92' 1.9l Valve Noises...

[leitoo 0]

Hello everyone,

Newby here from Argentina.....

I've been looking to buy one of these dream machines for the past four months now and have had a very disappointing experience.

I'm most interested in the phase 1 Mi16 due to the 1.9l engine and its tuning potential.

I've seen two cars so far with excellent bodys and without major accidents (vehicle owners here are not mandated to report accident history on their cars by the government here) but all which made very loud head/valve noises. Most people selling these cars are not aware of the fact that you might have researched the car before actually deciding on buying it and, when asked, say that the valve clearances have to be adjusted (NOT TRUE due to the hydraulic lifters!). I've actually pointed it out to another of the sellers I saw who responded "this car isn't for you!" great selling technique.

Is it common for cars with more than 100k to have such noises and is fixing it easy or not worth the trouble? Both these cars had trouble starting as if they were off tune (sounds like the battery is low but feels more like the valves are not opening at the right time).

I would really appreciate your feedback on this.

I've had lots of fun reading almost every post in the site and find it quite amusing!

[leitoo 0]

Anyone any comments on this? Any information will be appreciated...

[Jer309GTi 3]

Its not really common for noises from the head IMO... Maybe the cars you looked at had not had the oil changed for a long time and the lifters were clogging up and not working correctly?

 

Thats a great way to sell a car, 'it's not for you'!! Obviously got worried that you knew your stuff and you would find even more faults with the car lol

 

EDIT, sorry I didn't say hello. Welcome to the forum

Edited December 1, 2006 by Jer309GTi

[AlexN 7]

Hello also, hope you find as much useful info on the forums as I have!

 

My engine makes a fair racket when it is cold, coming from the lifters, once the engine is warm the noise is much less noticeable. I don't think its too much to worry about, but i'm no real expert on the Mi16 engine!

 

Persevere though it really is fun to own an Mi16. I wonder if any 4bies made it as far as Argentina?

[leitoo 0]

Thank you Jer and Alex for your time and answers!

Haven't looked at other cars yet, but I'm pretty sure I'm going to go check another one out today....

The oil changes weren't something I had considered, I will go back to both cars I have already seen and check the oil level and colour for clues on what might be going on... Do you know of anyone who's lifters have given up? I understand the repairs if they do would be quite drastic...

No Mi16 x4 came all the way to Argentina, the only 4bies here are T16 :-) I had the pleasure of riding in one last month at a local dragstrip. The car wasn't in competition but I knew the owner and went for a ride... Damn that thing pulls!