Rebuilding Hydraulic Lifters

Edit: Please don't install them full of oil and purged of all air like I show in the video. Do this to check that they're sealing, but then remove the extra oil so that they're springy. They will pump up within a few seconds of startup anyway. This saves the valves from not closing all the way due to a tall lifter.
This video shows the disassembly, cleaning, and rebuilding of hydraulic valve lifters. These belong to a VW 16V head but many are similar. A couple of these could be compressed by hand when they came out of the head. I decided to rebuild all of them. This takes a long time so you might want to consider just buying new ones, but if you have patience and don't mind the work, it's very rewarding.

[@dannygreen7473]

Nice work, but save yourself the trouble and run a quart of ATF, replacing a quart of oil, at your oil change. The lifters will clean themselves along with the oil rings and everything else. Been doing it for 30 years, best maintenance trick ever.

[@crbgaming2649]

dude, what a well done video that saves time and money (and in my case, hunting down a set for my old car). Well lit, well filmed...bravo. Thanks so much for taking the time.

[@Golo1949]

Hi great video, just a tip I thought of when I checked mine. Because of arthritis banging the lifter on wood was rather painful, so I came up with the idea of drilling a shallow hole near the end of a length of wood so the lifter fits snug, then use it to smack down on another piece of wood. Works great and no painful hands.

[@Golo1949]

PS, drill a smaller hole in the center to help push the bucket out of the piece of wood.

[@robinwilliams3709]

Thanks for the video. i had rebuilt my Cadillac northstar a few months ago and the lifters begin to tap. I bought some new ones and they begin to tap as well. After seeing the video and opening the lifters, I found gasket material in the lifter. I have to remove the engine to replace the lower engine gaskets that have that gasket color material. I guess those gaskets were no good and caused my lifter issues. Thanks again. Help me to diagnose my problem.

[@henryzr23]

0:32 fantastic music man lol, thanks for the video it helped me heaps, appreciate it.

[@JavierGarcia-d3t]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/o3W5iYmEopaZptE

[@willmacneill]

Magnets and lifter components don't play well.

[@stephencurtis9400]

i was wondering about that,they would definitely be somewhat magnetic afterwards,i think this could hinder performance.

[@jcm4377]

@@stephencurtis9400 considering the amount of oil pressure involved the residual magnetism won't play a noticeable role.

[@peter0139]

Thanks for this very nice video! Nice write up and good camera work.

[@1nickfriesen]

Dude wonderful presentation. Great video, so useful. Keep em comin

[@peer_64]

Thanks from the Netherlands for this video Alex. Although it was made 7 years ago, it helped me very good this weekend as I had to clean and rebuild the 16 lifters of my old 2001 Kia Sportage. One of them was totaly broken and caused a ticking noice while driving the car. So after I saw your video I decided to take them all out, clean them and rebuild them. It costed me a whole day of work but at the end it saved me over € 340,00. Notice: They were so bad that I couldn't smack them out of the tapped. I filled it up with some WD40 and that helped to pul the cylinder out of the tapped. So thanks again and keep up the good work. Stay healthy.

[@rkan2]

These lifters should be less than 10€/pc, no?? 26x35mm lifters you can find for 6€ and "black top" for 8€ :D

[@_m.a-x]

6 years later, still the best video on cleaning lifters. But I wanted to pick your brain on the oil pre-fill procedure and the later update that you posted in your video description. I don't want to run the lifters dry on the first launch, so I'm still looking at SAFE pre-fill options. This one below might make sense and I would appreciate your thoughts. So when you compress the 2 cylinders with pliers, as soon as they become flush with each other, this would be the minimum height of the lifter, due to the fact that they can't collapse any further when installed, correct? At this position there's still some air pocket inside, that we can get rid of and pre-fill it with oil (I assume at least). How to achieve this: before inserting one cylinder into another, poor some oil into the outer cylinder first, then insert the inner cylinder into it and start compressing the two just like you did, with pliers, BUT WITH THE CHECK VALVE OPEN throughout the whole compression range until the cylinders are flush with each other. As you compress, air and extra oil will be squirting out through the check valve that you hold open. When the cylinders are flush (min lifter height) close the valve by releasing it, then release pliers. The cylinders will begin expanding back to their maximum height due to the spring action, filling up that extra space with air. You end up with just enough oil that will be there regardless of how collapsed the lifter will be and the rest air. Your thoughts, Alex? Thanks!

