oil at cam?

[scotts pearl]

I have a 78 280... I have one valve that really ticks loud..i have located the tick from #1 cyl exhaust...i have adjusted valve twice.. Once hot and once cold..still ticks..how do i check to see if enough oil is getting to this rocker? And does the oil lube through the cam? Thanks for any help..

[Curtis240Z]

280Zs have an internally oiled cam system. There is a hole on the base circle of each cam lobe where the oil comes out. Maybe you have a sticky valve guide.

[scotts pearl]

thanks curtis... is there a way to check to see if this is a valve sticking? is there any way to repair other than removing the head? thanks

[FastWoman]

A valve train with accumulated varnish can have sticking problems. Try running a high detergent motor oil -- or possibly adding a quart of Rislone.

I've also flushed engines with Gunk with great success (including on a previously owned '75 280Z and a 2001 Z3), but I was strongly cautioned against that practice by others on this list. It seems that if you flush an absolutely filthy engine (like my '78), your engine can suffer a loose-sludge attack. (I'm doing fine so far, but I'll be changing my filter at 500mi.)

Anyway, that's the solution for sticking valves -- getting them clean.