i just bought a 93' f150 with the 4.9l straight 6... and i only had it for one day... because it broke down on me... when it happened.. i heard a loud "clunking" noise... but only in the lower rpm range... when i pushed on the gas... it went away.. and i pulled over to check out what it was... and it died.. and i havent been able to get it started... it cranks over... but wont fire... i found it out to be something with the distributor... its the little ring gear that turns the gears of the distributor.... they wont turn... im just wondering what turns that gear... if it involves the camshaft... or the timing belt... i would really appreciate any information you might have on this subject thank you

 

not an expert someone please correct me if I am wrong but I believe the gear is turned by the camshaft.......which is turned by the timing chain. Sounds to me like something in the distributor.

 

As I recall the distributer is gear driven off of the camshaft.

Did you pull the distributer and see damage to the gear? If yes, they are replaceable, but you should remove the broken parts first.

If the distributer gear is good, then look at the camshaft gear and check for obvious damage (broken cam?). if it looks good, then you could have a timing chain issue.

You probably don't want to hear this, but it might be time for a rebuild. Once complete that motor just might outlast you.

I miss my ole 4.9, it had enough torque to pull just about anything.