[@jumboegg5845]

Max T you are correct except that when you release the pliers it will not expand "back to their maximum height due to the spring action". There is no spring action, the "spring action" you observed is the action of compressed air. With air bled out, there is only incompressible fluid in there. That's why you don't want to pump them up with too much oil. Leave them short, and oil pressure will pump them up to the correct length when you start the engine.

[@rkan2]

For these lifters I think INA recommends having them in an oil bath fro 24hr (or overnight)

[@dstuart76]

I love this! Worked great on the lifters on my 87 VW GTI 8v. I really had to whack them to get them to come apart. 300,000 miles will really gum them up. I actually had to duct tape them to a board amd whack them against another board. Everything cleaned and went back together perfectly. Thanks again!

[@aespin001]

Awesome, I'm glad people have been finding it helpful. Good tip with the duct tape-whack-board.

[@Wipsplash]

Good video except using a magnet. Metal debris will stick to all the lifter internals if you magnetize any parts of the lifter.

[@shnobi24]

love the music, great job on the video.

[@brianhaygood183]

Alex, thanks a ton for this video. The music worked well to bring me down from my intense irritation at the noise my Scirocco is making after running low on oil due to a leaking oil pressure sensor and no oil pressure light for some reason. Well explained and great video work on these small parts. I'm going to go find 16 magnets.

[@fbwqmyxd6j]

Yeah...man...RELAXED....smokin a big doobie....now i forgot which lifter went where...F-ck it!

[@Bmw533ia]

Thanks :)

[@rhkips]

This video is AWESOME! Thank you very much for taking the time to do this video, and thank you for being HONEST about things you know you may be incorrect about, and things that can vary. I wish there was more content on KZbin like this!

[@frankkoppen7281]

Video should more accurately be called Cleaning Hydraulic lifters. you really didn't "build" anything . You disassembled, cleaned, inspected parts , reassembled. Good job too.

[@brucewmclaughlin9072]

nice music ! To get to the lifter in my Toyota sienna I may as well buy brand new ones. Thanks for the video and what my conundrum actually looks like

[@soco13466]

I'm no expert on these things, but I did work in an engine lab for a corporation that makes valve trains, testing such things as lifters/lash adjusters. When the engine runs, the lifter takes in enough oil through the tiny side hole in the cylinder, to replace leakdown. When the oil is at operating temperature, there is faster leakdown, the rate increases by a large amount with heat. Therefore, there is always a flow of oil in and out of the lifter, so it gets replaced anyway. To bleed the air out of a lifter, just put it in a container of the recommended oil, warm, covered completely. Then you can bleed the air out of it that way, by pushing down on the piston until it is all the way down, several times. Use a metal pan, and use a small mandrel press to push the piston down. The piston will be returned to its extended position when released. When the engine is started and ran, any air that might get back in will be expelled within a few strokes. This is why some engines have lifter noise at first, then it goes away. And yes, wait awhile after assembling valve train, before starting.

[@aespin001]

I agree. I think the bleeding as I did it is unnecessary. It would still be useful to do before and after rebuilding as a confirmation that there was a problem (check valve not closing) and it has been fixed. So more as an inspection step. Yes, the engine should expel any air in them quickly (as long as there is pressure to the head).

[@soco13466]

And also check the heads, etc for oil blockages, and ensure that the oil pump is in good shape. Let us know how it turns out, I hope to hear that you were successful in getting that engine up and running smoothly.

[@darr2970]

I watched you video of the hydraulic lifters and I have tried everything I seen on KZbin and I can't get them apart. I tried vise grips on one and I messed it up. Is it normal for all 16 of them to be collapsed? You info would be very helpful. Thanks

[@mariomaldonado3528]

hello, im installing a new head on my 2005 sprinter 2.7 647 engine, i noticed that my new lifters can be squeezed in but some others are hard to squeeze in , will they be safe to put in like a mentioned. thanks Mario.

[@detlefkunkel7911]

Very well filmed and explained. Great job, Thanks

[@brennjames3320]

Great video! Rebuilding lifters for 390 fe. Nice tunes,

[@namenotshown9277]

although the back ground music is relaxing, its about the same volume as your voice, which makes it not so relaxing as you have to decipher your voice from the musc i.e. music too loud

[@michaelschock3179]

Great video I will certainly do this with my next engine rebuilt. But why not dropping all the parts in an ultrasound cleaner?

