Mine makes this same exact sound. "Sounds absolutely terrible!" Like you mentioned its at idle and below 1000rpm. Other than that it runs flawless.

I've been reading about it here for years now. All posts on every thread always lean towards the cam phasers and it doesn't affect performance.

I bought the truck new and it now has 147K miles on it. I've always done maintenance on time but this problem still exists so its not oil change/ maintenance issue.

So far I've only had to replace the plugs, battery, and recently the alternator so I really can't complain. "KNOCK ON WOOD"

With 147k and 8 yrs I figure I'm getting good service so if/when this engine fails I'll buy another and keep trucking. Still cheaper than a new truck.

good luck

 

people say the phasers dont hurt anything, but when watson91 did his they basically fell apart in his hand.

you knew going into this the phaser problem and spark plug problem existed, if you didnt you should have read up more. if you know about, and face the phaser/plug problems then these trucks are hosses from there on out.

if you had any other truck it would have problems too. youd be twisting up the toyota all the time due to its lack of a boxed frame (ive seen that in real life, my buddys tundra got stuck in a ditch and he couldnt even close his door it was twisted so much), youd still be sitting out in a gm truck waiting for the window to roll all the way up, crappy interior quality of both, take every interior rattle or pop in your truck and multiply it by 10 in a silverado (ive experienced that also).

suck it up, just pay some dealer to do your phasers and plugs since you dont sound like you wanna fool with it and then your good for another 100k miles.

and are you sure your not wackin out the drive by wire stuff with the thud? i can make a ujoint like clang almost on command if your abrupt with the throttle. make throttle inputs smooth and slow and youd be surprised how much nicer it drives.

oh and you can run your moto craft filter and oil for 5k, not 3. ive never, i repeat, never read about bearings or something catastrophic in the motor going bad. there is no reason to run that oil for 3k, its just a waste. oil doesent even break down until you get way over 20k, it just gets dirty, 5k is plenty fine to run on this oil and filter. its not conventional, its synthetic blend. many run full syn for 7k, and conventional for 3k, so syn blend puts you right at 5.

thats my .02

 

My truck has the same exact noise. I am still under warranty so i might take it in and see if they can do it under warranty.

 

I don't think that is the phasers you guys are hearing sounds more like a loose hanger or something on the exhaust. I have always been told the phasers are a clicking noise and you here it at all speeds not just at idle or close to it. I am not a mechanic or an expert but before you start guessing take it and get someone to check it over and find out for sure.

I have a 2006 5.4 Fx4 and have had no issues at all with this truck. I bought it in 08 with 25k on it and the owner before me was very good on the truck other then dropping the tailgate on a trailer lowering arm. No manufacturer is perfect and they all have their mistakes when they come out with a redesign and none of the other major ones would stand behind something that is hit or miss.

Anyway hope it works out for you and you find what the issue is easily.

 

Thanks for all the input. I was told that I can run the synthetic blend 5K but I've alwasy on every vehicle cahnged it at 3K. Maybe it's just a habbit?
There is no way I will by a cheby. Just can't do it but that tacoma was a rock solid truck. I can not speak for the tundra because i have no experience with them.

@ pethel- With 147k and 8 yrs I figure I'm getting good service so if/when this engine fails I'll buy another and keep trucking. Still cheaper than a new truck.
Very true and that is what I plan on doing with this one.

@ fivespeedsteed- you knew going into this the phaser problem and spark plug problem existed, if you didnt you should have read up more. if you know about, and face the phaser/plug problems then these trucks are hosses from there on out.
Sorry man I did not know about these trucks when I bought mine. It was my first Ford truck. I have been around the 7.3L at my work and those were rock solid trucks that got abused everyday, so I figured that a Ford truck would be a safe purchase. Granted the truck has moved me across the country twice and it has done everything I wanted it to do except better gas mileage
I also don't think its the unversal joints making that noise. They make the clank sound where mine is more of a slipping, then thud...

@Coskid I thouht it was my exhaust too. I checked all around the entire system to find nothing. It sounds like a loose hanger or something idk...
The check engine light isn't on yet so that is good.

Iplan on attempting the plugs myself but the phasers. That one may be out of my mechanical range. Anytime I see that timing chain I get nervous.

@riverrat- YES take it to the dealer. I've read that the phaser job cost an upwards of 2K dollars. Money I could use for something else.

