noisy lifter?

[George]

'99 Cavalier 2.2 suddenly developed a moderate 'clacking' noise. The
noise is the same, whether the engine is hot or cold. I get a pretty
strong match to the sound, when I listen to a stick on the rocker arm
bolt for #1 exhaust. All-in-all, It sounds like a noisy lifter to me;
but, I've been wrong once or twice.

- Given that I can hear it on the rocker arm, is there anything else
that would likely cause this noise? More the point - and given that the
noise showed up abruptly - is a more catastrophic failure likely?

- Is there an 'informed consensus' on whether there'd be any point in
trying various additives and/or oil rituals? I've never been much for
such things, but ... .

- I've read that this can do some damage to the camshaft. We'd like to
get maybe another 10K miles out of the car. Would significant camshaft
damage occur be expected in that time?

Thanks,
G

[HLS]

"George" <gbec...@verizon.net> wrote in message
news:8mrp45ple43ulhahv...@4ax.com...

I am not sure that it will help you, but if you wanted to try it, I would
buy a
bottle of Mystery Marvel oil, and add the treatment according to directions
a couple hundred miles before an oil change.

It doesnt cost much to try, and I have used it and seen it used without any
damage. And I have seen it quieten lifter noises. A lot of the time these
noises are not related to deposits on engine parts.