engine rattle while towing

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Jul 1, 2008 | 08:26 PM

bigfiasco

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engine rattle while towing

Hi folks,

I'm a noob to these forums and to my new 02 f-250 SD. The truck is a high miler(150k) 5.4 litre triton with an automatic trans. I thought I'd take it for a test run up a long incline towing a 4000 lb trailer and a rattle appeared in the engine. To me it sounded like a timing rattle. The truck only does it when under heavy load and has a slight noise when under full acceleration. Any ideas? Valve lash adjustment, timing chain, or maybe both? Any help would be great and I love this site already.

I'll be back!

Jul 1, 2008 | 08:56 PM

whomrig

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Joined: Mar 2001

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From: SF Bay area

Hi, i was wondering if your rig is in need of new spark plugs, also with that kind of mileage on your rig, it may not hurt to run chevron's techron or a similar product thru your fuel system.

Jul 1, 2008 | 09:00 PM

high ho silver

Posting Guru

Joined: Apr 2004

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From: Georgia

Are you sure its not just pinging? Mine has 161,000 miles and makes a little noise under heavy acceleration. Owners manual says its normal to hear a slight ping with these modular engines.

Jul 1, 2008 | 09:27 PM

bigfiasco

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It sure sounds like a timing rattle. However I'm new to these computer controlled trucks and I thought the ECM would take care of the timing curves under load. That's why I thought maybe the timing chain might be stretched. Can a guy retard the timing a little on these things without screwing it up too bad? I'll be towing again this weekend so I'll bite the bullet and fill up with a better grade fuel and start there.

Jul 2, 2008 | 06:10 AM

redford

FTE Leadership Emeritus

Joined: Sep 2000

Posts: 23,174

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From: Stephensville WI

Get a can of Seafoam or some other STRONG fuel injection cleaner (like Chevron Techron) and add it to your fuel on the next fill-up, then try again. You probably just have a fuel injector that is a little clogged, causing one cylinder to go a little lean under load.

Jul 2, 2008 | 07:56 AM

Dogwood36322

Senior User

Joined: Mar 2005

Posts: 249

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From: South Alabama

I used to disconnect my battery to reset to factory defaults before towing. The computer would then learn the new driving stategies. Got better mileage and performance.