Well I guess I going to the dealer on Monday. My F150 5.4 / 116,000 miles Has had a ticking sound on the passenger side for a week or so. Last weekend I cleaned the Mass Flow Sensor which made no change in power. Now i'm asking for help! please chime in if you please. I'm afraid to see what the dealer is going to say!

 

Is it an exhaust leak? They're known for the studs rusting and breaking off

 

Thank you for your input. You may something there. I have had some pretty good fumes in the front area. The dealer thought cam phasers but cant get to it till one week. i will tell them to check the manifold before doing anything to it. Will an exhaust leak cause loss of power when trying to accelerate to pass or enter highway. thanks again.

 

I just had to have the passenger's side manifold on my 2010 at work replaced. The studs were fine but the manifold cracked.

Lots of loud exhaust noises and lots of exhaust fumes in the cab, but no codes and power was unaffected.

Very well may have two things going on.

The phasers aren't particularly problematic on these but the VCT solenoids have been known to stick once and a while, which could cause problems.

Unplugging the VCT solenoids makes a noticeable difference in power, but also illuminates the CEL, so they probably aren't unplugged, but if they are stuck and the cam timing is off, that could affect power in a noticeable way .... But that should turn on the CEL as well...

 

Thank you meborder, I would think that a it would have gotten a CEL but it hasn't. sometimes feels fine other times I just sit and wait for it to get it together. Come on get going. Yesterday started it up in the AM opened the hood and didn't smell exhaust. I asked the dealer to check everything before digging inside. They said they always do that. They have been pretty good to me in the past so I expect the same here! Thanks again!

 

She goes to the dealer tomorrow. I will post an update as soon as I find out what they say. Just in case anyone is watching and has similar problems. Thanks for reading my thread!

 

Dealer could not find anything wrong with my truck. Had it hooked up to a computer and drove it. Couldn't get it to run bad so I took it home. Now i'm back with the same issue but a little worse. I took it back again this week and had the shop foreman ride with me and when I take off seems pretty good and when it shifts to 2nd gear I give it the gas and it falls on it's face. Still no cel codes. called me today they think the catalytic convertors are clogged. They want 2600 bucks plus tax to replace them. No Way. Really? Went and got it and took it to a muffler shop they will check them for $60 and if they're clogged they will replace both for $500. Any ideas at all. I really appreciate the help. Hope nobody has to go thru this.

 

Don't bother paying a diagnostic fee to test the converters. Climb under there with a wrench and remove the front oxygen sensors, then go for a drive. If the cats are clogged it will drive better as the excess pressure is vented out the oxygen sensor ports. If it still has issues the converters are fine and you can spend your $60 diagnostic fee to have them look elsewhere.

 

Thanks Tom. Do you have any idea why no check engine light. It's really running bad. A sign at the muffler shop says if your cats are clogged then you have other problems that need to be fixed.

 

No idea about the check engine light, most of the time an issue this noticeable will set a code of some flavor. I would expect a catalyst inefficiency code if they were failing, but that doesn't always happen. Sometimes a misfire can be noticeable, but not occur often enough to set the code.

Doesn't sound like you have clogged converters to me...they're not going to be clogged one minute and good the next. Worth confirming by pulling the sensors though, if nothing else to prove the dealer wrong.

 

Thanks Tom, I will pull them and test drive!

 

Finally I know what's wrong with my engine. Took it to the muffler shop and they cut out the catalytic convertors and he said they are starting to go bad but it's not going to run any better if he puts new ones on so he put them back and said now go back to the dealer and see what they say now. they said leave it and they will look at it again. I look it to a local auto repair shop I trust and left it. they called me back today and the mechanic said he's fixed plenty of 04's thru 08 but no 2010's. drove it /looked under the hood/listened and said "cam phaser 100%. thought maybe they put one of the 08 engines in from the factory. Never heard of a 2010 having a phaser problem. New phasers job starting at $2600. WTF! I have to find out if this engine is one of the problem engine they put in my truck at the factory. Wouldn't be the first time. Man sorry for the long post. I just want to see if I might have a way to get Ford to do something. still love my truck but thought it would last more than 118,000 miles. thanks people.

 

Nope. You know what some other mechanic thinks is wrong with your engine. The dealer mechanics did the same evaluation and told you something completely different. What makes this guy's diagnosis accurate?

You're wasting your time with this. Hate to say it, but you won't get any help from Ford. Sometimes they offer some out-of-warranty assistance if the warranty recently expired and you're the original owner. Not sure if you're the original owner or not, but your powertrain warranty expired nearly 60,000 miles ago. $2,600 sounds high though...you can get parts for well under $1,000 even if you're replacing everything under the timing cover with Motorcraft parts.

 

Thanks Tom, The Ford dealer did suspect cam phasers when I first took it in but then backed off that. The ticking's getting louder and the power is getting really bad really bad. They have offered to get me out of this by trading in on another used truck. going to park it till I can figure this thing out. Hey thanks for the input.

 

It wouldn't surprise me, cam phasers can certainly cause your issue. I'd call your dealer and ask for a quote on that repair to compare with your independent mechanic.

Normally independent shops are cheaper than dealers, but your guy's quote is sky high.