Sea foam
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Sea foam
Now im no fan of oil additives and such, but I dont have the time, tools, or experience right now to rebuild the engine of my truck.
As you may know from previous posts, that my bronco II has that stupid lifter tick that pretty much all 2.9s have. And im getting concerned, it just feels wrong to have it running with that lifter tick like that all the time.
It seems to have great compression and power, so i want to get the best out of this motor before it dies. And i think that lifter tick is only going to shorten its lifespan, whats left of it.
Ive heard that seafoam is great for removing junk a sludge from an engine. Im not sure, but that may be the problem with my bronco II, sludge cuasing not enough oil to get to the lifter valley. The valve ticking seems to get louder as the engine heats up. Idk if this is making to oil to thin for the lifters to use well, or the oil is slipping out the crank bearings. In ethier case, im sure with less sludge in the engine, the lifters will do a hell of alot better, and may just silence all the way up.
Right now a have marvel mystery oil and penzoil in there (changed the oil recently), and has shown some, but not great improvement. If seafoam will flush the engine out truely, then ill have no problem draining the fresh oil and replacing it after the seafoam. Walmart oil is cheap anyway.
As you may know from previous posts, that my bronco II has that stupid lifter tick that pretty much all 2.9s have. And im getting concerned, it just feels wrong to have it running with that lifter tick like that all the time.
It seems to have great compression and power, so i want to get the best out of this motor before it dies. And i think that lifter tick is only going to shorten its lifespan, whats left of it.
Ive heard that seafoam is great for removing junk a sludge from an engine. Im not sure, but that may be the problem with my bronco II, sludge cuasing not enough oil to get to the lifter valley. The valve ticking seems to get louder as the engine heats up. Idk if this is making to oil to thin for the lifters to use well, or the oil is slipping out the crank bearings. In ethier case, im sure with less sludge in the engine, the lifters will do a hell of alot better, and may just silence all the way up.
Right now a have marvel mystery oil and penzoil in there (changed the oil recently), and has shown some, but not great improvement. If seafoam will flush the engine out truely, then ill have no problem draining the fresh oil and replacing it after the seafoam. Walmart oil is cheap anyway.
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Im not saying it was the sea foam ,but I put it in my 460 and 50 miles later a rod went out the side of the block, oil pan,made 3 cam shafts out of one and I had to buy another motor.But it was an old engine and mabey it was its time to go ,its in motor heaven right now.
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how bad was it when you put it in.....
Ive used that "restore" crap in my quad before and it ended up with my exhuast valve going through my piston and into the crankcase. But the top end on that quad that i put it in was SO bad that i think the oil made it last an hour or to longer. So if your motor was knocking, or running very very bad, im sure it wasnt sea foams fualt.
Ive used that "restore" crap in my quad before and it ended up with my exhuast valve going through my piston and into the crankcase. But the top end on that quad that i put it in was SO bad that i think the oil made it last an hour or to longer. So if your motor was knocking, or running very very bad, im sure it wasnt sea foams fualt.
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Joined: Jun 2004
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From: Niceville, FL.
If "Marvel Mystery Oil" didn't cure a ticking lifter, then probably nothing short of replacement will. But, it may take 500 miles or so to do it, don't give up hope yet.
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If it aint broke dont fix it
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From: Yes
I do not agree at all with the sentiment that Sea Foam will harm anything. In fact, I've run sea foam numerous times in a variety of sizes/types of engines will no ill effects at all. I wouldn't hold your breath that it will cure your lifter ticking though. I'd try running it in the recommended amounts for several oil changes, let it dissolve varnish and sludge gradually, rather than to try knocking it all loose at once, possibly resulting in a plugged oil screen or filter, or particles ending up somewhere else you don't want them. If the engine has always been well serviced, you may just start saving up for a cam/lifters now, sea foam won't fix anything broken, just make the broken parts shiny and clean. Still, I'd say go for it. I once had an oil burning 6.9l diesel, and I wanted to clean all the sludge out of it before deciding to rebuild. I drained about half the oil and refilled it with kerosene, then ran it for about 10 minutes/day at idle for a week, drained the oil and replaced. I even drove it with the concoction in there, all it got me was a nice clean worn out engine, but I still say it was worth the effort, had the oil rings been stuck, that may have helped. If your lifters are full of sludge from poor service, hey who knows...
