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NEED HELP PLEASE! Broken Cam Lobe


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So, I have a 2004 SS 140k. Always had a little bit of noise on the passe ger side, bit nothing too bad. Last week, CEL started blinking, car started making a noisey rapping noise, and finally shut off as I came off the highway. I suspected it was a stuck lifter that kept the valve open and was flooding the engine ( I also smelled gas in the exhaust btw). It also never gave a code on my code reader, which was weird.I got it home and started to disassemble foen to the lifter. Found one worn lifter on the pass side, but nothing huge. Then looked down the hole at the cam and saw that one of the lobes saw half way broken off. FML... I started to take off the front and pulled the cam out and it was shot. I also noticed my timing chain was very loose, but the teeth on the gears weren't too bad.

 

Here is where I need help:

 

1) I am the second owner of the truck and the milage is pretty low all things considered. Is it worth trying to contact Chevy and make a stink about it. My guess is that the Cam was defected when the truck rolled off the line. If it was just some scraping or a chuck out of it, then I wouldn't think about it. The fact os that half the lobe broke off and I fished it out the oil pan. That is hardened steel and how the hell it broke like that has yo be a defect in the part or the steel. Your thoughts?

 

2) Any tips on installing the new Cam. I have never done one before and don't want to mess it up. Also, once I get the Cam in what about putting on the new timming chain and gears. I HAVE NOT TOUCHED OR MOVED THE CRANK SHAFT! But am worried about installing the gears and chains perfectly so I don't mess up the timing on the truck and the crank. Any tips on how to install the chain and gears and make sure they line up with the crank shaft gear so I don't make things worse once I reassemble and start using the truck again?

 

Thanks for everyones help!

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Damn. That is destroyed! I recently did a cam swap and found the stock cam chipped, but nowhere near that level of nastiness. Don't worry about the timing. You can spin that biotch all day, dot to dot and it'll be fine. Cam 6 o'clock, crank 12 o'clock.

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Johnny I will try to call GM today and see if they have any record of this happeneing to other people. Maybe there was a recall or a defective part reported in some of the trucks.

 

Evand, I replaced the cam, the timing set and lifters. I cleaned the push rods and all the other moving parts. All the bearings seemed good in the cam. I also am going to do a valve job and put new gaskets everywhere. I also am going to clean the hell out of every piece I can reach. Fingers crossed that it all goes back correctly and purrs like a kitten.

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