I just put a set of ITR valve springs to go along with my CTR cams when I replaced my valve seals this weekend and when I started it up, the head ticks like an old Mercedes POS diesel. The valve lash was adjusted to spec and it still ticks. It never ticked that loud with the GSR springs in. Did I do something wrong or are they just louder?

Also, when I first started it, one of the intake springs got bound and didn't come back up, so a valve was bent when it hit the piston. I pulled the head and replaced the valve and it seems to be just fine now.

BTW, I have 250psi compression across the board, so I know it isn't a valve opening/closing problem.

 

Color side up on the valve springs? Are the CTR cams new? Did you replace the lost motion assemblies?

I noticed no difference when I installed ITR cams, valve springs, and lost motion assemblies on my car. The ticking that I hear is from the injectors.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Dogginator &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Color side up on the valve springs? Are the CTR cams new? Did you replace the lost motion assemblies?

I noticed no difference when I installed ITR cams, valve springs, and lost motion assemblies on my car. The ticking that I hear is from the injectors.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Yeah, the tighter coils of the springs were placed closest to the head. The cams have been running with my stock valvetrain for 6 months now. The LMAs were not touched.

I think I found out the problem. I was driving it around, engaging vtec a little and I noticed it was detonating pretty hard and I remembered that I forgot to set the ignition timing since the distributor was taken off to remove the head. I went to set the timing and all the way retarded still had it advanced beyond 14* +/- 2*. Then I noticed the cam gears were off. I am hoping that resetting the cam timing since it is obviously wrong will quiet things down and make it run like it was before I went through this whole mess.

 

Well, I redid the timing and the power returned, but the ticking is still there and louder than before. I figure I had a brain fart and installed one of the springs upside down or something since it sounds like it could be just one spring causing the noise.

Would it be bad for the motor to be driving it like this until I can do something about it?

 

Im pretty sure theres a top and a bottom for a reason. Look at it this way.your gonna have to crack open the motor agian anyway.You should do it know and just fix a spring rather than wait and have to replace whatever breaks bc of the bad spring install.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Das Schmoo &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Would it be bad for the motor to be driving it like this until I can do something about it?</TD></TR></TABLE>

It could be if you rev too high. If the close coils are placed on top, it increases the reciprocating mass for that valve assembly.

You may try to locate the noise by starting the car with the valve cover removed. You will spill some oil.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Dogginator &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

It could be if you rev too high. If the close coils are placed on top, it increases the reciprocating mass for that valve assembly.

You may try to locate the noise by starting the car with the valve cover removed. You will spill some oil.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Thanks for the advice. I drove it to work today (10+ miles) and it just doesn't feel right. The noise is really bad and it just doesn't seem to have the power it did before.

I am going to rip it apart tonight and see if I can find which spring is bad and if I can't, I will just put my GSR valvetrain back in.

 

I put the stock springs back in and the sound is gone. I checked to see if I installed them incorrectly and they were all right, so I don't know. The springs look relatively new, so I don't think it is the springs.

Oh well, I will sell off the springs, retain my 8100 rpm redline and hope I don't bend another valve.