Cold temps in Tahoe caused the oil cooler gasket to split which made my car run low on oil for a mile or so. Fixed that but there is a ticking/ diesel sound coming from my top end now. Pulled the head cover off and all my cams, chain tensioner looks fine.

Possible causes I can think of: crud in the oil feed screen in oil pan, bad hydraulic lifter, weak oil pump, bad head valve?

Please any recommendations on how to rule out possible problems or any other ideas as to what is causing this sound?

THANKS!

 

Our engines have hydraulic self-adjusting lifters. It's possible that the low oil pressure allowed one to sink. It should readjust on its own but it may take awhile. If you have a full crankcase now, add a can of Seafoam to the oil and run it 100 miles or so. That extra fluid will raise oil pressure somewhat and the Seafoam will help to clean any crud in there. After 100 miles or so, do a filter and oil change and see what happens.

 

Thanks for the input. I'm just hesitant on running it for too long given the sound its making. Can you think of anything else I could check on the top end?