[Mike57]

My 2009 model with the M13A engine has just done 20,000 km.

I have noticed that there is more tappet noise now than when it was new. All of the 20,000 km has been hard driving either 100kph or 110kph on the highway to get somewhere and then all off road driving with some of that on the rev limiter. I note that in the service manual a tappet adjustment is due at 30,000 km. The dealer tells me that it is normally done every 30,000 km but may not always be needed.

Has anyone else had their tappets adjusted. Is this essential or just a nice to have. I would be interested in your experiences. The dealer wants $250 to do the job.

[squibby]

Don't know about any of the above except that $250 sounds like a bargain to have the Valve clearances adjusted.

[PORL]

Lol it's needed.
It takes about 40 mins to do. Quite easy actually

[Scales]

Care to expand on that? ? ?

[PORL]

I do not, although a quick google search will.
A service manual will give you clearances, get some feeler gauges remove rocker cover and spark plugs, turn engine by hand so the cam is in the right positions for the arms your adjusting loosen the 10 ml nut insert your feeler gauge, and tighten or loosen the flat head bolt to desired clearance, tighten the 10ml repeat.

[christover1]

Check with workshop manual.
Some valve clearances are checked at cam lobe, some at valve stem end.
Check wether hot or cold is needed for figure given.
Some motors need a curved or bent feeler gauge.

Never seen inside an M13 but probably same as my Vit.
I remove rocker cover.
Loosen lock nuts on top of valves.
Adjust clearance when each cylinder is at tdc on power stroke.
Retighten lock nuts.

And remember to put rocker cover back on

I used this as a guide http://www.suzimotive.com.au/technical.htm

[royce]

PORL wrote:

I do not, although a quick google search will.
A service manual will give you clearances, get some feeler gauges remove rocker cover and spark plugs, turn engine by hand so the cam is in the right positions for the arms your adjusting loosen the 10 ml nut insert your feeler gauge, and tighten or loosen the flat head bolt to desired clearance, tighten the 10ml repeat.

Jeebus I hate it when people spruke some stuff on the internet when they don't know the answer.

Now, I don't know the for sure, 100% correct answer here but I know you are wrong based on some looking I did.

See, I only have M series swift manuals to hand, not M13 Jimny manual but both swift engines are bucket in shim, to adjust to need to measure, use a special tool to compress the spring, pull the shim and replace with a better sized shim to suit.

So I dont know the M13 is the same and Stekky wont answer me to confirm but I reckon if 2 of the same series of engine are then chances are the M13 is too, so while you might be able to check the clearance in 40 mins, anyone outside of a dealer with access to shims and the tool is going to probably think the $250 is pretty good value, I sure as shit wont bother adjusting mine for that price and I can count the number of times anybody that isn't me has done any work on any of my cars on 1 hand.

[christover1]

Bugger that, I'd pay for that job, too

[christover1]

http://www.fixya.com/cars/t2002741-valve_timing_check

Quote:

Valve clearances are another matter, and unless you want to remove the camshafts, get a mechanic who has the proper Suzuki tool to do them for you. You can measure the clearances, but the shims are between the cam lobe and the valve bucket, and the special tool holds the bucket down whilst changing to a thicker or thinner shim.

[Mike57]

My question was not so much about how to do it but whether it was necessary. I think Royce might be suggesting that it's not something that really needs to be done. I have no experience with this engine so I have no idea.

[christover1]

I'd get it done before crossing the Simpson, but unless its a very bad noise, In my opinion there's no hurry.

[royce]

Mike57 wrote:

My question was not so much about how to do it but whether it was necessary. I think Royce might be suggesting that it's not something that really needs to be done. I have no experience with this engine so I have no idea.

Wrong valve clearances not only cause wear but can also hurt engine performance quite a bit.

If you are confident with pulling the rocker cover off and using a feeler gauge by all means get in there and check them, if any are out of spec then take it in to have them done, if not well you have the peace of mind to know they are ok.

It might be that its a new engine and has settled a bit and some are a bit off and once they are reset they would be good for ages.

[droverdave]

30,000 sounds like a pretty short amount of time to be adjusting shims, but perhaps suzuki knows best here and its required. or at least checked like your mech suggests.

Is it shim ON bucket, or is it shim UNDER bucket? Very simliar, but different.

with a job like this, its a follow the manual to a tee type thing. And you will need to do all your measurements then go and buy new shims if required.

If you mess up the shims from valve to valve, you are back to square one.

$250 is probably reasonable if it is shim on/under bucket. its a very timeconsuming process.

If it is the old style tappets (feeler guage, screwdriver, 10mm spanner) then under 1hr is achievable. I did mine last week in under 1hr on the g13a.

Persumably the wear amounts to more clearance (ie the more noise you are refering too), its worth noting that if you stuff it up and don't put enough clearance in, you run the risk of burning out valves. Exhaust is always a little more clearance than intake side.

[Mike57]

Thanks Royce and DroverDave. I have done the old style with feeler gauge and screw driver in the old days but since I am time poor I might just hand it over to the dealer. My only reservation then of course is whether the dealer actually knows any more than I would. Oh well I will give them a go. Thanks.