...Thanks everyone... ...The Previous owner did replace all the lifters with aftermarket... ...He was led to believe that there is only one manufacturer of replacement lifters???

... I will give Mobil 1 synthetic a shot ... ...I'm so used to my 5cyl cars, (engine wise), and my 12 valve Cummins being, for the most part, being trouble free that the idiosycracies with this car are somewhat perplexing...

...I guess with KW block seal having remedied the coolant loss I should go after the hard shifting issue,(I will start with vacuum troubleshooting)... ...The trans has never been rebuilt at over 200K but the previous owner put a new front seal and front pump seal in it... ...When I got the car it had been sitting for about a year and there was a one lifter tick...

...As I live in two different places, the car had been sitting for about six months prior to my starting to drive it again... Maybe this has something to do with it's current lifter issues???...