I HAVE A PINGING PROBLEM WITH MY 2001 XL WITH THE V6. I WENT TO USING 89 OCTANE GAS AND IT HAS SEEMED TO HAVE STOPPED. DO YOU THINK IF I USE 93 IT WOULD HELP IT EVEN MORE? THE OWNER'S MANUAL SAYS THERE IS NO NEED FOR 89 OR 93 AS IT MAY MAKE THE PINGING WORSE. WHY DID IT GO AWAY WHEN I USED 89 OCTANE IF IT WAS SUPPOSED TO MAKE IT WORSE? ANY ANSWERS?

 

You could have gotten bad gas, have a dirty air filter, vaccum leak, or buildup in your chambers which can cause pre-ignition. A good bet is to check your plugs for carbon buildup, check the a/f, and look around to see if the major vaccum ports are OK. If it was bad gas(most usually the prob) then you should be OK. If you are carbon fouling, try a good fuel system cleaner and get on it everyonce in a while to keep it cleaned out.......

 

THANKS SQZDONY. I'LL CHECK ALL THE STUFF YOU SAID TO WHEN THE WEATHER FAIRS UP HERE IN TENNESSEE. IT WAS PROBLABLY BAD GAS. THANKS AGAIN FOR REPLYING.

 

Since it's still under warranty, have the wonderful technicians at Ford fix it. It could be the knock sensor reading poorly, but not out of range enough to throw a MIL (or Check Engine Light) if it even has a range . Some of the OBD-II sensors will still only throw a MIL when it completely craters.

Good Lcuk.
David

 

My truck was doing the same thing....now i use only 93 octane and put 2 bottles of fuel treatment in every other time i fill up......that has solved the problem.

 

if it is light pinging, it is acceptable and to be expected (this is how calibrators raise fuel economy)

 

Jeremy61,
Too much fuel system cleaner can be a bad thing. It can cause it's own build up, just as bad as the fuel itself. The manufacturers of the cleaners recommend once every 3k miles.

 

Thanks for the info. guy's. Nice truck whitestx.

 

I do just have to add one thing. A higher octane rated gas sometimes masks the problem by making your engine run a little warmer. Check the gap on your plugs and check other spark related items then move on to thoughts with the bad batch of gas if the problem just goes away. My V-6 pinged when I ran 89 so i brought it to the dealer. My timing was off just a little bit...enough to hear that god forsaken ping............
Good luck!

 

Thanks seebass322. But it was bad gas, or either where I took my - terminal off of my battery and reconnected it after I installed a cd player. Disconnecting your battery cable resets your computer, so it will idle rough until it relearns the factory codes, and your driving habits. Now it's running smooth as a Singer sewing machine! No worries here. Thanks again.