First off sorry if this is too long. Please read entire post.
Here is my situation.
Truck is a 97' F150 4.6L auto, 4x4 with the following mods.
e-fans, superchip, 2 piece pullies, cold air intake, 75mm t-body, ported & polished t-body elbow, 4.10 gears,33" tires, 3" flowmaster, w/ hi flow "Y" pipe and factory cats. truck has 108k miles. I have lots of other mods as well but not really power related. A lot of time and $ invested in truck.
Here is my problem:
Pulled my new camper trailer home from dealer today. trailer weighs 3700# with all the options. I was alone in the truck with 1/2 tank, bed was empty. Going up the slightest hill with OD off and the truck was pinging so loud I thought motor was going to blow. I was only doing about 2600 RPM so not really working the truck too hard.

What would cause the extremely loud pinging and cause power loss. My truck should be able to pull this 3700# trailer like it wasnt even back there.

I dont want to trade truck in since it is paid for. Is there anything I can do to motor to revive it. I am NOT interested in a Super Charger.

Should I have motor rebuilt and bored out?
Would headers make a difference with regaining power?
Does it need a valve job to get rid of pinging?
Does timing chain need replacement?
Should I buy a reman. engine and if so should I get one to 97 specs or go with a different year?
Can I put PI heads on my truck? If so will it make a difference.

I have camping trips planned for the whole summer and I dont want any engine problems while out of state.
Other than this pinging and lack of power on hills the truck pulled fine around town and it didnt make any pinging noise till I was on highway.
If anyone has any info, suggestions or advice I am all ears.
Please help me Ford truck gods, I beg of you..........

 

How many miles since the last EGR port cleaning? I would up the octane a bit maybe when pulling the trailer. Thats the first things that come to my mind but I am sure there will be lots of other replies.

 

WV trucker, I Only run Mobil Super unleaded...93 octane. I cant run less with the super chip.
I never heard of EGR port cleaning. What is it, how do I do it?
Please give me details, I will try anything.

 

Have you pulled any engine codes?

Jumping off the cliff of overreaction and asking about complete engine rebuilding is not helpful to the discussion. First you diagnose the problem, then you figure out the proper course of action. Let's work on diagnostic for now.


I would suspect a timing or ignition issue.

 

Check engine light is not on so I figured there wouldnt be any codes. Because of the mileage and the way it is performing I figured it might need an overhaul.

 

You don't need an overhaul. These engines are good for about 200,000 miles plus, with normal maintenance and use. I would also suggest that you take off your throttle body and clean the EGR ports. You should also dump a can of Seafoam in the gas tank after you clean the TB. Do a search of the site and you will find plenty of tips and pictures concerning the process.

Good Luck

 

Now that I know where the egr ports are...I remember seeing this little vavle thingy on the driver side of my t-body elbow that had a screw with the head snapped off. there are 2 screws that hold it on. When I changed my t-body I put it back together just like it was. I wonder if this has anything to do with the pinging or loss of power. Only one side of this valve is tight to the elbow, the other isnt since the head of the screw is snapped off. Does anyone know where I can buy a new t-body elbow or even better a ported and polished elbow for a 75mm t-body. It would save me time from having to do the porting and polishing again. Either one would be easier than drilling out the screw and retapping the elbow. I checked the usual site I buy parts from and no one lists a t-body elbow.

 

The little valve thing is the EGR valve. If you take off the TB to clean it then you can easy fix the broken stud. this will be cheaper than replacing it.

 

So if I have a broken stud on the EGR valve, would this cause a vacuum leak?
Wouldn't a vac leak throw a check engine light?
If it wont and I do have a leak would this cause the pinging and what feels like no power under load?
I I buy a new EGR valve (still have original on there), a new knowck sensor (still original) and fix the stud problem would this do anything for me?
Thanks to everyone for helping me narrow this down.

 

Yes you could have a vacuum leak.
No it won't set a code. Codes can be set without a check engine let on tho.
A vacuum leak changes the air intake that the the pcm is using to calibrate the fuel charge. It can cause pinging and a loss of power.
Buying a new EGR and knock sensor will definitely make your wallet lighter.
I would fix the stud one way or the other.

I agree 100% with Mr. Squirrel. Throwing parts at this problem is expensive and doesn't gaurantee a fix. My 98 has 112,000 on it and tows my 30 footer without a peep and it has no mods.

Start with the free and easy stuff.
Get the codes read (freebie at autozone)
Check all of your vacuum lines (brittle or gummy)
How many miles on the plugs/wires?

Good luck and let us know.

 

Run some fuel injector cleaner thru a couple tanks.

 

Inoperative, restricted EGR will cause "Pinging". As stated above the ports clog up pretty regular on 4.6 V-8's.

I'd try having/doing it yourself, egr ports cleaned, BEFORE I'd opt for a compete overhaul.

Pinging isn't good....but it isn't the end of the world either.

Have the codes checked too. May have some without the light.

 

The easy stuff to check first..........

Bad Gas - Did you get gas at a non routine station or did your routine used station get a bad shipment.
Vacuum leak - check hoses under hood
PCV valve - Ever been changed?
EGR Port cleaning - Unbolt it and remove hard carbon build up
"SEA Foam" - Remove PVC valve and suck up a bottle (engine will bog down, but keep it running until entire bottle is empty. Turn engine off and let it set a few min. at least. Then start it up. You will get huge amounts of smoke.....this is good as it is cleaning your intake, etc. Also put an entire bottle of Sea Foam in the tank (if its full).
Fuel Filter - Should be changed every 10K miles or so.
Air Filter - Do you need a clean one.
Mass Air Flow Sensor (MAF) - Is it dirty....be careful when cleaning or you can damage it.
Aftermarket computer chip - Try it without chip. Maybe chip needs a new burn.

........oh yeah, click on the SEARCH function and type in, "Pinging". The search function on this site has saved me alot of time and money!

.......oh yeah, is it Pinging or is it TICKING???????

Good luck and keep us updated.

 

The 98 I had a similar problem. It was a 4.6 two wheel drive that pulled a 16ft pace trailer that weighed about 4000 to 5000lbs. When it went over 3000 rpm it would tick, tick, tick. Tried everything and gave up. It never caused any problems (except for scaring me) and my mechanic said it was a lifter spring that was sticking. When I traded in my truck for an 04 it had 165000 miles and still no problems.

 

THE CHIP IS NOT PROGRAMMED FOR PULLING HEAVEY LOADS.
It is putting to much timing advance in for assumed performance ONLY, running.