This is odd..I have a 2003 Nissan Maxima SE with VQ35DE motor with about 125k miles. At about 70K I quickly raced a car (quick cuz I won) but after that my gf says she started hearing a ticking noise. So I got the blame and the knuckle job.

Anyway, the noise now is pretty loud..after review shop manual which has excellent troubleshooting guide..I took off the righthand valve cover (passenger side) and checked all the intake and exhaust lifter gap. All were in spec except the very last exhaust valve on cylinder #1 (closest to timing gear) which measured 0.026"+ (feeler gauge max) where his partner was at 0.013". Per the shop manual says there's a shim but I am 99.99% there is just a bucket and no shim. Called the stealer and he confirmed no shims just bucket.

Now the big Q..what could be the problem and how to further isolate? Could it be a broken valve spring? Could the bucket not have been fully seated during engine build and me romping on it "set" it? I know pretty hard to imagine. It's quite evident the bucket is sitting low as I can see light under the cam lobe and bucket. I am trying to avoid taking off cam shaft which is about the same as timing chain removal process and then further want to avoid head removal unless no alternative.

Any HELP or Advise would greatly be appreciated.

Thanks