Engine banging is it lifters - 1983 Chevrolet C1500

How often do you change your oil? You need a good engine flush and then keep your oil changed regularly. You may need to flush a few times. What happens is the lifters get bogged up with old oil and they oil will not flow properly in the lifters, and the don't pump up, and what happens is they are out of contact with the lifter push rods and bang into them when they come up. This is a known issue with your vehicle, late 90's early 2000 Chrysler mini vans.

Without hearing the noise I can only guess. Probably a hydraulic lifter. Many 50s, 60s and 70s engines had this problem. Varnish builds up in the lifter body. If it's just a SLIGHT tick, I wouldn't worry about it. You could try a different brand of oil and some engine cleaner.

As an aside, I personally own a 91 GMC pick-up with a 4.3. It had a clicking lifter on start up and 10 min after. I always used Castrol oil, supposedly one of the best. Switched to Penzoil, it was on sale. No more click!

If you want to try and un-stick it, try this. Be forewarned, it WILL make a mess! Try and locate which side of the engine the noise is coming from. Remove the valve cover. Inspect for bent pushrods and rocker arm stud pulling out of the head. If you find either of these problems, disassemble the whole valve train and inspect/replace worn parts. Back then, Pontiacs and SBCs were notorious for studs pulling out of the head if you ran them hard.

Start engine. Oil will spray/mist everywhere. You were warned. LOL
Watch the rocker arms as it idles. If one does not move as far as the others, and the click is more of a bang, you have a collapsed lifter. A worn cam lobe will be much more quiet than a collapsed lifter, but you will see decreased movement of the rocker arm. Replacement is the only option on both.

Take a RUBBER (not metal ) or plastic dead-blow hammer and rap the rocker arm(s) several times where the pushrod mates with it. Over the years I have used this method with approx 60% success.

An engine used oil for lubrication and colling. If there is no oil then there is no lubrication. No lubrication means lots of heat and friction. Is it a ticking or banging noise? I do believe it is an ohc engine so it couldnt be a lifter ticking. It is probably a rod knocking. It so then it will more than likely need an engine

your assuming is bang on wright

had same issue with mine, sounded like someone banging on the engine with a hammer. whole car started shaking.. stuck lifter.. had to replace entire lifter bank

Likely your husband was correct.....up to a point. Lifters often become noisy when your oil pressure has dropped. If the oil level was very low that can do that, or, more often than not the low pressure is from a bearing inside the engine being very worn. Either way, from what you've said the news is bad.
Sounds like you completely lost a bearing. That requires a complete rebuild or replacement of the engine.

I love these cars and have owned a 92 model from 98-09. These cars are infamous for lifter ticking noise. (look up lifter tick on youtube for sound comparison). Although this is not a problem, it is a big nuisance can be fixed by changing the lifters from a 97-99 model. These cars with high mileage also seem to be prone to engine rod knock. 3000gt's timing belts start slipping a tooth or so and the rods start to bang since the timing is off. These engines are interference motors, therefore if the timing is off and you drive around with messed up timing, your internals are all interrupted.(must be rebuilt)
If it is LOUD, I would say it is a rod knock. The best thing to do is add a can of thick oil(forget the name) and don't beat on it. This will reduce the noise alot. If you want to FIX the problem, you will need to rebuild.

It's probably either a faulty spark plug, or spark plug wire, or a sticking valve lifter. I can't hear the noise, but if it's a tapping noise, it'll be a lifter. Try going to any parts store, and getting some engine additive. There are dozens on the market, but a cup of transmission oil in the crankcase will do the same thing.
If it's not that, then replace plugs and wires.

It sounds like you had either mild lifter lash or a plug wasn't gapped properly at first which has now gotten even worse. The gas smell that you have may be caused by a plug not firing due to misgap or a lifter that isn't functioning due to breakage. I recommend parking your vehicle as soon as possible. Have it towed to a dealer or trusted repair shop if at all possible. More use of the vehicle may cause irrepairable/ more costly damage.

Big end bearing worn out.Drain engine oil and look for a silver like color in the oil.