QuestionI have a 66 289 Mustang, and there is a large clattering/knocking sound that comes from somewhere above the eigth cylinder which is located on the drivers side. Oil level is full, the valves were adjust about three months ago. I tried using the poor mans stethescope to see what was going on, but it didn't work too well. The noise is always there, whether at idle or not, but the heavier I stomp the gas pedal, or the more strain on the car, the louder it gets. My oil pressure guages is all the way to the right on H, but it has pretty much always been like that. I want to take off the valve cover to get a look at it, but I'm not sure if you have to replace the valve cover gasket everytime you remove the valve cover? Aside from pursuing that, I'm not really sure as to what the problem could be. Any thoughts?
AnswerApparently you did not get my previous response to this question?
Yes, remove the valve cover and look around in there, you should be able to spot the problem visually, as severe as it sounds. I suspect that some of the valve actuating hardware has broken or come loose. Don't drive the car that way - you may be doing some damage to other parts.
The price of a gasket is very low, and you might not even ruin it, but I certainly wouln't let that stop you from investigating.
If you can see nothing wrong up top, your problem may be much more severe - you're into broken piston territory now. The fact that it is throttle sensitive sounds very much like trouble in the bottom part of the engine, not the valve gear, but since someone has been in there recently, that is certainly the first thing to look at.
Dick
