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I replaced both hydraulic timing chain tensioners today on my 4.0L SOHC. Both were original on an engine with 214K miles so I probably dodged a bullet with nothing more than a sporadic cold start rattle sometimes. The left side obviously is more difficult to replace. Why couldn't Ford have made the TB fit back just a bit more to make this so much easier, I see why paw paw's modified turned down 27mm socket is a must. What surprised me most is that the right side wasn't exactly a slam dunk as I had hoped. Every combination of extension and wobbly I have wasn't clearing the fender liner and a heat shield to make a solid socket connection to the 27mm head. I gave up and ended up using a 1-3/4" hole saw to drill a clean hole in the fender liner opposite the tensioner. That provided an 'almost' direct shot at the tensioner for easy removal and installation. I'll plug the hole with a plastic sheet metal plug and will never have to concern myself with future replacement. The old tensioners would not prime at all and just bypassed oil so the seals were well past gone. No more start up rattle.
Good to see you've got the Tensioners changed successfully.
A 20inch or longer 1/2"DriveExtension is a must for that right side,
going thru the hole drilled in the upper mudskirt. Click for more info on TimingTensioners.
When I serviced my 4.0 SOHC I too hole-sawed a hole in the plastic apron a bit bigger than the Socket, 3 long extensions and a torque wrench. I also replaced it with a manual adjust tensioner. It's still ticking right along...
...my 4.0 SOHC
...hole in the plastic apron a bit bigger than the Socket
...3 long extensions and a torque wrench
...replaced it with a manual adjust tensioner
...still ticking
Last I replaced my 4.0L SOHC Tensioners,
ManualTensioners were just beginning to be experimented with by a couple of guys on another forum;
seriously considered it; chickened out & decided not to be a test case as I need my truck running.
From what I've read since, they've apparently worked well.
Did you replace both Tensioners with Manuals?
How many miles on the Manuals now?
@DILLARD000 A guy up in the northeast U.S. works on PoIaris' and Ford Explorers and discovered the same brand Hydraulic Tensioner in both makes. Then just a few years back Polaris started making a mechanical adjustable tensioner. I replaced one on my 1st vehicle 4.0 SOHC just on the right side. It"s been about 30K miles and on my 2nd vehicle both and it's been about 3000 miles. I'm the first Internet documented in the lower 48 to use the manual tensioners. A guy on and Island in the Pacific did it first making his original a manual adjust one. I bet someone in Alaska has figured it out. Here's a link. Anyone that does this do at your own risk. manual tensioner
Thanks, very interesting link. I'm curious how you determine the correct tension for the left bank unless you can access it with the engine running? Can you do that after the thermostat hosing cover is back in place? Also, what type of plug or seal is used to block the oil galley?
@DILLARD000 I used a heavier version that I can't find on E-bay that is not made of the T-6 aluminum. I don't know what the length of it was but by the time I was able to get the rear chain to quiet down I was out of adjustment threads. The first engine had a lot of chain stretch. I like that longer one that you posted a link to. I had been considering getting someone to Tig weld on the end to make it a quarter inch longer. @RustGuy First forgive from hi-jacking your thread. I was installing the left bank one during a chain guide replacement/upgrade. The tensioner had a bronze seal ring that kept any oil from coming out of the engine including the hole to pump up the hydraulic adjuster. I did still have several parts still off of the engine, T-stat housing, Fan shroud, fan, belt. I didn't want to put my hands down in to all of the running extra stuff and have room to adjust it. Wiring was all plugged or hooked up to everything including alternator. The radiator was temporarily in so that transmission fluid wouldn't spew all over the place. I only ran the engine for 15 seconds during the adjustment of the left bank/front of engine manual tensioner, then I finished putting the rest of the engine together. This tensioner is made of a heavier material than the T-6 aluminum.
@1954F100ranger
Yes, bothered me also that
most aftermarket ManualTensioners are made from AluminumBillet,
not StainlessAlloy per stamp on FordOEM OilPressurizedTensioners.
If the 12mmLonger ManualTensioners were available in Stainless, that'd be a most viable option.
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