Jman61554

Hey quick question I have a bad lifter in my 4.0 and I'm wanting to just swap the lifter out but I was told by a internet engine God or so he says that I can't swap just lifters or they will fail right off the bat, I've done it before on old Chevy 350 and a Ford 302 with no I'll effect so was I lucky before or is he a moron.

dzywicki

As long as the cam is in good condition, you should be able to swap lifters. You do need to remove the head to get the lifters. I would say if you're in there, replace them all instead of just one.
What did your god freind say also needed to be done with the lifter replacement?

Jman61554

just that I needed to swap cam and lifters together, and I was just figuring on swapping all of them, kinda figure if 1 is failing now good chance others may be on way out too so just save time and do them all now.

DFlintstone

Wonder if it would make sense to try and see if the bad one has a piece of crud in it? Maybe put it in a tin can of diesel and pump it....

I think the idea goes something like this; since the lifters might "dish" (become concave), and the cam lobe might get a bit rounded, you would never use old lifters on a new cam, but new lifters will ride OK on a used cam. If someone disagrees I won't argue! I forget when or where I heard that.