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Joined: Aug 2003
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From: Tampa
I have to agree with BSmitty, The motor is only as good as the person/persons taking care of it. Some additives are just money getters others do work if used right. Sea foam does work if used right. If you have a motor with 100,000+, I would not use it if it has never be used in it before. To big of a chance of motor mishap. I use sea foam in my explorer with out any problems. My B2, I wont use it in it. 230,000 miles why, Ill just put in a new motor. If the motor is good and the lifters are ticking pull the intake and put in new lifters, there around 100.00 bucks. Good luck
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Joined: Sep 2004
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From: Yokosuka, Honshu, Japan
I flushed my engine with Pyroil engine flush last oil change, and now, with adding Rislone additive (the cheap stuff), I have almost zero ticking on start-up, but some after the engine warms up. I think it's mostly due to the fact that my oil pan gasket and maybe a few other areas have leaks still, and possibility of the oil pump screen being clogged and "normal" wear on the engine. I'm planning on replacing the oil pan gasket and checking the pump screen, etc. during my next oil change, though. This is a well-documented (in this forum) issue with this engine, and having said that (no offense) sounds like it's more a matter of spending the $$$ and time to check everything out and replace what needs to be replaced (if anything). I can say one thing about this engine... seems like multi-grade oil and it does NOT mix... I will verify that on my next oil change 
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From: Yokosuka, Honshu, Japan
5w-20, 5w-30, 10w-30, 10w-40, 20w-50 = multi-grade oil.
30w, 40w, 50w = single-grade oil.
Multi-grade oils are supposedly for reducing start-up friction and broader range of climate operations. I've found that I usually have MORE noise from an engine with higher mileage on it with multi-grade oils. ESPECIALLY Fords. I've had the best luck with straight 30w oil most of the time, but a lot of people swear by multi-grades. I may try 5w-30 or just straight 30w on my next change to see if anything improves or not. I'm thinking my situation is a matter of needing to check/clean the pump screen and/or replacing the pump and maybe even lifters. Would not surprise me one bit. *shrug*
30w, 40w, 50w = single-grade oil.
Multi-grade oils are supposedly for reducing start-up friction and broader range of climate operations. I've found that I usually have MORE noise from an engine with higher mileage on it with multi-grade oils. ESPECIALLY Fords. I've had the best luck with straight 30w oil most of the time, but a lot of people swear by multi-grades. I may try 5w-30 or just straight 30w on my next change to see if anything improves or not. I'm thinking my situation is a matter of needing to check/clean the pump screen and/or replacing the pump and maybe even lifters. Would not surprise me one bit. *shrug*
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From: Niceville, FL.
Why not spend a few bucks on a good mechanical oil pressure gauge and see if your oil pressure is low. My advice, don't get a cheapie gauge. I've got one (made in China) that takes about 14 psi to move the pointer off zero, but it's pretty good from about 30 psi on up. Hint: the better quality gauges usually come with copper tubing, cheapies usually have plastic.
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Joined: May 2006
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my 86 B2 has had ticking lifters for about 5 yrs now and im not worried to much. i primarily use it for hunting and pulling my bass boat. it's got almost 80,000 miles on it and i dog it in the mud sometimes but mine started ticking after i stomped it thru a deep mudhole here in arkansas. it dont get real cold down here but i do notice it tick more when its cold at first start up but it ticks less after warm up. im not a fan of oil additives so i advise against them. mine aint gave out yet and im a guy who lives by the saying " it's either gonna go or it's gonna blow " so drive it like you stole it, till it one day goes boom. theres no miricle cure treatment in a bottle for engines. except using quality oil, i am partial to castrol 20/50.