My dad has a Blazer with a 4.3L Vortec V6 with probably around 100K miles. I believe it is a 1999. He thinks he has a stuck lifter as it is making a ticking noise. I haven't heard it, but I doubt I'd know what it was even if I did. Anyways, is there any easy fix for this short of tearing the motor down...like any fuel or oil additives (snake-oil?) to try? Any other suggestions? He's willing to take it to the shop to get fixed if he has to, but would like to try and see if he can fix it himself first.

Dad's not too computer savy and has no access to the internet, so he asked me to try and find a solution if there is one.

Thanks from both me and Dad!
Bob E.

 

no solution here, but my '97 4.3 with 98k on it has a slight ticking on cold starts that goes away in 15-20 seconds. is the noise always present?

also, i have an '87 2.8 that was making a noise that sounded like a stuck lifter, but turned out to be a very small exhaust leak.

 

I had the same problem in my 2001 blazer. I did a oil system flush and used a high quality oil to refill it and the ticking went away.

 

Welcome, to you and your dad.
Tell him to get puter literate. I did.

Anyways the ticking noise could be due to several things. Oil viscosity, or build up are the two most common.
Run a can of snake oil through it, Sea Foam. Read the directions and choose your method.

I also like to run a can of Marvelous Marvins Mystery Oil through the engine every 100,000 miles, just before an oil change. Read the directions. Run it through for two consecutive oil changes. You'll be amazed at the crap it flushes out.

Refill with good oil. I prefer Castrol GTX or Valvoline. These engines seem to work best on 5w-30. I have never tried the highmileage oils so I have no idea how they work.

 

hanr3 (or anyone, really), do you have any experience with auto-rx?

here's someone who used it and took before, during and after pictures:
http://www.rms13.com/

i've been interested in the product for a while, but haven't gotten around to trying it.

 

Thanks for the suggestions, guys. I had some other sources suggest the MMO and Seafoam treatments. So I guess we'll give it a try this weekend.

Thanks again!!

Bob E.