Gregg in the 603

Your insight is always appreciated. It sounded a little silly to me also. Are the A8 heads the same as S8? Sounds like a cheaper and more available replacement....
I'll keep plugging away and updating!

BrianC72gt

I think someone has their terminology crossed up. The hydraulic lifters or lash adjusters are tiny and located in the tips of the rocker arms. Think of rocker arms like a see-saw: under one end is the camshaft with its bumps, under the other is the top of the valve stem, and a fulcrum in the middle. As the cams turn they push their end of the rocker up causing the other end of the rocker to push the valve stem down - opening the valve.

On one end of the arm (valve side I seem to recall) you find tiny little hydraulic adjusters that fill with oil to take up the gap or valve lash- They pump up with oil to take up the valve clearance. If they were misbehaving, the engine would be making a racket... tackety tackety tackety tack... The valve guides - usually some form of brass - are pressed in cold into warmed up heads and I can guarantee you they ain't moving.

I believe your mechanic is referring to the tiny little hydraulic lifters in the tips of the rocker arms. If they got sideways, that would get ugly & noisy fast. I'm calling bull****. (**Edit: nanny state...bovine excrement...will that satisfy you ****ers? **)

As stated before by Sam & company, the number of links between the intake & exhaust cams is different from bank to bank - 15 on one bank and 16 on the other. They need to pop the cam cover off - easy to do, and take a picture of the cams at TDC with the little index marks on the cams pointing straight up so you can confirm the link count. They could also dismiss their whacked out theory about cockeyed lifters at the same time.

Worst case, somebody bolloxed up the timing badly putting it back together, tweaked a valve or two and is now looking for an unrelated excuse to pull it all apart on your dime. It's cloudy and cold here at the moment so I'm especially cynical. Ignore this bit....I hope.

More likely, they are just off by a link, but don't know any better and think that these symptoms can only be explained by a bent valve. Simple fix..remove the valve cover, turn the engine to TDC, and 1) confirm that the exhaust valve timing is correct and, then; 2) count the links. The intake timing may not be EXACTLY right (but pretty damn close) because it is variable through the action of the timing adjusters you just replaced. But the link count is either right or it isn't - no guesswork -16 on the passenger's side. I suspect the intake valve timing advances and valves open sooner at higher rpms to allow the air enough time to fill the cylinder head when events are happening so much faster.

The exhaust cam is driven by the timing belt. If that is off, they have to fix it at the timing belt. The intake cam is driven by the chain from the exhaust cam. If the exhaust timing is correct but the intake is off, that is fixed by adjusting the chain. I bet you they counted 15 links (driver side spec) instead of 16 links (passenger side spec). You might be able to fish one link over the sprocket all the way around if you compress the variable timing adjuster using the special tool. If not, you're going to have to remove the cams. It isn't brain surgery. I had my heads off and back on, and I'm just a hobbyist. When all else fails, read the directions.

Gregg in the 603

Thanks a lot for your insight Brian. I will work your angle. Also thanks for the long reply. I'm being slow on doing the work since with winter, I drive in dark in the morning and on the way home. The lack of an inspection sticker is only apparent in daylight! I will keep this forum updated with my findings.

Gregg in the 603

Okay, first I'd really like to thank everyone on here for your help and wonderful insight.
After running it (uninspected and illegally) primarily in a neighboring state for the last 6 months, I have put about 12,000 miles of 93 octane through it. I reset the (still blinking) CEL in December. In March, noticing it was still illuminated but hadn't blinked in several months, I read the code. All I had now was the P0441 (Evap/Emissions leak? think that was it)! No more misfires! It hadn't misfired in 6,000 miles!
Utilizing dogged determination and multiple forums, my father and I diagnosed the P0441 as a purge valve canister low under the wipers. A hose connection appeared to be a little loose. We removed the canister and cleaned it up. 100 miles later, NO CEL! I was able to get it emissions inspected and it is now free and clear! No more blinky lights.
This vehicle has very tight parameters, and any deviation from manufacturer recommendations is done at the operators' peril! RUN 93 OCTANE! I know you all do, that's mostly a reminder for me!
Again, thanks a lot everyone, we made it.