300D50

I'm getting the dreaded lifter tick, and knowing this car's history (the little I do), it seems to reason the HLA's are going to need to be changed.



Been through it once before with my friends 01 tib (every one was collapsed fully), so no surprises there.



The big question is, would I be better off going with the solid adjuster + shim setup from the BETA II engine?



Cost isn't an issue to me, I just want the all around best performance I can get.

wheel_of_steel

Mechanical lifters = more reliable in performance applications, but will be more time consuming to maintain

Hydraulic lash adjusters = Will go 150k without a hitch, but then they are busted forever. Can't cope with high RPM so much.



It would be an interesting conversion. I've never worked with shim style lifters before, but threaded lifters are exceedingly easy to adjust. If money is no object, why not go for it? I'm sure you can pick up a cheap beta II head from a wrecker's yard somewhere.

300D50

Yeah, I pass by Beta II heads at the yard all the time, looks like it'll be around $55, might get one this weekend.

Then again, at that price, the entire engine with sensors/intake/harness/etc is only ~ 80 more than the head.



Been toying with the idea of getting the engine cover as well, since my bay is a little "distressed" right now...



I'm not afraid to maintain the lifter spacing, the Benz diesel going in my truck will need a checkup every 15000 miles, so I'd assume the beta would be around the same interval. (just checked, it's 60,000 mile interval according to tsb 02-20-001)



I remember hearing that the solids are a drop-in for the HLA's, so while I'm at the yard I may have to see if they cross-pollinate.



All said, it'd be cheaper than a new set of HLA's, and I'd have a spare head as well.



Decisions decisions...

Stocker

check carefully on the dimensions . . . the voices in MY head tell me there is a diameter variance and the one won't drop into the head designed for the other.



AND if you figure out something new, be sure to take pictures for us

300D50

I usually document things pretty well, the only problem is the cameras I have to work with, don't like grease, so if I'm really messy the photos might be lacking...



I'll try and remember to bring a set of mics to the yard, if not it may have to be a set of dial calipers...



I tend to like pushing the envelope as much as I can design wise, it's the engineer in me...

SpoolinShark

Would like to know if they can be interchanged as well due to the fact that I'm trying to find a different alternative to the poopy hla's. Keep us updated man.

300D50

Haven't been able to rip down a head and check yet, might be able to sometime mid week.

Tonight is booked solid with other things more important.