 

In another forum I am a member of someone claimed that the phasers were not the issue at all when it came to the ticking noise. I will run a search on that forum and see if I can find the answer for you later tonight.

 

i just meant a noise that sounds like a u joint clang. i guess it could be described as a slipping. my theory could be way off but if you get under your truck with it off or whatever, the rear drive shaft will move if you try to spin it maybe 2 mm or so, but the front driveshaft will spin like an inch, if you grab it by hand and try to move it. if you grab your cv axles you can spin them like almost a half an inch too. sometimes if my truck is kinda coasting down a hill, i feel like the shafts and cv axles are on the front of the gears, or spun to one way then when you give it throttle quick it snaps them back to the back side of them (taking the slack out of them quickly) and then causing the sound.

if you go outside and crawl under your truck and grab the front driveshaft and spin it back and forth fast, it makes a decent amount of racket, and nothing is holding that still when your driving down the road.

get the plugs done, do your phasers, do a trans filter and 5 quart fluid top off and prepare for the next 100k miles.

 

Thanks fivespeed. When I get back next may I'll have to give it a shot.

Have yall heard avout these phaser lock outs? I was searching the other day and found them. Started reading up on it and it seems like they are made for motors with aftermarket cams in them. I figured they won't work on the stock motor but it was worth a lookin. Are the phasers they are producing now less likely to malfunction?

 

from what some say yes they are. there updated from ford or something. apparently the pins that are in them i guess like the locator pins, were hollow in the oe ones, but the replacements from ford are solid. ive heard that a couple times, but dont quote me on it.

 

Your overreacting to say the least. Like most people on this forum. If the tick/ rattle you have goes away above 1200 rpm's it's JUST a VCT sensor.
They are $100 and you can change them yourself in 15 mins. The thud you speak of is more than likely a u-joint. Again easy and cheap to change.

The spark plugs are not hard at all to change. Use PB blaster and soak each plug. They will come right out. I think your lack of knowledge is what scares you....not your Ford. Get a clue.

http://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/10...g-phasers.html

http://www.howstuffinmycarworks.com/VCT_Solenoid.html

"The solenoids are the large solenoids that are sticking out of the valve cover. This is generally the part that goes faulty. I would rec. you follow the TSB sheet I provided, if you find the noise goes away after 1,200 RPM you should install the VCT phaser kit. This is the updated part to fix the issue for noises under 1,200 RPM's. A lot of times the after market parts are designed to the old spec and may not always address your current issue. Or you may have a possibility of the passages being clogged (although the noise you are experiencing should have been present right after the replacement of the parts and not have taken 50 miles). CLICK HERE for information."
http://www.justanswer.com/ford/3iitx...iles-when.html

 

Mine has 91K on it and I've had it since new. It rattles/clacks or whatever really bad when cold and get's quieter when it's warmed up....but never stops. Took it to a local mechanic with a really good reputation and he told me it was the VCT Phaser on the passenger side. I had already reseached it and thought the same, but according the the TB from Ford it shouldn't be rattling at start up. Just when it warms up. The mechanic quoted me $650 to fix it. Gonna take it in next pay check.

Also the truck runs great...never misses a beat and doesn't even remotely idle rough...never stalls or hesitates. I have had it do what you mentioned before about the thump, but that only happened a couple of times about 50k ago. Never done it since.

 

Found a TSB while looking for something else....Thought it might help.

http://www.ford-trucks.com/tsb/fullt...p?tsb=05-26-11

 

Thanks for all the help guys. I really hope that it is the VTC solenoids and not the phasers. This looks like a job that I can do myself as well.

Thanks westtnfx4 for the links. I really hope this works. Do you know how long she can ride on these without damaging the motor/phasers? I still have eight months remaining over here.

KDANAZ let me know if those solenoids work for you.

 

Let me just say this. My company truck (2005 F150 Super Crew 4x4) has been maintained very well. It has 219,000 on it as of today. The VCT sensors have been ticking loud for 60,000 miles. When my work slows down I might get them changed (or do them myself and have the company pay me) but I'm in no hurry. Truck runs flawless. Has great power. It's not going to hurt anything.

 

That is good info (westtnfx4) THANKS!

I too will change the VCT sensors. Definitely a cheaper option and I hope it works.

Mine has been ticking loud for some time as well. Like I mentioned in my earlier post, my truck has 147K on it so there's no big hurry at this point.

Heck, as long as it keeps running great I'm used to the noise by now.