I change my own oil using the FL 820S Motorcraft filter and 7 quarts of the Motorcraft synthetic blend 5W-20 in my 2004 F150 with the 5.4L 3V engine every 4,000 miles. For those of you who change your own oil and would notice this, have you ever had the engine knock very hard until the oil is pumped out of the pan and circulated in the engine? Mine tends to knock pretty hard and maybe harder than normal. It might go something like tat..tat..tat..tat..tat..tat....tat......tat...... ...tat and then the oil is circulated.

Is this a problem for anyone else? Is it a slow-to-prime oil pump? Is there a way to keep this from happening? I was thinking I read somewhere else that since these trucks are drive-by-wire, you can push your foot on the accelerator while you turn on the ignition, and the truck will not start, but it will prime the oil into the engine. Has anyone else heard of this? I am scared to try it, thinking I might damage something.

My dad has a 2006 truck with the same engine and I have never heard his do this after changing oil.

My truck has just under 100,000 miles on it. The knocking has seemed to have gotten somewhat worse over time.

Thank you.

 

Do you put any oil in your filter before installing It?

 

No I don't. I don't in my wife's 2000 F150 5.4 either, and neither does my dad in his 2006 F150 5.4. Those 2 don't make loud noise.

But, I do see your point. Do you add oil in your filter before you screw it on?

 

Yup, I fill mine about half full and attempt to screw it on there without getting oil everywhere.

Do get that noise every time you start up or just after an oil change?

 

You won't have a problem if you mash the gas pedal to the floor and crank it until the oil pressure builds. When you push the pedal to the floor and hold it, it cuts off the fuel supply and it won't start. Works on my F-150, my Escape and Lincoln Towncar. I had read it and I was very nervous the first time I did it.

 

I fill up the oil filter pretty quickly to the top. The filter inside soaks most of it up, and I pour a little more(but not to the top), then screw it on.
Don't have a problem on start up.

I tried the WOT start before, and didn't like what it did.

No it didn't try to start or anything, and it primed the system, but it didn't start for the first two times I tried after doing that... and it made some weird noises trying to start.

Now I just fill the filter with oil, screw it on, and I'm good to go.

 

Definitely put some oil in the oil filter and slosh it about for the filter material to absorb it.

For horizontal oil filters, fill it about half full and tilt the filter in a circular motion.

The ticking isn't that big of a deal, but it is best to pre-prime the filter. The engine has hydraulic lifters that need some amount of oil to operate to their full capacity. Air will do in a pinch, because air is technically a fluid, from a mathematical standpoint, but it has a significantly lower density. But, don't gun the engine thinking it will help fill up the lifters faster. It wont. Only slow and steady pressure will do it, and if you gun the engine, it may put extra wear and tear on the lifters/cam, since not enough oil is reaching it quickly enough for the higher revs.

Just let it idle 10 minutes and the noise will go away as the lifters are filled.

 

I always put oil in the filter then screw it on. fill the engine with rest of the required oil and start up it up. I only let it idle for 2-3 minutes until the engine oil light goes off. It works great for me and the truck never made "funny" noises.

 

Mudslinger - priming the oil filter will not stop the knocking but it is good practice. MY 04 started doing the exact same thing around 50k miles. It is not start up clatter as some on this board will try to tell you. It is a very distinct knock like you described above. I took the advice of some on here and began holding the gas peddle down and cranking the engine over, until pressure builds up, then firing the engine up. At this same time I also switched from Motorcraft products to Mobil 1 oil and Wix filters. This cured the knocking at start ups after oil changes. Unfortunately I don't know which method cured the problem or if it was a combination of the two so I'm sticking with both.

 

Isn't the engine still 'operating' while you hold the accelerator down? I know it may not be firing up, but all of the same parts are moving, it's not like you are just priming the pump/engine. I think the only reason you are not hearing the same knock is that A) It's turning a little slower, and B) the starter noise is drowning it out. I really don't see any benefit from this method, but do see extra wear and tear on the starter, ignition, and battery.

I know I may be wrong, but your going to have to lead me to the light.

Now, I do see where filling up the filter will help as it eliminates the gap in the system. Been doing if for years on light trucks and heavy equipment.

 

It sounds to me like you have a main bearing knock in your truck. I would start using 10W30 in it. Sometimes a knock like this can go on for years with no problems. Another thing to check is sludge in the oil pump pickup screen which reduces oil flow and delays pressure build-up. If it were my truck I would use some Kano 'Kreen' in the engine which would eliminate any hard sludge problem anywhere in the oil system. Otherwise the pan will have to come off, which is not a bad idea anyway, because the mains and rod bearing caps could be checked at that time.

'Isn't the engine still 'operating' while you hold the accelerator down?'

It's turning over but without the jolts from power strokes that cause knocking in worn bearings.

 

So, it's still getting the wear from operating without oil as the bearing surfaces grind over each other waiting on oil, it just doesn't sound as bad, right? Wonder how much life that sucks out of an engine?

Isn't the point of the anti flow back valve in the Motocraft filter designed to keep lube in the engine? I think it would make perfect sense to at least partially fill the filter with oil to at least saturate the media. This "holding the accelerator while cranking" is at best a "feel good" measure. Just because you cannot hear it doesn't mean you aren't doing damage.

 

I think using thicker oil gives you the opposite result than you want. I used to think a thicker oil was better until I read an article that convinced me otherwise once I thought about it. The thinner oil flows more easily and as we know, most of the wear on bearings happen before the oil light goes out and we have oil pressure. The thinner oil gets there more quickly so there is less wear.

 

The rattle you get when you start the engine dry is what does the damage. The slow turning of the oiled bearing on the crank is not doing the damage, it is the hammering of the bearings against the crank.

 

I believe I will fill the filter next time with oil and see what happens.

Beefford, it sounds like yours and my truck might have come off the same assembly line on the same day. I was thinking about changing oil brands, but I am pretty comfortable staying with the Motorcraft filter. I have heard many of the others do not have the same anti-drain back (or check) valve.

Bridge, sometimes I get a tap that is not nearly as loud on some regular cold start-ups, but then sometimes I don't. It quickly goes away after a second or two, but I figure this is a regular occurence with the thin 5W-20 oil. I haven't been able to relate it with air temperature because it does it below freezing and when it is 100 degrees outside.

If my truck does the loud knocking next time I change the oil after pre-filling the filter, I may take it to the dealership the next time since I have enough "Owners Advantage" points to get a free one. I will see if they think something is abnormal. They always want our money anyway.