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Answer: The smaller pulley we produce with the 4 grooves will certainly give you more space. We also offer a small 4 groove pulley which will replace your single pulley on your alternator. It will then be a simple process of going to your local motor factor, since the 4 groove belts are now readily available and choosing the best that most suits your installation.
However every time I now get in the car and start it from cold or warm the noise reappears and the light again stays on until the noise stops, it is always at least 2 minutes before the knocking type noise disappears, sometimes up to 5 minutes, I have consulted another C20XE which has the hydraulic lifter problem and that is not the noise my engine is making, the lifters sound fine. This is leading me to think there is a problem with the oil pressure / pump / pickup. I have recently put the engine into the nova myself and replaced the oil and filter with new non-Vauxhall types, using a semi synthetic oil. As the problem has never been seen before the track session only after, I am assuming this has instigated it, but what exactly 'it' is, I don't know. A nylon pressure relief valve which is better than the vauxhall item has been suggested, which I have seen on your website, but is this the right item to get and will it solve my problem?
Answer: When a car is used on the normal high way, even when driven at speeds shall we say that are close to being illegal, this puts nowhere near the same strain or stresses that are involved in track use. Considerable improvements have to be carried out to the breathing system and baffling to the sump pan to prevent the damage that you have described. You are likely to have two problems. I would imagine that the oil was surging during cornering during your track day. Then instead of sucking oil up into the engine, you were sucking up air. This would damage your bearings initially. The gaps would become larger, then when the car returns to the straight, due to the damage to the bearings, more of the oil supply would be needed to accommodate the increased clearances. As you repeat several laps under the same conditions, the bearings would become more and more damaged. The pressure would then begin to drop in the engine to a dangerous level. The pressure would drop first in the top end of the engine, this would make your tappets rattle. If you were to leave the engine idleing for a period of time, the tappets may quieten down until driven hard. This is provided the tappets have not become damaged from running with a lack of oil. The damage to the bearings would now be so bad, that the engine is in danger of complete failure from running out of lubrication altogether. Your engine must be stripped down completely, measured to see if any damage or distortion has occured to the rods or crankshaft. If you are lucky you will just be able to replace the bearings and then the modifications I have suggested should be done, before the engine is returned to the track.