[@gerry.mcginty]

great detailed explanation, shame about the background music, i had to put it on mute and then put CC's on to watch.

[@AmandaTimothy1]

Great video, wow you are methodical and thorough. Nice workshop music for the task. Whats with Americans and their constant use of "loose" instead of proper "lose"? (don't lose the spring) I see it all the time and they are two totally different words.....funny is all.

[@aespin001]

+Doug Sogge You're right it should be "don't lose the spring". Thanks for pointing that out. I didn't realize I misspelled that (actually used the wrong word). I don't know about all the other Americans but for me it's just poor spelling ;)

[@danwells7691]

you should hear the weather people .. it code out der..my favorite.. waupwitchu

[@attilakohbor3360]

Helpful video , but sometimes the surface of inner check valve or the ball in the check valve becomes oval and not sealing as it should, so sometimes clean up is not enough .

[@rkan2]

30$ already almost gets you a set of 8 INA lifters :P I mean you can reuse the cleaner but..

[@everioke]

Dude. You can buy these new at Rock Auto for $4 a piece. Why rebuild them?

[@abdellazizdaadio7870]

thanks for music

[@TrailBusterBrute1]

Excellent video. The music is relaxing, too.

[@golden695]

Very informative video.. Thanks, my friend!

[@HerbaceousM8]

..i slapped one down hard for like 5 mins and couldnt get it to go. i tried another one for a bit and couldnt get it to go either...

[@miiigi]

This is very good one!! Should be more of these kind of videos! :)

[@WillGarciadeQuevedo]

I'd like to see this re-filmed with David demonstrating all the steps! That would be sweet!

[@dc5945]

Hey do you know if lifters always remain solid? Or does it loose hydraulic pressure in that piston as oil gets hotter? Thanks for any advice 👍🏼👍🏼

[@flinch622]

Thanks for axing the question, but solid lifters are not hydraulic. I do prefer them, as this kind of tedious maintenance hydraulic lifters demand takes your car off the road for a full day every few years and I'm sure I have something better to do.

[@otiscambell1883]

Yea how about that music that drounds out what you are saying. Moved on to another

[@dieselmercedes7507]

Great Video, very helpful…Thanks.

[@ckinc89]

Vry2 good&valueable info with tht such clear cut take. Vry mch TQ.....gohead producing the best of you(automotive info/tutorial. ..and how do it really works.. Is it return back(im just suck those oil with syringe until theres no black engine oil,as i try knock it down over&over&OVER till my hands swollen.. but the things(centre piston&assembly) STILL CAN'T seperate..am afraid using plyers,maybe might damaging those piston. And me here had two situation,some of it, when i push it down,it wont return up and some were return back up after push it down. Which one is d'exact proper working...do me blurr since that engine suddenlly knocking along with hard&nasty sound where maybe we heard that knocking sound harder step to step...mine like like them engine suddenly sound loud..sounds like nut or washer were been suck in that chamber,then those piston "bang" it up through that head and it repeatedly. And theres nothing weird things in all 5 chamber as i checked it all over. InadvTQ if u hv an idea..any of it... regarding all those.

[@TDIMAXDIESEL]

Wow ! Thats very Professional video, and good to know ! I will do this to mine OM603 Mercedes Benz hydrolic lifters. Btw, what is the song ? Looks like Portugues ( astrud Gilberto ! )

[@danieln935]

+TDIMAXDIESEL have you done it ? dont if I wanna try this or just buy new ones to my OM602 turbo

[@TDIMAXDIESEL]

+Daniel N . Hello. well I did not done the job yet but this winter for shure. I do not run the car in winter so à Will do it and May by send the pump to diesel meken in sweeden for 8 mm éléments. Thanks for answer me, by the way ! 😉 have a Nice day !

[@seanwilliams5053]

FML. Left mine dry for a year while a motor was being built...they're frozen and I can't get them apart. :( I have them soaking in oil right now, but I might have to spring for a new set and that sucks balls.

[@45035]

Outstanding shipmate. Press on. USS Kitty Hawk CV-63. Jan 1980 to July 1983. Auto mechanic for life.

