engine sounds ruff
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engine sounds ruff
sounds like a diesel under the hood but its a 5.4 04 f150...took it to a ford dealer he said sounds like its on firing on 7 cylinders no check engine come on still lots of power have it booked it but just wonder if anyone had this issue,also is there is a external fuel filter on this truck
Last edited by Darren-75; Mar 13, 2010 at 10:41 AM. Reason: spelling
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From: Beaverton Or.
Search "cam phasers" Common issue on the 3v 5.4L Lots of people describe it just as you have.
Sounds like it to me....
But I'm a 2v 5.4L guy, I'm sure a 3v techy will chime in shortly, give you a hand and point you in a better direction than myself.
Sounds like it to me....
But I'm a 2v 5.4L guy, I'm sure a 3v techy will chime in shortly, give you a hand and point you in a better direction than myself.
Last edited by Toyz; Mar 13, 2010 at 11:06 AM.
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From: Burleson, Texas
Engine sounds ruff? Must really be *******...
Can't really make a diagnosis over the internet, but it does sound like cam phasers, as long as the noise you're referring to is a knock, and it goes away off idle. They all make the knock noise at idle, some are just more noisy than others.
Also the fuel injectors tick all the time, which is normal.
Not sure if bad cam phasers will throw a code though. Someone more knowledgeable on the subject will chime in soon enough.
Can't really make a diagnosis over the internet, but it does sound like cam phasers, as long as the noise you're referring to is a knock, and it goes away off idle. They all make the knock noise at idle, some are just more noisy than others.
Also the fuel injectors tick all the time, which is normal.
Not sure if bad cam phasers will throw a code though. Someone more knowledgeable on the subject will chime in soon enough.
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engine still has lots of power
Engine sounds ruff? Must really be *******...
Can't really make a diagnosis over the internet, but it does sound like cam phasers, as long as the noise you're referring to is a knock, and it goes away off idle. They all make the knock noise at idle, some are just more noisy than others.
Also the fuel injectors tick all the time, which is normal.
Not sure if bad cam phasers will throw a code though. Someone more knowledgeable on the subject will chime in soon enough.
Can't really make a diagnosis over the internet, but it does sound like cam phasers, as long as the noise you're referring to is a knock, and it goes away off idle. They all make the knock noise at idle, some are just more noisy than others.
Also the fuel injectors tick all the time, which is normal.
Not sure if bad cam phasers will throw a code though. Someone more knowledgeable on the subject will chime in soon enough.
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Cam phasers will not throw a code. Does the noise go away with some throttle application? If you're hearing the noise at idle, try bringing the RPM up 500-1000 higher and see if that helps.
Cam phasers work off oil pressure, so check your gauges at idle... could be the oil pump. But if you're only hearing it on side of the engine, it's probably not that.
I didn't see if you had a 5.4L 3v or 2v. In 2004, both were made. The older body style (Heritage) will have a 2v motor and no cam phasers (which would rule them out). The newer body style (non-Heritage) will have the 3v motor.
Either way, here's a few things you can do (starting with the easiest) to see if it's cylinder problem or a cam phaser problem:
- Troubleshoot using injectors: Start the truck and pull each fuel injector harness off in turn. Listen for a change in engine behavior. As you pull each harness off, you should hear a change in the idle. If you come across one that doesn't affect idle, that's your bad cylinder. If they all affect idle, they're probably operating ok (meaning, cam phasers).
- Pull your spark plugs: Check each one. Make sure they're not busted/melted (if you got some bad gas, a cylinder may have had some detonation). They should all look pretty much the same. If you've been running the truck like this for a while, this will be especially helpful, as it will have given the plugs some time to change appearance. Here's a good guide to reading your plugs (plugs never lie):
http://www.ngksparkplugs.com/tech_su...qs/faqread.asp
If you have cam phasers and one is bad, all the plugs on one side will look different than the ones on the other side. If you only have one plug that looks bad, there's your cylinder.
- Get yourself a temp gun: Real cheap at Harbor Freight... a little more at auto part's stores. Point the beam at the ports coming out of each head (as close to the head as possible). You should see similar temps across each port. If one is cooler than the other, that's a bad cylinder.
