DeTomaso Mailing List: May 2001, Message #41

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     I began the inspection of  my blown?, engine today.  The problem occurred as I was coming down the
hill from Mount Charleston on my way back to Vegas.  I had backed out of the throttle in 5th gear and I
was probably turning somewhere in the neighborhood of 3000 rpm.  The engine was not under much of a
load when the noise started, like I say, I was decelerating.  I pulled the valve covers today and everything
looked fine, no obvious problems.  My buddy Roger talked me into checking the push rods to see if they were
all straight.  They were all straight except for one.  The push rod for the exhaust valve at the #4 cylinder is
bent.  My question is Why?  I could understand if I had been pushing the engine hard that I might have  
floated a valve, but I wasn't pushing hard or turning many revs.  I recently did a valve job and milled .020
off the heads, I also replaced the valves.  I probably haven't put more than 500 miles on the engine since I
did the work.  In that 500 miles, I've driven the car harder than I did when the noise started, I would think
if my problem had been valve float leading to piston/valve interference, the noise would have started after
one of my hard runs.  I'm kind of thinking that it may be a spun rod bearing as others have suggested.  I
am also thinking about installing a shorter push rod, (mine are stock length), and seeing what happens.  The
push rods are new Manleys, installed at the time of the valve job.  
     Any advice or thoughts would be more than welcome.
Art Stephens<br clear=all>
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