[@antiochiaadtaurum3786]

thanks so much for this tutorial. I've seen some people say that you should not refill the assembly with oil, once cleaned and reassembled. Do you think it's safe enough to refill them with oil. Seems like the thing to do to me too, but some say not too, and to just let them refill once the engine starts up and starts feeding oil into them, as designed?

[@aespin001]

Yes and no. You need to fill them to check your work. But if they're full when they go into the engine, the valves will not close all the way. So if you need to assemble the engine and run it ASAP, don't fill them. But if you can let them bleed down in the head for a couple of days, it'd be OK to fill them.

[@CodfishCatfish]

Funny enough I rebuilt a BMW diesel from a Range Rover and they have exactly the same lifters. Love the video. I tried explaining this to someone else but now I shall just link them to your video. Brilliant, a lot better than I could have explained it.

[@captitick]

this video is very nice! man, I just bought a complete kit of lifter for my SUV because of the noise that 2 of them were creating, if I had seen this video before, I could save that money ... but this will be fine for the next time if that noise comes again.

[@MasterChief-sl9ro]

I ordered a martini and bought some cigarettes. Some lady asked what my name was.. I said Lifter, Hydraulic. She said, Oh you go up and down a lot don't you? I said. Oh yeah. You want to take a ride? My lifters are working working fine!

[@tempest411]

This could prove helpful in trying to save lifters in old Porsche 944s, which are of the same design. They are expensive new ($50.00 each), and the current production versions are not as good as the originals, even though they're from the same manufacturer as when the cars were new-and same manufacturer as those in this video, INA.

[@JasonStAmand-xi6oy]

They're are two holes in the head of each rocker arm. Can I fill the lash adjusters with oil through these two holes? I've rebuilt all 24 but was not told about filling them with oil. I have an 06 magnum and getting the lash adjusters out is way more difficult than just slapping a piece of wood. Way more difficult. So if I can avoid that step it'd be great

[@rocajoric1965]

Hello Alex ,, excellent your video ... I have never opened the hydraulic lifters, but not if the cleaning you did, can be achieved with an ultrasound cleaner ... what do you think ..?

[@TEAMPHY6]

Thanks for the video. It gave me an idea to make an engine rebuilding music playlist on Spotify!

[@ToffeenoseToffee]

Awesome video 👌👏🙌

[@echologged85]

Great job on the video man! Very top notch. I'm not even sure I'm going to do this job, but if I do need to tackle this job I'll have a good video to reference. Thanks! Btw, nice choice on the music!

[@MerrildRene]

Sweet music. I have a problem. I cant disassembly like you do in the first step. And I uses much more power than you do. Any tips? Nissan CA18det engine. 140000miles.

[@DiVa-jq3tt]

The BEST explanation in youtube about cleaning and maintening haydraulic tappets. I love your video!

[@uwebuehrle6381]

Throw the un assebled valve in a ultra sonic bath with diesel or baby oil for 30 minutes , watch the oil in the bath because you should not use combustable liguids in a ultrasonic bath, do not run it to hot because the oil warms up. I run them with WD 40 in a ultra sonic it worked like a champ, you see the crap exploding out of the valve.

[@TheIKAIKAIKA]

Bought MG ZR as my first car 3 days ago but it had ticking noise, read on forums I had to clean them, followed your guide and voila, no ticking noise anymore, I was in a bit of a hurry so I did do it very fast unlike you but it still works! Thank you

[@harwoods11]

An extremely clear and well presented video. I have never seen anyone disassemble a lifter before. I have always used a good engine flush prior to changing oil or...if noisey, i just replaced the set of lifters. Well done that man!

[@jvaubry]

Wow, thank you so much for an excellent reference video. Now I need to buy a used one to practice on before taking on ny existing lifters in my Porsche project!

[@user-yu6ru7jg4v]

Excellent, saved me buying one to understand how they work - many thanks!!

[@carlospiezzi4030]

Excellent video Alex, you know very well what it says, as we say here in Buenos Aires, you have this very clear topic, congratulations sir.

[@minieltv8030]

thank you very much for this video , so helpfull, godbless you sir

[@eduard0218]

exellent video and steps... very delicated with those tiny parts.👍👍👍. What is the name of the song?

[@testacorsa150]

Really well made, and well funny tutorial. Both thumbs up!