- Do a compression test: Now, this is a bit of a pain, as the 3v engines have a unique spark plug thread and most compression kits (loaners at parts stores) won't have them. If you think you may have a serious cylinder problem (not just a bad injector or plug, but something to do with the piston itself), you'll want to do a compression test. Here is a link to the adapter you'll need. You probably won't find it locally:
http://www.sjdiscounttools.com/sgt34010.html
If it is the cam phasers:
Cam phasers cost about $200 from the dealer, IIRC. Personally, I have mine locked out. It may be around the same price (or even less) to just do that, will net you a few more HP up top, will allow you to use the broken cam phaser(s), as they'll be "locked out", and you'll never have to worry about the bastards again. This would require a set of cam phaser lockouts (little aluminum pieces) from Livernois and a tune that zeros out the VCT tables, disables VCT in general, and adds the VCT spark values to the MBT spark table. A tuner can do this easily. If you already have a Diablo/SCT tuner, this could be a cheaper route.
Here's a link to the lockouts themselves. $50 from Livernois:
http://www.livernoismotorsports.com/...t.phtml?p=1701
Here's a great guide on how to install them, should you do it or have the dealer do it. They could probably do the job in 1-2 hours, no problem:
http://www.s197forum.com/forum/showthread.php?p=80469
If I can help, just PM me. Hope you get it sorted out.
Cam phasers work off oil pressure, so check your gauges at idle... could be the oil pump. But if you're only hearing it on side of the engine, it's probably not that.
I didn't see if you had a 5.4L 3v or 2v. In 2004, both were made. The older body style (Heritage) will have a 2v motor and no cam phasers (which would rule them out). The newer body style (non-Heritage) will have the 3v motor.
Either way, here's a few things you can do (starting with the easiest) to see if it's cylinder problem or a cam phaser problem:
- Troubleshoot using injectors: Start the truck and pull each fuel injector harness off in turn. Listen for a change in engine behavior. As you pull each harness off, you should hear a change in the idle. If you come across one that doesn't affect idle, that's your bad cylinder. If they all affect idle, they're probably operating ok (meaning, cam phasers).
- Pull your spark plugs: Check each one. Make sure they're not busted/melted (if you got some bad gas, a cylinder may have had some detonation). They should all look pretty much the same. If you've been running the truck like this for a while, this will be especially helpful, as it will have given the plugs some time to change appearance. Here's a good guide to reading your plugs (plugs never lie):
http://www.ngksparkplugs.com/tech_su...qs/faqread.asp
If you have cam phasers and one is bad, all the plugs on one side will look different than the ones on the other side. If you only have one plug that looks bad, there's your cylinder.
- Get yourself a temp gun: Real cheap at Harbor Freight... a little more at auto part's stores. Point the beam at the ports coming out of each head (as close to the head as possible). You should see similar temps across each port. If one is cooler than the other, that's a bad cylinder.
- Do a compression test: Now, this is a bit of a pain, as the 3v engines have a unique spark plug thread and most compression kits (loaners at parts stores) won't have them. If you think you may have a serious cylinder problem (not just a bad injector or plug, but something to do with the piston itself), you'll want to do a compression test. Here is a link to the adapter you'll need. You probably won't find it locally:
http://www.sjdiscounttools.com/sgt34010.html
If it is the cam phasers:
Cam phasers cost about $200 from the dealer, IIRC. Personally, I have mine locked out. It may be around the same price (or even less) to just do that, will net you a few more HP up top, will allow you to use the broken cam phaser(s), as they'll be "locked out", and you'll never have to worry about the bastards again. This would require a set of cam phaser lockouts (little aluminum pieces) from Livernois and a tune that zeros out the VCT tables, disables VCT in general, and adds the VCT spark values to the MBT spark table. A tuner can do this easily. If you already have a Diablo/SCT tuner, this could be a cheaper route.
Here's a link to the lockouts themselves. $50 from Livernois:
http://www.livernoismotorsports.com/...t.phtml?p=1701
Here's a great guide on how to install them, should you do it or have the dealer do it. They could probably do the job in 1-2 hours, no problem:
http://www.s197forum.com/forum/showthread.php?p=80469
If I can help, just PM me. Hope you get it sorted out.
Last edited by cabuzzi; Mar 13, 2010 at 11:06 PM.
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One things's for sure, I'm glad I locked out my cam phasers (though with my cams, I had no choice).
Don't want to ever have to worry about them.