Well I'm sure 50,000 others have started a thread for this and I apologize. My truck has always had a mild click, but has always been disregarded as I read that both injectors and cam phasers at normal running condition combine to make this uniform noise. At any rate over recent time I have started to notice a new noise and to be honest I'm getting concerned. The truck is used to tow a lot and in early October it's going to take a 760 mile round trip pulling a jeep wrangler.

On to my noise though. At a cold start up it's not noticed, at warm start up it's not noticed. It's not until the truck has been driven for a small amount of time and gets up to temperature that I really notice the noise. Sitting in my driveway I can rev to a little under the 1- on the Tach and this is when its noticed most. After this either the noise is drowned out or it goes away, with my exhaust its sometimes hard to tell. Here is a video with the noise, as you can tell i start up and you can hear the normal running noise, but as I rev the rpms the noise becomes a little louder and more pronounced.



Thanks to anyone that can help me out.

 

Sounds exactly like mine, from the research I have done it's the Cam Phasers. Mines going into the dealer on Monday to get them fixed. I bought it used with a certified warranty so I hope they don't give me any hazzles. I have 33,000 on her and it sounds like crap. It is so loud that people have actually asked if that was normal. This is my third f150 and I am really disappointed in this truck. This probably dosen't help you, but Ill let you know what the dealer says.

 

I would bet that you have a bunch of miles on it, and the noise is partly the phasers, but your concern is most likely due to faulty timing chain tensioners. This is the slapping noise as you rev it up. In 03, Ford changed the design which now incorporates an embossed o ring to seal. This o ring will fail and cause oil to leak by. Repairing this requires removal of the front cover and replacing both tensioners. I would recommend doing both phasers while it is apart.

 

Trucks barely got 42,000 miles on it. I took it in because of this problem right before my Warranty ended and ford techs told me nothing was wrong and it was normal. Now I'm out of Warranty and its gotten a little worse since then.

I'm guessing changing the tensioners is a pretty big undertaking?

 

Ford just called me and they are going to replace the chain tensioners and quote "related parts" whatever that means. It's all covered under 5/60,000 warranty so whatever they want to change to make the noise go away is fine with me except that they are keeping the truck for four days. All this on a 2008 that only has 39,000 on her. They said there was no know issues with Cam Phasers on the 08, but I know that I have the old designed heads and found on this site that Cam Phasers could still be bad. I hope that all this turns out well as I need that truck for a 1,000 trip on the 19th. I'm a little concerned that such a new truck has such serious problems.

 

Man sounds bad. At least your covered under warranty. If I have problems I'm screwed since they pushed me off the first time claiming "nothing is wrong." Keep me up to date on what they end up replacing if you don't mind.

 

If you have documentation you might be able to go after them.. Or at least get ford to cover part of it. Its well know the Cam phasers and the tensioner are junk on those engine.

 

Yeah It's a little frustrating for sure, but I don't think its worth my time trying. Probably easier to find the parts at cost and replace them myself. Just know what to replace and what not to will be my problem.

 

There are write ups on it here on this site. looks like a big deal to me. I'd atleast have a nice chat with the dealer service department that blew it.

 

Just got the truck back from ford, they finnished early. Here is the paragraph from the invoice word for word-

"Replace camshaft sprocket and chains, tensioners and phasor sprockets"
"diagnosis-found noise from timing chain area at approx 1300 rpm. Remove valve covers and timing covers for access to timing components. Inspection found chain slap, failed tensioners, phasor sprockets and crankshaft sprocket. Mtime used to replace crankshaft sprocket and chains, tensioners and phasor sprockets"

Are phasor sprockets the cam phasors that get so much attention? The reason I ask is no where on the parts list does it say cam phasors or anything similar. Although the invoice emplies that they where changed.

My wife picked up the truck as I was at work. Guess what the knock is still there, albeit not as loud and dosen't last as long through the rpm range. ford must feel that the remaining knock is normal, but I'm not happy.
I feel like they just changed some parts to make me happy or to get the warranty work. After our vacation next week I'm going to take it back and try again. I still feel that it is a cam phasor issues as there is some question in my mind that they were changed. Any thoughts?

 

Hm, that's odd. As far as I'm concerned none of that would be the phaser. Sort of what I'm afraid of. I would like to do the work myself, but I wouldn't even know what to replace. I would like to take it to Ford and have them diagnosis it, but since it's not under warranty I can't afford their "well we will start by replacing this and see how it goes from there" attitude.

 

That's where I'm at. I don't think they changed the phasors as the knock is still there. I told them about the research I did and they just dismissed the info and now I still have the same issue. They are just throwing parts at the issue. I've been down this road before with Ford. I'm going to have to force the issue somehow with them, or wait for them to get so bad they can't ignore it. At least I have the certified warranty that will take me until 2014 or 100,000 which every comes first. Good luck with your truck.

 

Thanks, and keep me updated if anything else arises or happens with your truck. I hope you can get it fixed correctly and soon.

 

My Uncle came in for a visit this weekend from Kentucky. He's a pretty knowledgeable person when it comes to vehicles, because he has done his fair share of work to them. My grandparents had told him about my recent troubles and he called telling me to bring it in and he would take a listen. After going all around the engine, listening to the symptoms and being able to re-create them any time just like I explained he came to the conclusion that I have a lifter going bad. He isolated it to the driver side first couple cylinders. Using a stethoscope that's for sure where it was the loudest. He believes one of them are just wore out and bleeding oil back instead of retaining it causing the ticking every time the cam makes a round. After explaining to me how it works, it would make since.

You can only hear it when its hot, when it's cold the oil is thick enough it doesn't bleed back out as quickly as it does when its thin. You only hear it at low rpms because that's the only rpms it has time to leak the oil back out, at faster rpm it's moving quick enough it doesn't effect it. Plus the truck has no rough idle, and runs fine all together.

As far as I'm concerned I'm going to see if I can have a few other people listen and see what they think, but I think it will probably be left alone for awhile.

 

I have the exact same problem on my 06 5.4 w/ 49000 miles on it. I started hearing it just before 36000, so I took it to the dealership and they said it was normal. Now I'm out of warranty, and when I took it to another Ford dealership today they said it sounds like timing chain slap, which is what I've been saying all along. They said it's 100% not cam phasers. Guys at Ford said at least $1200 just to get the cam chain cover off and check it out, as did my personal mechanic. It's at least 10 hours of labor. I'm considering doin it myself, but I don't have any time to do it. At least then I'd only be dishing out a few hundred for tensioners and guides.

Does your tick go away above 12-1500 or has it progressively gotten worse and kept knocking higher up in the RPM's? Mine just seems to be getting worse and worse and I'm worried about jumping time and putting a valve through my piston.