like driving my cars and feeling comfortable doing so which means… I would replace all the tires, wheel cylinders, master cylinder and jounce hoses. I would blow the brake fluid out of the lines and and look at the condition of the fluid. If it is really discolored from rust, then the hard lines would get replaced, if not then I would leave them. Of course if the exterior of the lines were corroded, I would replace them also. Being able to steer and stop the car will save your life and the hydraulic brake system and tires are the two primary failure modes which can cause a horrible accident. The mechanical steering system is typically robust so long as you do a check on the joints to ensure they are not worn out. Lack of propulsion is far less serious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
impac Posted May 10, 2023 Author Share Posted May 10, 2023 Consensus seems to be stuck lifter. If stuck, is the tapping noise the cam hitting the lifter? If not... what is hitting what? I presume, the stuck lifter is not opening/closing the value. Will this cause excessive exhaust oil smoke since the value is in an open position? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty_OToole Posted May 11, 2023 Share Posted May 11, 2023 Diagnosing a problem like this from a distance is pure guess work but since you asked, here is my guess. - Car was left sitting for years in a museum without moving - Some of the valves were open and some were closed - One of the open valves pressed the hydraulic lifter slowly down - That lifter, being held down by the valve spring, got stuck - When the engine was started most of the lifters came back to life but for some reason that one stayed stuck. - This means there is excess clearance between the lifter and valve stem - The tapping noise is the lifter hitting the valve stem - The valve is opening but not all the way - With enough heat and bathed in hot oil the lifter may come free. A long drive with Seafoam, Rislone, or Marvel Mystery Oil added to the oil may do the trick. If driven this way for a long time the lifter and valve stem may be peened over or mushroomed slightly. Best to keep the revs down. And if it does not come free after a few hundred, or a thousand miles, you may have to take the intake manifold off and get at the lifters directly. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stude Light Posted May 11, 2023 Share Posted May 11, 2023 A lot of times we get wrapped up in all the questions, answers and advice and forget to look at the obvious.... That is a really nice looking car! Congratulations on the purchase. It'll just take some time to sort things out and you can decide on how deep you want to go to make it reliable. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy the heck out of it and have some fun during the sorting out process. Scott 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
impac Posted May 11, 2023 Author Share Posted May 11, 2023 Does this car have solid or hydraulic lifters? I presume hydraulic based on Rusty's description of the tappet noise reason. @Scott, You are correct, we sometimes get caught up with the questions. I like learning, thus my q's Gas tank is getting cleaned as I type. Hopefully get it back tomorrow and installed, for a short road trip this weekend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty_OToole Posted May 11, 2023 Share Posted May 11, 2023 Hydraulic. The last V12 Lincolns had hydraulic lifters and so did all the flathead V8s. They used the same engine in heavy duty Ford trucks and they had solid lifters. Same for the 52 up OHV Lincoln. So, if you have a Lincoln and want to run solid lifters you can use the truck cam and lifters. First Ford with hydraulics was the 1958 FE 332. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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