# Bad cam damage? (Pic) **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Tags:** mustang, ford\ **Created:** [October 23, 2021, 8:03pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/bad-cam-damage-pic/180164 "2021-10-23T20:03:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![J162\_165342](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/j162_165342/32/40582_2.png) [@J162\_165342](https://community.cartalk.com/u/J162_165342)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2021, 8:03pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/bad-cam-damage-pic/180164/1 "2021-10-23T20:03:20Z")
Had a ticking noise on my 2005 mustang gt. ![image](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/original/3X/b/2/b2df6bbb9946718a9992b8879bf4426c93ef033d.jpeg) Pulled the valve cover and found the roller lifter that was the culprit. Replaced it. Now no more tick. All the others looked good. However the far left cam lobe was noticeably scratched (pic attached). Is this scratched cam lobe enough to warrant new cams? Or does it not matter since this engine uses roller lifters which would just roll right over the scratches anyway? ---
**Author:** ![asemaster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@asemaster](https://community.cartalk.com/u/asemaster)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2021, 8:24pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/bad-cam-damage-pic/180164/2 "2021-10-23T20:24:32Z")
I would have replaced that cam while the valve cover was off. ---
**Author:** ![George\_San\_Jose1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e5b9ba/32.png) [@George\_San\_Jose1](https://community.cartalk.com/u/George_San_Jose1)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2021, 12:25am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/bad-cam-damage-pic/180164/3 "2021-10-24T00:25:33Z")
It doesn’t look like a functional problem, provided the dimensions remain correct, but I wonder why it looks different than the other lobes? That’s sort of curious. Are you able to see the roller surface? ---
**Author:** ![J162\_165342](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/j162_165342/32/40582_2.png) [@J162\_165342](https://community.cartalk.com/u/J162_165342)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2021, 1:19am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/bad-cam-damage-pic/180164/4 "2021-10-24T01:19:33Z")
My guess is that the lifter adjacent to it was coincidentally the one that was stuck. Out of the 11 lifters it was the only stuck one ---
**Author:** ![Scrapyard-John](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f6c823/32.png) [@Scrapyard-John](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Scrapyard-John)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2021, 2:25am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/bad-cam-damage-pic/180164/5 "2021-10-24T02:25:02Z")
The stuck roller didn’t roll (well), so it slid on that lobe and scraped / wore it. At least I’m assuming the roller was replaced on that lobe. If that isn’t the case, I’d be replacing that roller too. ---
**Author:** ![J162\_165342](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/j162_165342/32/40582_2.png) [@J162\_165342](https://community.cartalk.com/u/J162_165342)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2021, 3:42pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/bad-cam-damage-pic/180164/6 "2021-10-24T15:42:07Z")
Do you think the cam looks damaged to the point where the engines on borrowed time? Or could it run fine for a while with that amount of scratches in the photo? ---
**Author:** ![Scrapyard-John](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f6c823/32.png) [@Scrapyard-John](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Scrapyard-John)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2021, 5:38pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/bad-cam-damage-pic/180164/7 "2021-10-24T17:38:36Z")
I think it’ll be fine. The roller was replaced on that damaged lobe, correct? I mean, it’s not ideal, and it’ll probably increase wear in the future to that lobe and roller somewhat. But I wouldn’t say it’s on borrowed time at all. I mean, what’s the worst case scenario? That roller needs replaced again down the road? That cam lobe wears down before the others? But how long is that going to take before it’s really an issue…60k more miles? 80k? The engine has 170k already. I imagine if you took it apart and looked at each bearing, cylinder bore, piston ring, etc, you’d probably find a few things with some wear on them. But that’s ok on an engine with 170k.