4.6L misfire problems and remanufactured replacement engine
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Junior Member
Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 2
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From: Texas
4.6L misfire problems and remanufactured replacement engine
I have a 2001 F150 XLT, with just around 23000 miles on it. On Friday, I got in the truck and started it only to have the "Service Engine Soon" light come on. Took it into the service department Friday morning and they call me back in the afternoon and tell me I'm going to need a new engine. A new engine? I was shocked.
It turns out, according to the shop foreman, that cylinder 8 has a 7% loss in compression and was occasionally misfiring. He said that he's seen this problem before and he suspects it's due to a cooling problem, because cylinder 8 is furthest away from the water pump.
He said it's not a problem and I asked him if there were any TSB's relating to this.
This really sounded like a design problem to me, so it seemed like it was Ford Motor Company's responsibility. Despite this, Ford Corporate wouldn't pay for a rental vehicle, just 1/2 the cost, up to $28 per day, gas/mileage/insurance not covered. The shop foreman assured me that I could drive the vehicle till Tuesday, when they call in and talk to the engineering department to get approval to replace the engine.
To make matters worse, the lady I talked to at Ford Corporate informed me that they would replace the engine with a remanufactured/refurbished engine. In her favor, she was polite and very level headed. Of course everybody I talked to assured me that a remanufactured engine was approved by the same high quality Ford standards. I asked for a new engine and was told that only current model year vehicles recieved a new engine. So basically, I'm getting the block from an engine that somebody else had problems with. I think this sucks and Ford is not living up to their "Quality is Job 1" motto.
I took the truck by Autozone to get the OBDII code readout, and surely enough, it came back P0308 cylinder 8 misfire.
What are other people's experiences with refurbished engines? Has anybody else experienced this problem before? Does anybody think I'm getting the corporate screw-over or am I being treated fairly? Is this going to hurt my resale value?
Thanks for any replies/advices/common experiences shared.
It turns out, according to the shop foreman, that cylinder 8 has a 7% loss in compression and was occasionally misfiring. He said that he's seen this problem before and he suspects it's due to a cooling problem, because cylinder 8 is furthest away from the water pump.
He said it's not a problem and I asked him if there were any TSB's relating to this.
This really sounded like a design problem to me, so it seemed like it was Ford Motor Company's responsibility. Despite this, Ford Corporate wouldn't pay for a rental vehicle, just 1/2 the cost, up to $28 per day, gas/mileage/insurance not covered. The shop foreman assured me that I could drive the vehicle till Tuesday, when they call in and talk to the engineering department to get approval to replace the engine.
To make matters worse, the lady I talked to at Ford Corporate informed me that they would replace the engine with a remanufactured/refurbished engine. In her favor, she was polite and very level headed. Of course everybody I talked to assured me that a remanufactured engine was approved by the same high quality Ford standards. I asked for a new engine and was told that only current model year vehicles recieved a new engine. So basically, I'm getting the block from an engine that somebody else had problems with. I think this sucks and Ford is not living up to their "Quality is Job 1" motto.
I took the truck by Autozone to get the OBDII code readout, and surely enough, it came back P0308 cylinder 8 misfire.
What are other people's experiences with refurbished engines? Has anybody else experienced this problem before? Does anybody think I'm getting the corporate screw-over or am I being treated fairly? Is this going to hurt my resale value?
Thanks for any replies/advices/common experiences shared.
Member
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 78
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From: Vacaville CA
#8 Cylinder Misfire
Man That sucks! You only have 23,000 miles and need a new engine! If you do a search there are a few people running around with Referb'd motors, I really haven;t seen any complaints.
But When I had my CEL come on.. my #4 cylinder was misfiring, I just changed the plugs and wires and the problem went away... I didn;t do any compression checks or anything like that. But at 23,000 miles your plugs are probably still good.
What engine do you have?? 4.6 or the 5.4?
Scott.
But When I had my CEL come on.. my #4 cylinder was misfiring, I just changed the plugs and wires and the problem went away... I didn;t do any compression checks or anything like that. But at 23,000 miles your plugs are probably still good.
What engine do you have?? 4.6 or the 5.4?
Scott.
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Junior Member
Joined: Aug 2002
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From: Texas
Yeah it sucks 
I'm driving a rental Pontiac Sunfire and it feels like a friggin go cart compared to my F150.
Ford has decided that instead of replacing the engine, they want to replace the head with the engine in the truck. All this on a 1.5 year old truck.
Does this sound ridiculuous or is this normal Ford procedure? The shop says normally they just replace the engine. I guess a refurbished engine is better than the open heart surgery they want to perform on my truck. Why do you guys think?
BTW, I have the 4.6L engine. I thought about the 5.4L, but I read here about the piston slapping problem and some of the other problems, so I decided not to go with the 5.4. I didn't go with the V6, because I wanted the power of a V8 and it seemed weak, but maybe it would have been a better choice.
I'm driving a rental Pontiac Sunfire and it feels like a friggin go cart compared to my F150.Ford has decided that instead of replacing the engine, they want to replace the head with the engine in the truck. All this on a 1.5 year old truck.
Does this sound ridiculuous or is this normal Ford procedure? The shop says normally they just replace the engine. I guess a refurbished engine is better than the open heart surgery they want to perform on my truck. Why do you guys think?
BTW, I have the 4.6L engine. I thought about the 5.4L, but I read here about the piston slapping problem and some of the other problems, so I decided not to go with the 5.4. I didn't go with the V6, because I wanted the power of a V8 and it seemed weak, but maybe it would have been a better choice.
Senior Member
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 934
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From: Northwest
icarus_avenged,
You're being to paranoid. Replacing a head, although, a lengthy and expensive job (yours is under warranty, so who cares) is also very easily done. A good mechanic can replace heads all day long without a problem. Your engine will be better than what it was before the problem as you will now have a fresh head on yours.
As for remanufactured engines, as long as they are remanufactured by a reputable company, you should have absolutely no problem with one. As for thinking you received somebody elses bad engine, you can be assured that the blocks are fully inspected and then put together with new parts. Again, you will get the benefit of an engine that will be as good as, if not better, than the engine you have in your vehicle before you had a problem.: Relax, kick back, and rest assured that you will come out of this ahead.
You're being to paranoid. Replacing a head, although, a lengthy and expensive job (yours is under warranty, so who cares) is also very easily done. A good mechanic can replace heads all day long without a problem. Your engine will be better than what it was before the problem as you will now have a fresh head on yours.
As for remanufactured engines, as long as they are remanufactured by a reputable company, you should have absolutely no problem with one. As for thinking you received somebody elses bad engine, you can be assured that the blocks are fully inspected and then put together with new parts. Again, you will get the benefit of an engine that will be as good as, if not better, than the engine you have in your vehicle before you had a problem.: Relax, kick back, and rest assured that you will come out of this ahead.