Replace Hydraulic Lifters of CRDI Engine

A hydraulic compensator is a hidromechanic device that changes its length and compensates for the thermic gap between the valve and the camshaft. It has two parts: an external cylinder and an internal mobile part propelled by spring. At the entrance of this device there's a valve which consist of a ball pressed by spring.

How does the compensator change its length? It's actually a pretty simple process: there's a spring inside the device that gets stretched to its maximum length when the compensator isn't compressed. At the same time, during the movement of the internal part the device is filled with oil. The compression process is much more complicated since the valve won't let the oil out easily. However, due to small gaps between friction surfaces, it will slowly come out. If the device is compressed while it's working, the oil won't come out, unless you keep it compressed with a clamp and wait.

Hydraulic Compensator in the Engine

The valve is placed with its nozzle facing up. There's a hole in the oscillating lever through which the oil travels to the lever's bearing, lubricating it. This shows that there's always oil moving through the compensator and, depending on the amount of pressure, it lets it move through either tiny gaps or the entrance valve, which is represented by the blue ball in the image above.

Broken compensators may show some of these symptoms: a buzzing sound in the engine at first only when the engine is still cold, then also when it's warmed up. Now I'll show you how to get to the hydraulic compensators on the CRDI 1.5 D3EA engine.

First you have to remove the injectors, the lid of the valve and the camshaft.

Now we have the engine open.

Then we remove the rocker and the housings of the valve. The oscillating lever stands on the housings and the compensators. It were fixed in place by the camshaft and now it's no there the compensator can be removed easily.

In the last image you can see six compensators: one for each rocker. We remove them with pliers since they're no longer fixed. The gaps between them are very small, so you have to remove them vertically.

Hydraulic lifter:

Hydraulic valve lifters in good condition must be kept oil-filled and at an adequate pressure. Their condition can be checked. To do so, try compressing them: if you feel the slightest compression they should be repladed. It's possible they somehow absorbed some air, which caused the compression. If that's the case, refill them with oil and try compressing them again. Usually, if they're old and one or more of them breaks, it's best to just replace all of them, since they all have similar lifespans and the ones still in good condition won't last long.

Filling the Compensator With oil

New compensator (code 22231-27900) is filled with oil. This is not a problem as it can be installed anyway. You can replace oil if you want to. If the device is compressed when its valve is open, we just have to overcome the strength of the spring which is hardly a problem. Place something long and thin (like a toothpick) in the central hole of the compensator, push the valve lightly and compress it. The oil will start coming out. To empty it completely you have to turn it upside down and press repeatedly.

To fill it, you have to immerse it completely in an oil-filled container and compress it several times until no bubbles come out of it.

Now the compensator is filled with oil and can be installed to the engine.

Cars where the same lifters (22231-27900):

1. HYUNDAI ACCENT [AW]
2. HYUNDAI ACCENT [BA]
3. HYUNDAI ACCENT [BG]
4. HYUNDAI ACCENT [LC]
5. HYUNDAI ELANTRA [CA]
6. HYUNDAI ELANTRA [CG]
7. HYUNDAI GETZ [BJ]
8. HYUNDAI GRANDEUR [EL]
9. HYUNDAI GRANDEUR [TG]
10. HYUNDAI I30 [JD]
11. HYUNDAI MATRIX [BE]
12. HYUNDAI SANTA FE [BB]
13. HYUNDAI SANTA FE [BM]
14. HYUNDAI SANTA FE [CM]
15. HYUNDAI SONATA [EK]
16. HYUNDAI SONATA [ER]
17. HYUNDAI SONATA [NF]
18. HYUNDAI TRAJET [EC]
19. HYUNDAI TRAJET [FO]
20. HYUNDAI TUCSON [BH]
21. HYUNDAI TUCSON [JM]
22. KIA CARENS [BK]
23. KIA CARENS [FJ]
24. KIA CARENS [UN]
25. KIA CEED [ED]
26. KIA CERATO [CD]
27. KIA MAGENTIS [DD]
28. KIA OPTIMA/MAGENTIS [MG]
29. KIA SPORTAGE [FQ]

Cars where the same engine (1.5 CRDI D3EA, 3 cylinders):

1. HYUNDAI Accent
2. HYUNDAI Getz
3. HYUNDAI Matrix

Cars where the similar engine(2.0 CRDI D4EA, 4 cylinders):

1. HYUNDAI SANTA FE
2. HYUNDAI TRAJET
3. HYUNDAI TUCSON
4. KIA CERATO
5. KIA SPORTAGE