Forgive me if this has been posted about before but I can't find it in a search. This 2011 Ford f250 6.2l keeps giving me the "timing over advanced bank 1" code. I pulled the valve cover and replaced the VVT solenoid. Not sure what that thing does with just a rod sticking out of it riding against the head of a bolt (or that's what it looks like it does) but that didn't fix the problem. It had also been replaced before apparently by the PO. I can't find any information on the internet about this system. No leads on what to look at next. What else might I need to look at? Surely I am not the only one with this issue but apparently nobody wants to talk about how to fix it on the internet. lol Next step is dealership and I would rather avoid that financial burden if possible. I am at a loss here.

 

The camshaft phaser may be sticking. I am not that familiar with the 6.2 but I am with the 5.4. The one critical thing on these vvt engines is clean oil. Make sure your oil is clean and the correct viscosity. Most are 5W20 and it does make a difference.

FWIW, I worked on a 5.4 recently that I also had to replace spark plugs in. The left cam phaser was stuck so before I even started removing plugs I poured a gallon (yes a gallon) of diesel fuel into the crankcase and ran the engine for about 10 minutes to flush the engine. I drained the oil and changed it. It helped the phaser immensely. I then removed the spark plugs (and had to remove 5 of them that broke off in the holes. Once that job was done the customer took the truck and brought it back after 1k miles for another oil change. It had given him intermittent problems for the first 300 miles and then straightened out. I changed the oil and filter again and he has a little over 3k miles on it and hasn't had anymore problems.

The only reason I used the diesel fuel flush is the engine and truck was not worth a new engine so we were at the point that it couldn't harm the motor anymore. He would not spend the $$ on a new phaser replacement.

It worked for him but your situation may be different. Either way I would change the oil and keep it clean. JMO

 

Oil was changed by my father in law when he bought the truck from a used lot. He used 5w20 Mobil. When I bought the truck from him he only had about 1500 on the oil. I waited another 3000 before changing it (got busy and forgot but less than 5000 isn't bad on Mobil) and I put motorcraft 5w20 blend in. Light has been on since sometime around the time he changed the oil. I have been trying to chase the problem down ever since. Changed the vvt solenoid but as I said before I couldn't find any other info. The solenoid looks nothing like the 5.4 where you actually have screens and such. I am fine with putting a new phaser on if that would work. Though I may see what the dealer would charge to keep from dropping a bolt or something lol

 

Nobody else? Why is it so hard to find 6.2l info? Surely I am not the only one with a 6.2 vct issue.

 

as you see.. very few problems with the 6.2L...

mine 2012.. 6.2L. 167,000 miles
flatbed Ed... 6.2L 418,000 miles before camshaft failure.. his story and service is posted on this forum...

so YES.. your problem... may be the first posted here... and we have a lot of members..

 

Well that is good news....and bad at the same time lol. Since I can't seem to find ANY info online about this problem I guess I am going to have to bite the bullet and pay the stealership to deal with it.

 

So I am learning more about these new VVT systems and thought I would share since nobody else seems to know much about it (or isn't telling me about it). The 6.2l (and 5.0l apparently) uses Borg Warners CTA (Cam Torque Actuated) technology which from what I can tell does not use oil pressure to adjust the timing. It uses the torque of the cam only. This is good for me (i think) because with my issue I am finding that there can't be many parts to go wrong. It is either getting a bad reading or the Cam Phaser/Sprocket is going bad. I THINK putting a new one is will fix my problem. I am still researching because that thing looks to be around $300+/- and I don't want to change it if that isn't the problem. Dealership looked at the truck and said that the Check Engine light showed the timing to be over-advanced on bank 1 (DUH! I told them that) and they reset the light for me (as I have done numerous times which I also told them) and they drove it up the road and back and the light didn't come back on. He said if it comes back on all they know to do is "tear into it and start blindly replacing parts and hoping the change the right one". Said I was probably looking at a minimum of $2000 and maybe as much as $4000. Needless to say I will not be going back there for "help". Does anyone else know anything more about how this CTA system works? Looks like there is a sensor that bolts in front of the cam and has a little shaft that comes out and sticks to the bolt head and just spins (called a solenoid but I think it is just a sensor) and the phaser that adjusts based on valve tension. Yes? No? Maybe?

 

Take the guesswork out of it. If you don't have it already, get a good OBDII adapter and download ForScan on your computer....or, you can even pay for ForScan Lite on your tablet/phone and monitor the cam timing advance on both banks in real time. You should be able to narrow it down to the correct bank by that quickly. Swap the sensors side to side and see if your problem follows, if it doesn't, then you know it's the phaser.

The cam phasers are not operated hydraulically like the old modular engines as you already pointed out so none of that oil logic applies.

I'll see if I can get a screenshot from mine.

 

Thanks! I have forscan and the adapter. Bought the stuff so I could add Trailer brakes and turn on remote start and things like that. Never thought or even looked at watching the timing advance in real time. As for the sensor the previous owner (before my FIL) had put one on it appeared but being cheap and easy I replaced it again to make sure. That doesn't appear to have helped. Am I right that the thing they call a solenoid on the front of the cam shaft is actually just a sensor? If that isn't the problem is the phaser the only other thing it should be? Is there anything else in line that could go wrong on that? The dealership made it sound like there was a list of things but I think they were just trying to justify a way to make it expensive.

 

Which of these is bad? I assume the one that is more all over the place.

 

Im going through similar problems on mine bud. p0019/p06B6, both my camshafts are stuck. i scanned another 6.2 here at work and its at 0deg at idle and immediately jumps to 27/28deg when you hit throttle, it also is changing the duty cycles on the top and bottom readings of this screen. mine is not changing the duty cycles at all. im trying to figure out what those sensors are. I have replaced both VVT solenoids on mine, all spark plugs, and even cleaned throttle body lol.

 

my company has ran 50-70 6.2 f250s up to 200-250k miles before we get rid of them and have never had this problem... these d@mn motors are so dependable i cant find any troubleshooting info on them haha.

 

this is what i got when i scanned another 6.2 f250 here at work.... got to be a sensor somewhere, just dont know which one and i dont want to throw money at it.

 

Here are screenshots of mine idling and under acceleration. Duty cycle stays at zero idling and immediately goes to 100% when accelerating.

i don’t know what the error values represent.

 

Here’s plot over time. Both banks respond the same, have the same error correction.