Valve lifters — shim-under-bucket adjustment

Tags: #part-number

No hydraulic lifters — confirmed by multiple independent threads. The FAW X80 engine (Duratec HE, shared with Ford/Mazda platforms) has mechanical valve lifters, not hydraulic ones. This was raised and confirmed independently at least twice in the group: once when a member asked directly "we don't have hydraulic lifters, do we? Who's adjusted them?" and got a plain "no hydraulics" reply¹², and again later when another member asked "don't we have hydraulics in the engine?" and was again told simply "no"³⁴. Because there are no hydraulic compensators, valve clearances require periodic manual adjustment using the shim-under-bucket method, with replaceable adjustment shim cups (стаканчики/стаканы толкателя клапана). The absence of hydraulic compensation also means valve-seat settling over time can reduce clearance and eventually necessitate adjustment¹²³⁴.

Shim-cup part number and sourcing difficulty. The OEM part number for the valve shim cups is 1007023A37K23. These are reported available mainly as used/second-hand units from online retailers, in limited quantities — new OEM units are rarely available, and many service shops simply don't carry them in stock, making sourcing a genuine bottleneck for anyone trying to get a valve-clearance adjustment done⁵⁶.

Adjustment interval — no fixed factory schedule, but ~60,000 km is the common practical point. The manual doesn't mandate a regular valve-clearance adjustment schedule; however, many owners perform an optional check/adjustment around 60,000 km as informal common practice. Method: remove the valve cover, measure clearance, swap shims as needed⁷⁸⁹. Separately confirmed at higher mileage: there is no fixed valve-adjustment interval in the maintenance schedule — adjustment is only necessary if engine noise develops or performance issues appear; at 100,000 km, an engine running smoothly needs no valve-adjustment work at all^10111213.

Suggested check interval — 120,000 km (conflicts with the 300k+ threshold above). A separate report recommends checking/adjusting valve thermal clearances at around 120,000 km as preventive maintenance — noticeably earlier than the "300,000+ km or camshaft looseness" threshold already documented on this card. Conflict: not resolved whether 120,000 km or 300,000+ km is the more appropriate proactive check point; the design's self-adjusting shims argue for the higher figure, but this source recommends the earlier one as a precaution¹⁴.

Self-adjusting shim design — restated. Confirmed again: the engine uses mechanical valve lifter shims (no hydraulic compensators), pre-selected at manufacture for the engine's life, with valves self-adjusting as wear occurs. Manual adjustment is needed only if the camshaft becomes loose (which requires a new head anyway) or after extreme wear beyond 300,000+ km. Routine shops pushing valve adjustments at 95,000-100,000 km are, per this source, doing unnecessary work on this design — save the money unless clear symptoms (rough idle, fault codes) appear^1516171819.

Tapping/clicking noise at 60-70 km/h — traced to loose valve clearances. A tapping or clicking noise from the engine, especially noticeable at 60-70 km/h and under acceleration, can indicate loose valve clearances in the GRM (timing gear mechanism). The noise may temporarily worsen after an oil change if a lower-quality oil is used. Fix: have a qualified mechanic adjust the valve clearances. The X80 uses individually-sized valve adjustment cups (not shims) — the job involves measuring the gaps and installing correctly-sized cups. The noise typically diminishes after the engine warms up, due to thermal expansion^{2021222324252627282930313233}.

Service cost and mileage context (2026). A separate valve-clearance adjustment ("стаканчики"/shim-over-bucket) job was quoted at approximately 15,000 RUB (RU market, January 2026) by a service shop, in a case involving a car with 133,000 km. This confirms shim-under-bucket adjustment is the correct terminology/method already documented on this card, and gives a real-world 2026 labor price point^34353637.

Repairing existing shims by grinding, and Ford/Mazda cross-compatible new shims. Instead of full replacement, an existing valve-stem shim/cup (стаканчик) can sometimes be ground/sanded down to restore correct clearance. For new shims, compatible parts are available from both Ford and Mazda parts catalogs for the shared Duratec HE 1.8/2.0/2.3/2.5 engine family, sold on Ozon under generic listings such as "толкатель 800, клапана регулировочный"^38394041.

Valve lifter/tappet dimensions and Duratec cross-fit. A Duratec-compatible mechanical valve lifter/tappet (толкатель) with a 3.56 mm shim size fits the X80: 31 mm diameter, 27 mm standard height (the X80's own variant measures 27.7 mm — the 0.7 mm difference is reported negligible in practice). These lifters are available on Ozon and are used together with the shim-adjustment procedure described above^42434445.

Cold valve-clearance specification — Intake 0.25mm, Exhaust 0.30mm. An earlier, independent report gives the actual cold-engine clearance specification for the X80's reference engine (Ford Duratec HE equivalent): Intake (Впускной) 0.25mm, Exhaust (Выпускной) 0.30mm. Both measurements are taken with the engine cold — this fills a gap left by the interval-focused discussion elsewhere on this card, which documents when to check clearance but not the target values themselves⁴⁶.

Adjustment interval — a further, earlier data point at 40,000-45,000 km, adding to the interval conflict. A separate, earlier community report adds yet another figure to the interval conflict already documented on this card: valve-clearance inspection and adjustment every 40,000-45,000 km. The procedure requires removing both the valve cover and the timing-chain cover to access the camshafts — not every shop is equipped or experienced enough to do this work properly. Thermal clearance specs vary in practice and technicians adjust to compensate for wear observed at the time of service. Conflict: this 40,000-45,000 km figure sits between the ~60,000 km informal community practice and the 120,000 km / 300,000+ km figures already documented and flagged as conflicting on this card — not resolved within this data batch, reinforcing that there is no single agreed proactive-check interval across sources⁴⁷⁴⁸⁴⁹.

80,000-90,000 km — yet another interval figure, from the second Telegram group. A separate community (FAW BESTURN X80 group) gives a further, independent adjustment-interval figure: valve adjustment every 80,000-90,000 km. This sits between the ~60,000 km informal practice and the 120,000 km figure already documented and flagged as conflicting on this card, adding a fifth data point to the unresolved interval conflict⁵⁰.

Media

Silent video of the engine showing the tapping/clicking noise source

Second silent video documenting the same GRM tapping noise

Related pages

• EGR valve part number and disable discussion (2019 X80)
• Valve cover gasket leak — oil drip
• Valve cover gasket leak — warped cover cause
• Valve cover gasket — part number
• Valve clearance adjustment (Duratec HE) shims

Sources

This page is compiled from 50 community messages. Every fact carries a numbered reference to its original author and message.

Last updated: 2026-10-29