I have a 2005 f250 with the 5.4 L. I think it had a sludge heart attack (my bad) and seized. I pulled it, replaced crank & bearings, rings and a new timing kit, and I cleaned everything of the sludge that I could find. Started it, and it runs like its timed wrong with P0345, P0349, cam position sensor A bank 2. I'm assuming bank 2 is left. Anyway, I thought maybe I mishandled the timing teeth, so I pulled it back apart, timing was perfect, but I noticed that the left chain tensioner would not retract all the way as the right one did. It's brand new, so I assumed that was the left/right difference, and I could not find the left installation clip to double check it. I put it back together - then found the left clip, SURE ENOUGH, it matches the right clip which means the left tensioner was not retracting enough, or something was binding it inside.

Now my question, can a bad tensioner throw those codes and cause the engine to run with disasterous timing? It won't idle, and has near zero power to even accelerate well RPM-wise.

I may have other complicating issues, but I'm hoping that this is the big piece. I was just about to go buy a VCT solenoid, even though I looked at it, and it seems fine, but I didn't test it.

 

You may want to post this in the Triton 4.6/5.4 forum they have some real good gear heads in there.

 

missed sludge probably made its way to the camshaft actuator?

 

It was a brand new tensioner, and it was stuck out like something was binding it. Even sludge would have come out with a vice trying to squeeze it closed. It didn't budge. Still ran badly after replacing it.
Now I'm into the camshaft phaser. It looks a little beat up at the key pin. I'm confused because it got beat up both directions!??? Then, wouldn't the VCT system account for that one degree of wear in the cam/sprocket mating?

 

How do you figure this was your fault?

 

Apparently a phaser is not left/right specific (says parts dept.). Anyway, it runs the same with a new phaser and swapping VCT's left to right. It still seems out of time with the only code being P0345, camshaft position sensor inop bank 2 (the VCT swap didn't take the problem to bank 1).

New crank & bearings, new rings, new timing kit, old heads & cams. Compression tested 155, 155, 155, 155, 155, 155, 160, 120 (within the 75% on the charts), and no smoke during what rough running it does accomplish. That 120 cylinder shouldn't completely ruin the truck should it? Because, it will not run, and I can floor it, and max I get is maybe 3000 RPM.
I think I'll go give the dealer some money.