[Vwdiesel] What to look for to find a hydraulic lifter tap.

[William J Toensing]

I can't add any advice for VW hydraulic lifters but my experience of over 40 years ago can help. Back in 1962, I moved from Minn. to San Jose, Calif. I had a rust bucket 1955 Nash Ambassador V-8 which used Packard's V-8 & Ultramatic. Not happy with my job then, I moved back to Minn. in 1964 & got my old job back. That Nash had over 100,000 miles but that Packard engine ran like a top & no lifter noise.  

In 1969, I moved again from Minn. to Calif., this time to the LA area. I used an old school bus as a moving van & a year later, I traded that old bus for a then only 15 year old 1955 Packard Clipper Super which had that same engine as my previously owned 1955 Nash. However, when that Packard's engine oil got hot, that engine sounded noisier than a Rabbit diesel when at idle, even though the Packard only had 27,000 miles on it. I found out later that Packard had designed a badly flawed oil pump which AMC replaced with one of their own design in the V-8 engines they bought from Packard before the Nash Ambassador & Hudson Hornet V-8s left their factory. I had the Packard oil pump replaced with an AMC oil pump & my Packard Clipper's lifters have been quiet ever since. I still own that same 1955 Packard, some 39 years later,  & it now has 56,000 miles on it, & is an original, unrestored car.

For those of you who may not know, Hudson & Nash merged in 1954 to form AMC, or American Motors Corp.

Bill Toensing, Nevada City, CA