First of all thank you for all the great information. I'm learning lots of different things. I have a 1998 Ford Ranger V6 4.0 liter. When I start the truck I have a tapping that lasts about a minute or two then slowly goes away. I have been told this is the push rods and rockers and that they need to be changed. The shop manual shows that you remove the valve covers, unbolt the rockers, and using a special spring tool you can remove the springs, then you pull the push rods out and replace in reverse.
Has anyone done this repair? Any tips? Is there a good place to buy the parts from?
That’s the ohv 4.0 which came from the 2.9. If the 4.0 has hydraulic lifters, like the 2.9 did, do what projectfarm on YouTube did with his 1988 2.9 Ranger. It made it run much better. Not sure if such a problem could be in a 4.0 ohv, though. But I had an 87 Ranger 2.9 and it helped mine. But on that engine, when it was cold outside and cold started, the lifters ticked since new, a couple seconds after startup. My dad bought the truck new and even complained to the dealer about it. But I sold it with about 185,000 miles and 21 years old and it still ran.
