When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
KJ Smith, he had installed the old style phasers, and then went back in and installed the new style ones from Ford, from what I understand.
The pump in these at least that I've seen is reliable.. Of course, if someone is going 10k-15k miles between oil changes with junk oil filters then all bets are off. At idle, below 1k rpms the pump is in high mode providing optimal oil pressure. Below is an overview of its operation from the oem shop manual
The oil pump is mounted on the front face of the cylinder block.
The rotor is piloted on the crankshaft post and is driven through flats on the crankshaft.
Maximum system pressure is limited by an integral, internally-vented relief valve which directs the excess oil back to the oil pan.
Oil pump displacement has been selected to provide adequate volume to make sure of correct oil pressure both at hot idle and maximum speed.
The relief valve calibration protects the system from excessive pressure during high-viscosity conditions.
The relief valve is designed to provide adequate connecting rod bearing lubrication under high temperature and high-speed conditions.
2-stage operation of the oil pump is controlled by an integral solenoid on the pump that will switch the pump between high and low mode operation.
The engine PCM sends a 12v signal to the oil pump solenoid to switch the pump to low mode. Default is no voltage or high mode operation.
Both low and high mode maintain required oil pressure to protect and maintain engine function at their specified speeds, engine load (trottle position), and engine temperature.
Low mode operation is designed to maintain oil pressure between 20 to 30 psi at speeds from 1000 to 3000 rpm with low engine load and engine oil temperatures at normal operating conditions.
High mode operation is at all other engine operating conditions.
Last edited by LEEDSnDeed; Feb 28, 2026 at 11:41 AM.
Good afternoon all, today I have him purchasing another two vvt solenoids so I can replace them on the ps valves to see if that alleviates our issues, he took it to another shop and they told him that they weren’t working on it because it’s too big of a job. They did tell him however that there’s a filter inside the engine that needs replacing? What the hell are they talking about? The only filters I know of are the oil filter and the screen on the vvt solenoid itself. Maybe someone here can enlighten me on this so called filter? Once he gets the solenoids I’m going to pull the valve cover back off, verify time and replace the solenoids, at that point if it doesn’t fix it then I told him to take it to the dealership to have it fixed. Will post back upon replacement of the vvt solenoids.
G Timing marks w/ camshaft locking tool
Good morning FTE, I took the ps valve cover off in order to replace the solenoids, double checked the timing while I am in here and all the marks are checking out 100% where they belong. The customer bought 2 new solenoids and those are what is in the picture, I’m about to reassemble the valve cover and intake and see what these will do. I’m hoping it will fix it, if not he has a shop about 10 minutes from here that he is going to take it to with a retired ford mechanic that works there part time that said he will look at it. I’ll keep everyone posted as soon as I get it back together.
The filter they mentioned is the small mesh screen inside the VCT solenoid bore on the head itself. It sits in the oil passage before the solenoid. On high-mileage engines these get clogged with sludge and restrict oil flow to the phaser even when the solenoid is working fine. With 183k miles that is a real possibility. Remove the solenoid and inspect the screen in the port. Clean or replace it if it looks gunked. That alone has fixed similar VCT issues on high-mileage 3.5s when everything else checked out.
Got it all put back together after checking the solenoid bores and replacing the solenoids and still p0017, even after pulling the terminals on the battery and connecting them together. I don’t understand this truck, literally everything is where it’s suppose to be, everything is brand new, and everything is checking out on it like it’s suppose to be. This truck just doesn’t want to run correctly. Either I’m missing something or overlooking something or I’m just not good at fixing this truck. I’m 95% sure I won’t have the ability to fix this thing. I’m going to let the customer know so he can take it to the shop. It’s frustrating because this is the very first truck ever I can’t figure out and fix.
P0017 sticking around after replacing the solenoids and verifying the bores is usually pointing at one of two things at this stage: either the phaser itself is mechanically stuck or worn out internally, or there is a timing chain stretch issue causing the actual cam position to lag behind what the PCM expects even when the phaser is commanding it correctly.
At 183k, chain stretch is a real possibility on the 3.5EB. The fact that you reset the reluctor wheel position and still get a persistent P0017 on the exhaust cam is telling — if the chain has enough slack, the exhaust cam can read as retarded even with everything else dialed in. You can check this by using a scan tool in live data and watching the cam timing offset PID (Bank 1 Exhaust Cam Timing Offset Commanded vs. Actual) while the engine idles. If the actual is consistently running behind commanded by more than a few degrees, that is usually chain or phaser.
If the chain was not replaced as part of this job, that would be the next thing to look at. The 3.5EB timing chains are known to stretch significantly in the 150-200k range.
P0017 sticking around after replacing the solenoids and verifying the bores is usually pointing at one of two things at this stage: either the phaser itself is mechanically stuck or worn out internally, or there is a timing chain stretch issue causing the actual cam position to lag behind what the PCM expects even when the phaser is commanding it correctly.
At 183k, chain stretch is a real possibility on the 3.5EB. The fact that you reset the reluctor wheel position and still get a persistent P0017 on the exhaust cam is telling — if the chain has enough slack, the exhaust cam can read as retarded even with everything else dialed in. You can check this by using a scan tool in live data and watching the cam timing offset PID (Bank 1 Exhaust Cam Timing Offset Commanded vs. Actual) while the engine idles. If the actual is consistently running behind commanded by more than a few degrees, that is usually chain or phaser.
If the chain was not replaced as part of this job, that would be the next thing to look at. The 3.5EB timing chains are known to stretch significantly in the 150-200k range.
yes sir, both chains are brand new, replaced literally everything on this. When I was getting the p0019 I replaced the ds exhaust camshaft and that fixed that one, I’ve replaced everything up to that point on the ps.
With brand new chains on both sides and the DS exhaust cam swap fixing P0019, the PS exhaust phaser is almost certainly the last piece. When chains and solenoids are all confirmed good but you still have a retarded exhaust cam on one bank, the phaser itself is the only thing left that can cause it.
The 3.5EB exhaust phasers can look fine externally and still have worn internal vane tolerances that prevent them from advancing fully under oil pressure. The PCM commands advance and the phaser starts to move, but it bleeds pressure internally and can't hold position — shows up as actual cam angle lagging commanded by several degrees in the live data.
If you haven't already, pull the PS exhaust phaser specifically and compare it to the new DS one side by side. Look for wear scoring on the vanes and check that the locking pin is releasing cleanly. At 183k and with everything else new, that phaser is the logical next replacement.
Is there anyway to tell this without phaser removal? Or is the only way to find out pulling the phaser off again and taking it apart? I don’t want him to keep buying parts that may not fix it. Especially if I have to take the front cover off again.
Yes, there is a way to narrow it down without opening it back up. With FORScan or any bidirectional scan tool, pull live data PIDs for Bank 1 Exhaust Cam Timing - Commanded vs Actual at idle and at 2000 rpm. If the phaser is failing internally, the actual cam position will lag behind commanded and drift instead of holding steady. A good phaser tracks commanded closely and holds. You can also use FORScan output controls to directly activate the VCT solenoid and watch whether the cam responds and holds position. If actual consistently runs several degrees behind commanded and will not hold, that is a bad phaser without pulling anything. Not a guarantee but on this truck with everything else eliminated, it is usually enough confidence to pull the trigger on the phaser replacement.
Got it I’ll see if I can get over there today, if not it’ll have to be next Monday on my next day off. I appreciate the knowledge, I wish they would have just stuck with the distributor timing, would have been so much easier. I’ll post back here my findings once I pull the information from the truck.
