QuestionHT mentioned in an answer to "Valve/Lifter adjustment on 99 Accent" (dated 2006): "If you do indeed have lifter noise, the number one cause on your engine is infrequent oil changes, causing the oiling holes in the rocker arm and rocker arm shafts to clog. If that's the case, you've got quite a cleaning project ahead of you."
I have a 2001 Accent 1.6L DOHC which I understand is not substantially different from the '99. I have the valve cover off but can't see the oiling holes that need cleaning. I'm hoping I don't have to remove the cam-shafts and remove the valves...
AnswerThe 1.6 DOHC has a substantially different valvetrain than the 1.5 SOHC. The SOHC has one camshaft and rocker arms which open the valves, and the DOHC (2001-2005) has hydraulic lash adjusters which sit just under the camshaft lobes. In this case, you will indeed need to remove the camshafts (but not the valves themselves) if you wish to inspect the oiling holes.
Before you do so, however, look around at what you see with the valve cover off. If you don't see a large amount of dark brown goop, then it's unlikely that the oil passages are clogged. At this point, start by checking the individual lifters themselves to see if any are spongy. Start with the ones that aren't depressed by the camshaft lobes and then turn the engine by hand to unload the remaining adjusters. If only one or two are spongy, you may just need to replace that one or two. If all (or nearly all) are spongy, expect that you have an oil pressure issue or an oil contamination issue.
If you find none of the lifters are spongy, have a close look at the valve cover, especially the metal baffle under the oil cap opening. I've seen several instances where an oil fill device was inserted with too much force, pushing the baffle down far enough down that the exhaust camshaft strikes it with each revolution.
