I got a 98 Trans Am WS6 a few weeks ago and it started ticking a couple nights ago. I was racing a mustang and hit the rev limiter and a little while later I noticed the car was ticking. I got a second opinion and we believe it is a bent pushrod. It sounds like its coming from the drivers side. I have been reading on this and I am seeing that it is a fairly common problem LS1's have. Does anyone have a different idea of what might be wrong or, if it is a pushrod, any advice on going about replacing it?

Thanks for the help in advance
-Scott

 

ticking could be a pushrod or a lifter, or if a rocker came a little loose on it... could cause a tick... those are the most common and inexpensive things to check on first... considering you just bought the car and if you bought it from a perosn you did not know, you really do not know what was done to the car proir to you buying it.

 

Its pretty loud and gets very fast very quickly when i rev it.

The car has 120k on it and had 117000 on it when i bought it. The guy I bought it from was an old guy who bought the car new in 98 and has every record from then til now on everything that was ever done to the car. He didnt know anything about the car and never beat on it.

 

Mine developed a knock one day. Took the pushrods on that side out. Checked them and there were no bent ones. Put it all back together and there in no more noise. Guess one was in a bind somehow.
Now I have a cam to install, so I'll get some aftermarkets.

 

Pushrods are simple...take off coil packs, take off valvecovers, remove rocker arms, slide out pushrod, roll on glass (or other perfectly straight) surface to see if it is bent or not. When you reinstall don't forget loctite and torque to 22 ft/lbs. If you need to replace a collapsed lifter it'll be a bit of a bigger job, but nothing too hard.

 

a rocker is loose

 

I am gonna look at it today, I am gonna do plugs/wires today also so I hope that helps a lot, my car has 120k and I dont think the plugs or wires have ever been done cant wait to see the difference.

Thanks for all the help guys its greatly appreciated and if anyone has anymore suggestions please keep em comin

Thanks
-Scott