09 F150 ticking noise from right bank 5.4.

BrunoWilimek · July 14, 2009

Got a truck here with noise at 900 rpm loaded and hot. Oil pressure looks good, over 30 psi hot and 55 psi when making noise. Noise went away after very briefly doing first oil change. Truck has about 7000km on it. Owner tows a large boat, but weight is within rated capacity. Noise worst when towing boat/trailer combo. I am presently modifying the 303-1039 tool as per a previous posting to remove roller followers and inspect valve springs and stems for damage as per hotline. If head removal is required, manual says to remove engine to remove heads. I was wondering if this is the best way to go. Has anyone done this on one of these trucks yet? Would it be easier to do cab-off as I do with the 6.0's and be able to leave the engine in the chassis? Posted Image Any and all ideas would be appreciated.

BrunoWilimek · July 14, 2009

On further inspection with borescope, looks like debris of some kind on top of #3 piston and possible cylinder wall scoring. I will keep you posted.

BrunoWilimek · July 14, 2009

Tried magnet in cylinder and only came up with small carbon particles, and probably oil residue on cylinder wall. Must have been a red herring. Called hotline and was directed to re-assemble and try to narrow down source of noise. Sounded loudest at front. Also told to disconnect cam solenoids with engine off(locks them in place). Noise gone-told to replace phasers. I will let you know if that fixes it.

Jim Warman · July 15, 2009

On a scale of one to ten - is the noise irritating or close to OMG!!!! Jeez, if we only had a way to qunatify something like that part....

Have you tried "full fielding" the actuator to see if that quietens it down (it will run pretty ragged)? Don't discount the possibility of tensioner/guide concerns....

joshbuys · July 16, 2009

left or right side? miles? are they using an oem or aftermarket oil filter? Check ssm 20819

My brother-in-law had an 08 f250 5.4l with the right head cam oil galleys plugged - using penzoil oil filters and around 80,000 miles.

Lift the cab is the way to go!

BrunoWilimek · July 22, 2009

left or right side? miles? are they using an oem or aftermarket oil filter? Check ssm 20819

My brother-in-law had an 08 f250 5.4l with the right head cam oil galleys plugged - using penzoil oil filters and around 80,000 miles.

Lift the cab is the way to go!

Right side. Original oil+filter changed in first attempt to cure noise by another tech at 6000km. I saw the ssm and checked the caps with no debris found. I then replaced phasers with only a little improvement. I have only just finished putting solenoids/valve bodies and tensioners in it and will let you know if that fixes it. Hotline said they have been having problems with these engines at low mileage with "manufacturing debris" in the valve bodies. Note: the noise definitely went away with the solenoids disconnected. Listening to the right bank with my stethoscope, it sounded loudest at the front, but also almost as loud at the rear of the head.

Aaron · July 23, 2009

left or right side? miles? are they using an oem or aftermarket oil filter? Check ssm 20819

My brother-in-law had an 08 f250 5.4l with the right head cam oil galleys plugged - using penzoil oil filters and around 80,000 miles.

We've done about 4 or 5 of these in the last month or so. 4.6 2v's, all of 'em.

On edit: I believe one of 'em was a 2V 5.4L

BrunoWilimek · July 28, 2009

Well, no debris found anywhere, yet, so, the head is coming off. I will keep you posted. Posted Image

Aaron · August 3, 2009

I had an 05 making a noise this weekend (my saturday to work)

'Cept it only went CLUNK.

Once.

Posted Image

BrunoWilimek · August 5, 2009

I wish mine had done that when I first started on it. It has the new loaded head on it with no change in the noise level. Of course I stripped the old head od camshaft and followers and hla's without finding anything and I blew compressed air into the block which came out at the left chain tensioner. Jim, the noise is about a 4 on a scale of 1-10. Ten being GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE!!! I could live with it if it was mine, but the customer can't. I am pricing a long block for it now and SM is not sure how we are going to get paid for all of the repair. Posted Image

BrunoWilimek · August 6, 2009

On a scale of one to ten - is the noise irritating or close to OMG!!!! Jeez, if we only had a way to qunatify something like that part....

Have you tried "full fielding" the actuator to see if that quietens it down (it will run pretty ragged)? Don't discount the possibility of tensioner/guide concerns....

If the noise does quiet down, what is the fix?

BrunoWilimek · August 6, 2009

left or right side? miles? are they using an oem or aftermarket oil filter? Check ssm 20819

My brother-in-law had an 08 f250 5.4l with the right head cam oil galleys plugged - using penzoil oil filters and around 80,000 miles.

Lift the cab is the way to go!

Yes, that is the correct way to do it. Ford put the cab to frame bolts underneath, just like the 08 Super Duties. Just remember to heat the bolt heads(same as the S.D.'s)due to the use of cage nuts and loctite. The cab removal is actually the easiest of any truck I have done so far. I will post a step by step proceedure and some pics later when I find some extra time(about 3 1/2 hours total including making notes to re/re). Also noted was the flip-up bottom of the shroud that actually locks in the up position to make front cover removal a breeze in chassis.

mchan68 · August 7, 2009

Cab removal on any '04 to current body style F-150s are a breeze in my opinion, in that NOTHING on the interior of the vehicle needs to be touched. I don't even bother with the cab-to-frame bolts on these trucks. I remove the two 15mm nuts on each mount, and raise the cab with the mounts still bolted to the cab.

BrunoWilimek · August 8, 2009

Cab removal on any '04 to current body style F-150s are a breeze in my opinion, in that NOTHING on the interior of the vehicle needs to be touched. I don't even bother with the cab-to-frame bolts on these trucks. I remove the two 15mm nuts on each mount, and raise the cab with the mounts still bolted to the cab.

I thought of doing that, Mike, but wondered how easy it was to line the bolts up with the holes on re-entry. This would mean you wouldn't have to worry about the loctite on the big bolts. On an unrelated note to cab removal, but further to the noise issue, I just contacted hotline for the umpteenth time and finally got a good engineer. He basically said it sounds like a normal 5.4 3 valve noise. Basically the phaser is just starting to allow the cam pulley to turn a few degrees and due to timing chain deflection(some have more than others, causing some to be noisier than others)the phaser starts to vibrate. This noise should be compared to several other trucks to see if it compares as some are going to be louder than others. Putting a new engine in this truck may make the noise better, or it may actually get worse. Now we just have to convince the customer of this fact, as he has been in a rental for 4 weeks now and truck is no better than when he dropped it off. If it was my truck I would be able to live with it, so Jim was correct when he asked what level to classify the noise on a scale of 1-10. The engineer asked the same question. Well, I am taking the next week off, so will not get back to you for a while. Posted Image