I'll try the short version here.....friend changed out oil in his 5.4l (2007).
Did not see the oil filter gasket had stayed onto the housing. Leaked out oil engine died several times as he limped it in home drove about 5-7 miles round trip w/ engine cutting off a few times... Discovered what happened removed the extra gasket and topped it off...

Now it rattles, backfires on occassion and has no power and now a rough idle.

Here are my guesses: the rattle from the pass. valve cover is a dry hyd. lifter. the backfire is due to that lifter and valve timing is now off.

Solution: I'm thinking adding a qt. of Gunk engine cleaner to clean out valve train of junk, idle till warm then drain, refill w/ fresh oil and allow to idle to see if hyd. lifter will fill back up again.

All this short of him taking it to a wrench to open up valve train and see what all it's doing.

OK, now I'm open to ideas or suggestions that may help diagnosing whether the engine is toast, valve train has some damage but is recoverable or something else in between.
or


Thanks folks...

 

It's probably toast.

 

aw there yah go trying to cheer me up....


thanks...I'll stand by and see what other hits I get and see how my bud progresses with the wrench he's taking it too.....

 

I certainly hope this is not what it is!

Go with what you have planned and then review it again and let us know maybe something else might come too.

 

That's too bad. My dad told me back when I was young and he was teaching me to change oil he said "always make sure the gasket from the old filter comes off. I have seen it stick on the engine before." He told me that it happened 3 out of like ten times. I have seen it happen but I always checked. Since I started using Motorcraft filters, I always check to make sure the old gasket comes off of course because that is so in-grained in my brain, but I have never seen one not come off on a MC filter. I will certainly tell my son the same thing when I am teaching him to change oil in a few years.

 

I would guess the the engine was starved for oil, causing damage to the bottom end. Once this is damaged the engine can not build the correct amount of oil pressure for the variable cam timing, and the noise is probably coming from the phasers that adjust valve timing, and the valve timing being off is causing the missing.

 

I once changed the oil in my van and left the old gasket on a few years ago. No, I remember now--the dealer put some kind of cheap economy filter on the engine with their "oil change special" and I just swapped a Motorcraft 820S onto the engine after a couple days because the ADB valve in the cheap filter had my engine clattering on cold starts. I usually do check the filter surface, but I was in a hurry to pull of the new/old filter and just put on the Motorcraft.

I make it a policy after an oil change to start the engine and look under it to make sure there are no issues, then shut it down and check the oil. I ended up with about 3 quarts in the driveway (fortunately we are cat owners and a 20 lb bag of kitty litter is a big help). I could HEAR the oil gushing out...

In 1971 (when I was 19), I changed the oil in my old Austin Healey 3000 and did not get the gasket sealed on the cannister type filter on that--finicky O ring type of thing. Pumped about 4 quarts out on my gf's parents' driveway. Again, I was standing outside the car and saw the gigantic stream of oil... So the gasket problem with my van was a case of deja vu.

In neither case did the engine run for more than about a minute. And as long as I live, I will check the oil filter surface for the old gasket. I realize this doesn't do your friend any good, but doesn't everyone run the engine after a change, then shut the engine down and then check the oil level? This has always been standard practice for me.

Good luck with your bud's engine, but I fear that driving it that far with no oil was a very expensive trip... How could he not notice that something was Very Wrong?

George

 

That would make sense presently it makes good oil pressure.

I'll pass that on to him thanks for the input. NOW, I have to educate my self on all this new fangled lingo... and learn what and how they work. My honey's Larry is a 2010 5.4l also BUT I've been wrenching one form or anuther since the Army trusted me to work on these CH-47's Ha...... oh yeah I've had my share of snafus though lol....

 

He may one day get on this board so I will withhold answering that...!!!! he

 

Wonder what's the reason for having an oil pressure guage?

 

I found an article that lead me to think maybe the VCT gears do need replacing. But since he is obviously not mechanically inclined AND has not replied to my emails of information; I have concluded that this horse has been taken to the water and he ain't thirsty so guess what.....he's on his own......

I do appreciate the rabbit trial of learning all about VCT and what to be on the look out for on our 2010 5.3L! Wow at least I got something out of all this and for that many thanks and glad I could be of some slight entertaining value... as some folks would say during Oktoberfest in the Hill Country..... PROST!