Hi everyone,
I had another account on here but can't remember my password & it's associated with an email I haven't used in years so I can't get my password. Anyway...

I have read all over these boards & others trying to find answers & although I have a better idea & understanding, I'm still not 100% sure;

I have a 2007 F150 with the 5.4L engine, 4wd, 155,000km. For the past couple months when I was on a slight incline with my foot on the accelerator just enough to increase speed without downshifting, it would 'hiccup' for lack of better terms. Nothing too bad but still a little odd. For the last 4 months or so the engine has been ticking louder than usual. It starts as soon as I start the truck & continues on regardless of engine temp or outside temp. It increases with rpm's.

I took the truck to a mechanic I've been going to for years, my main concern being the tick. He changed the oil (that I had done less than 1000km earlier) with 5w-20 synthetic oil (not sure of brand). The other oil was 5w-20 Quaker State synthetic, and added some sort of additive to the oil. He told me to drive it over the weekend to see if the ticking got better. This was Thursday night.

I drove the truck Friday & the ticking wasn't better yet, but I noticed something new. Now the 'hiccup' is far more prominent. Anything over 80km/h and rpm's at around 1500 causes the truck to do it repeatedly. I'm also lacking a noticable amount of power.

The truck idels fine, no dieseling, doesn't stall, no codes or CEL. It's basically the tick & sudden loss of power with the 'hiccup'

My mechanic said its the cam phasers at a cost of about $3000. I told him from what I read, I wasn't convinced it was. He basically told me off & said I bought a crappy truck. He said he will try to find the lack of power but said he thinks that the loss of power & the 'hiccup' are all in my head.

I called a Ford dealer last night & asked how much it was to replace the cam phasers so we got into talking about why I was asking, so I told him the same thing I told my mechanic. The service advisor said from what I described he doubts its the cam phasers. He said he's actually only seen a few go through the shop it the symptoms were different than what I described. He recommended I bring it in for proper diagnosis, which I think is what I'll do.

My questions is, based on what I described, does it sound like cam phasers to anyone here? From what I read, it sounds like a plug or something maybe? I had the plugs changed at around 80,000km, so they're due again.

Thanks for all your help.

 

The cam phaser noise is usually more of a banging, louder than a tick. Could it be an exhaust leak? The hiccup, could be plugs, fuel filter or dirty thorttle body and dirty MAF. None of those would be a waste of money with those miles.

What brand of plugs are in it?

 

I had the manifold replaced under warranty, but that was obviously 100k ago, so it's possible, but the last leak wasn't as loud.
I'm thinking a tune-up is in order, but I don't want to spend $500+ for that only to find out the cam phasers really are bad.
I can't remember when the fule filter was done last so it could use a new one. The plugs are Ford OEM.

 

The hiccup to me sounds like a cop (coil on plug) or spark plugs. My 07 would act the same as you described, I replaced the plugs with OEM as well as the cop's (OEM as well) & everything has been fine.

 

155000 km ==96000 miles yep yer due for some plugs....insist on the best....motorcraft sp515

might want to look into cops also...plug misfires can deplete the efficiency of a good one...

clean the throttle body and the maf with the appropriate cleaners....

get that fuel filter changed also

 

...

 

She's at the dealer being looked at today. I'll post up the findings after they call. Fingers crossed it's not too serious.

 

yep I saw that and that is around 50,000 miles....

 

keep us updated.

 

Its a good news/bad news scenario. The good news is that it's not the cam phasers. The bad news is that my oil gallery's are plugged and can't be repaired. The tick noise is valve train wear & it's only a matter of time before my engine goes.

Any chance anyone knows a secret tip to unclog the gallery (galley)? I can't afford a new engine. I thought the cam phasers were going to be expensive enough.

 

Try AutoRX. Follow the directions on the website for a sludged engine.

 

I will definitely try that! Thanks for the suggestion