Josh,

What year and motor? Is the pinging coming from the left or right side or underneath?

 

I now also have a pinging sound in my Truck. I just spent $90 for eval by Ford and they said it was bad lifters. To see if your problem is similiar to mine search for posts by Jakef.

I've added some Fuel Injector cleaner (which I don't think will solve the noise) and Resilone to oil (whick I hope will help) and will continue to drive it.

 

i as well have a pinging or ticking sounds from under the right side of my truck as well but if i put it in N and rev its not there, i do have a aftermarket exhaust but it did it even before i put that on, seems like its getting louder....wondering if it has something to do when the motor is engaged in D......5.4 4x4 02 ....any thoughts would be great....

 

It is a 02 f150 5.4 46,000, And the noise is coming from under the truck on the passager side. And it only does it when I first start driving when the truck is cold, after 5-10mins it does not do it. It will also do it while idleing too, when cold.

Could it be an exhaust leak..

My friend thinks that it is the exhaust metal expanding,thats why it happens when it is cold?

 

Does the noise change with the engine rpm's? If it is an exhaust leak the noise should increase. Will it do it when in neutral and giving it gas? My mom's 95 Mystique has a cracked exhaust manifold and the exhaust leak sound goes away once it heats up.

 

If it occurs at a certain RPM in N or D, it is probably just a loose bolt or bracket on the exaust that allows it to bang against some other metal. Try letting the truck cool off for a while and then have a friend start up the truck and go to that RPM while you are under there and listen for it. If you do it right after start up, you should be able to grab on to some of the metal down there without burning your hand off and see if you can find the source of the noise. This is all assuming that the noise is related to the exhaust.