[@McAmber]

Thx for sharing

[@njtxus]

love the music

[@Robis_Grigoris]

in my local store a set of 8 ina caps costs 20€

[@davidrsmith2417]

robis - Caps? Are these eight (Qty=8) NEW lifters (tappets) for the 8-valve 944 Porsches? The later, 16-valve 944 engines used different lifters that are widely available at reasonable prices. Thx.

[@Robis_Grigoris]

@@davidrsmith2417 No its for vw 2.0L 8v. I watched this video before pulling the head as it was making a ticking noise. It wasn't worth the hassle to rebuild the lifters as a set of new ones is only 20€.

[@OrionToth]

Great video, thanks. I think that mine are overused now. But I have 32 of them... :D

[@COMB0RICO]

Good show! Thanks from Texas. Jesus Christ bless you.

[@mayestrik]

first try I overfilled the tappets and the HLA, then head valves keep opened due to tall lifters. Now i'm here, thanks for the video

[@jeffreystewart3327]

does it work for all hydraulic lifter? my car is a bmw 328i 07 i believe i need to do the same thing as well.

[@1976sprinter]

Totally cool vid. It is amazing how the smallest things make a big difference in you motor.

[@RafaGmod]

Boa bossa! hahahaha Congratulations, it's a awesome video ^^ And thank you !

[@marcinmorris]

were these valves from some V.A.G group car? An Audi or some VW?

[@borispark.7151]

VERY GOOD video. so much helpful.

[@miziezaracooking6952]

Tq very dtail

[@fjzs02]

When you say do not install it full of oil, or tpurgado. I do not understand ... I just assemble it and add some oil?

[@mrpangy4174]

I think it was asked but I didn't see the answer... what is the music track from? or is there a list of songs you edited with?

[@hkw39]

I really appreciate your video. It's well made, informative, very clear and easy to follow and enjoy. Thanks for your time and effort.

[@powermos]

I am hitting them as hard as i can against a plank of wood, and they still won't disassemble...

[@rosharky]

you can dry them out using a dryer. Just put them into a pan and blow hot air towards them.

[@michaeltarpey9411]

I am going to follig these instructions this summer when i do the tappets on my k series. great details video

[@aristidhevangjeli9127]

Lesson learned, be through. Now I have to do my lifters again. Well done keep up the good work.

[@jonathanloiseau9391]

Can you tell the diameter of the ball? I found a ball in my oil pan. Is it possible that this is it?

[@chiil034]

How's the long term result of having rebuilt these?

[@alireza071]

Hi can u please advice how to prime new hyd lifter b4 fit them in the car?

[@vicky-nc3to]

If we buy these new, do these lifter comes with oil already filled in ?

[@rauldasilva5187]

Great video and the brasilian music makes even better .

[@gmhzepeda]

how did you know if the verve of the springs are well?

[@AlfDagg]

that music is putting me to sleep but it's a nice video i will do my parts soon

[@46cristopher]

That was a really good video broth thanks for all 😃

[@IL_tech_]

Excellent video, thanks

[@JB-zn1kx]

These are from a VW... you just wasted my time.

[@reneerwinbulthuis3259]

Good day. How many oil I have to put inside?

[@boeing900]

Well yes, you can just buy new ones. But if its a 300 ZX you are working on a new set of lifters will now cost you $1500.00. Great video. Thanks for making it.

[@josepeixoto3715]

for that price i would have a lathe man make inserts to put inside the old lifters and convert them to solid,non-hydraulic; keepink the hardenned surfaces!! (important!!) and spend 100 or 200 maybe; but you'd need **GOOD** measuring skills, and good mics,and...know-how.

[@carslover3509]

great great and smart work and the music its waw

[@marcushaas8817]

Truly excellent video, very clear and informative, well done!

[@MichaelTJohnston]

Hey Alex, I just finished rebuilding the lifters on my Jetta. Car runs, but they're much louder now. Is this normal? I've seen some people say you need to run at 2,000 RPM for 20 minutes or so before they'll quiet down. Thoughts?

[@aespin001]

+Michael Johnston Check your oil pressure at the head. See my thread on the topic here: forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?6971848-Lifter-noise-gets-louder-as-engine-warms-up-!

[@MichaelTJohnston]

I actually ended up ordering some new ones. I have a feeling the check valves became magnetized by the strong magnet I was using. I think that ended up keeping them too well closed to function properly. Thanks though!

[@HaloACE56]

What was the varnish remover you used?