Short term fix for bad lifter?

[evanm125]

Hi all I believe this is the right catagory to post this under. I have a 2013 non deleted 9c1 that I recently bought and up until a few days ago it has been running great but then the lifter went bad. It’s only one as far as I can hear but it has been coming on and off. I have the funds and would like to go ahead and throw a big cam in while I’m deleting the DOD, however I start the fire academy next Monday which I won’t be able to miss any of. Just looking for some guidance. Is there anything I can do to make it last til December? Any part to keep it going until then? I would get a cam but I don’t have the knowledge to do it myself and would have to send it to a shop who would probably take 3-4 weeks. Would it be worth doing that and trying to hitch rides to class or try and baby it and make it last 4 months? Thanks!

[evanm125]

Hello, also meant to add, could I just get a DOD delete kit from online and install that and still be able to install a cam after the DOD is broken in?

[Mooseman]

You can get the lifter unstuck by following this video:



And then you have to disable DOD to prevent it from activating and getting stuck again. One way is to get it tuned, another is to get a DOD disabler like the Range device. Another is to unplug the vacuum sensor on the brake booster but it will give you a code and the CEL will be on.

[evanm125]

Thanks moose man, will have to try that. Will unplugging the vacuum line be sufficient? I don’t mind a check engine light since my tpms are already dead haha, but unplugging it from the brake booster wouldn’t mess with how it runs right?

[evanm125]

I believe the last owner had it tuned out but it still went bad? Would the OBD DOD range be of any use in this situation once I work the lifter unstuck?

[Mooseman]

Thanks moose man, will have to try that. Will unplugging the vacuum line be sufficient? I don’t mind a check engine light since my tpms are already dead haha, but unplugging it from the brake booster wouldn’t mess with how it runs right?

Not the vacuum line but the SENSOR on the brake booster. That will temporarily disable DOD.

[Mooseman]

I believe the last owner had it tuned out but it still went bad? Would the OBD DOD range be of any use in this situation once I work the lifter unstuck?

If it has already been tuned out then no, the lifter has completely failed. It normally fails when DOD is activated, collapsing the lifter, but it fails to return to normal when commanded and stays collapsed. That's when the unstuck fix is used and turning off the DOD will prevent it from collapsing again.

You will have to check to see which lifter is collapsed, confirm it's a DOD cylinder, then try to unstuck it, and then turn off DOD if it's not tuned out. If it collapses again, then the lifter is really bad. It might have failed on the roller and it would be advisable to NOT RUN IT AT ALL as metal will be ground and sent throughout the engine.

If you can confirm from the previous owner that DOD has been tuned out, then I would assume the lifter has completely failed and not run it again until fixed. Lifters can fail in other ways such as it has dirt and is stuck, spun in the lifter tray and riding sideways on the cam, the roller has flat spotted and grinding on the cam or the roller has completely fallen off and grinding the cam.

[evanm125]

Got it I will work on getting it fixed ASAP. I’ve been looking a little bit at dod delete/cam kits, is there any kit you reccomend that I can use my stock torque converter with? Nothing too big just something that’s enough. Thanks for all this information!

[Pursuit]

I had good luck with Texas Speed's DOD kit and a Brian Tooley Racing Stage 1 cam. That was a few years ago. I would find a competent tuner first. Ask them what they are good at, what cams have they have tuned. Be honest about your expectations. I used Chris Henry Motorsports and HP Tuners to data log the car and load the tune. Chris (who is on the forum here) has lots of experience tuning the G8 and now the Caprice.
You will get other good suggestions from other members here also. This a good group!

Regards,

Maurice

[evanm125]

I had good luck with Texas Speed's DOD kit and a Brian Tooley Racing Stage 1 cam. That was a few years ago. I would find a competent tuner first. ]


I have been eyeing the Texas Speed DOD delete kit, did you just get the base kit with no add ins and then the BTR stage 1 cam? Did you also think I can run my stock torque converter with this? Would also like to keep stock trans for now too. Of course the lifters (I believe) start ticking as soon as I’m low on cash , so this is very much a budget cam. It comes and goes for now but I am guessing it’ll just get worse with time. I’m just thinking towards getting an upgraded cam because I may as well throw something better in there while the engine is open and I imagine it’s almost the same price as doing DOD delete with OEM camshaft.