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i recently picked up a 89' B2 with a 2.9 m/t. I got it cheap cuz thre was engine tap. The guy before me said hed had a minor tap so he got the heads rebuilt. When he got it back he said it tapped worse. It will start fine and run fie 15-30 min and then it will start tapping getting louder as u go. Then the dummy light comes on. Then it starts to sputter and back fire and evetually shut off. Then could let it sit for a couple of days and it would tap until i would drive it for a little. But now it is at the point where it taps right when u start it. I think it is in the bottom end.

you said the check engin light comes on...have you pulled codes?

my 89 b2 is doing the same thing. Mine doesn't show a dummy light though. Someone told me it could be the cam bearings. I havent figured mine out yet.

Mybe the oil pump sceen is pluged. I had one do that on a 87 ranger

the guy before me installed a new oil pump and he said he cleaned the screen when he did it.

It could be sucking air at pump or sceen conection, or the bearings are just wore out. The rods,mains,and cam bearings being wore can lower oil pressure.

The Ford 2.9 cologne v6, while a workhorse, has a notorious rep for oil-starving the top end of the motor when the bearings get a worn. Lifters get starved of oil, can't pump up, so clearance clearance suffers and lifters get noisy. Just changing the lifters won't help, usually. The Crankshaft gets fed first, I think, then camshaft and top end, then drains on the lifter valley. The rocker to shaft clearances are also a little tight, in my estimation. On most used 2.9 engines, the lifter preload can be adjusted sans rocker cover and the engine running, without losing a drop. There are three fixes for this. One, new bearings. (Cam, main and con-rod). Two, a reversal of the position of half moon thrust plate / cam button (I don't remember the technical term) that prevents the camshaft fron walking out the front of the block. Rotating this thrust washer 180 degrees from original position can cure a ticking 2.9 if the bearings aren't too worn. Lastly, boring the rocker arms for more clearance on the shaft. This last remedy, coupled with aluminium spacers that locate the arms instead of the spring and thrust washer setup, will actually free up some hp on the top end, because there is less friction. This conversion is called a free floating rocker assembly. Google that term and you will get the skinny on how it is done.[/i]

Boogwar,

Hey thanks for that timely info. I'm reassembling my 2.9 right now. Total teardown replacing the mains, cons and cam bearings. And new bore/pistons/rings, cam, lifters, oil pump, timing chain/sprks., valve job/with old valves.

Anyway, the heads are going on and then I was just gonna clean the rockers.

Question to all: with all this done, should I still modify the rockers with the spaces...can the springs?

Thanks, Dave