99 Expy 5.4L Triton XLT all stock

I am 17 years old and do not personally own the car, it is my dads. Our expedition was running really badly, and the engine was working quite a bit it seemed. I did an oil change on it myself, first time its every been done by someone other than a mechanic at a shop, and it turns other there was only 1 quart of cheap barrel oil in the 5.7L oil pan. The service engine light came on, but I didn't really care as I just changed the oil and figured that was the problem, as nothing else was lit up. Well yesterday my dad made an appointment to get the truck serviced for the light without telling me. I told him what the problem was and told him that I fixed it when he got home, as I had taken the negative connector off the battery to reset the ECU memory. Well the light went away and after being yelled at for 20 minutes about how I am not a mechanic and I will break his truck, which I maintain, I said he can end up paying for all the gas I put in it and the bills for the useless check ups on it.

Well I was driving it today and the light came back on, but this time it came on along with the ABS light for the brakes. I pumped the brakes while driving, and they worked just as they always do, and the vehicle didnt get pulled one way or the other, so it was a balanced braking. Does anyone know what this light could be from, or does anyone live relatively close to Middletown NJ where they could come out and use a scanner on the engine. I am going to be buying one soon, but I do not have a ton of money to blow and right now a $100 tool is quite a lot for me. Do you think it could be a bad sensor since the brakes work fine and thats it, or could there be something more serious?

 

find a parts store like autozone.they can scan it or free and tell you why the light is on.

 

Wow I was at pep boys today, I didn't know they would scan it for free! thanks for the info.

 

Sounds to me like you've already been told to keep your hands off HIS truck. If you want to work on a vehicle then you should get your own and leave him to have his fixed by whomever he chooses.

 

most parts stores do it for free.i have heard there are a few that charge but then just go some where else.some walmarts tire shops have a scan tool and will scan it for free but not all of them have the scan tool.

 

I went to pep boys about 2 hours ago, got my truck scanned, and it turns out to be something with my EGR Valve. I am researching now to see if I can replace this myself. I have a good idea where it is. From what I have read its on the drivers side in the rear, meaning toward the back of the engine block. The only question I have is are any of the hoses attached to it pressurized and will anything bad happen if I just disconnect the current EGR Valve and replace it with a new one. PS the code was P0401 which means restricted EGR flow. If the new EGR valve doesn't work, will it be a pain replacing the hoses for new ones seeing as they are probably coated with crap on the inside? The truck is in need of many new things. I am about 95% sure the spark plugs on it have been changed once and the thing never did its 100K mile tune up.

 

did they clear the code?mine did that a few weeks ago and and i had it cleared off and has not come back on since,that has been 800 miles or so.normaly the passages that go from the egr to the throttle body get clogged up with carbon.if it comes back on then you can pull the TB and EGR and clean the passages.all you need is 3 new gaskets i think it is.

 

The light hasn't come back on yet, but I only drove about 5 miles with it off so far

 

Hey kid-o i dont think that is the vehicle you want to play with(not trying to be mean) there is alot of sensors and all kinds of hose, let someone that has worked on that type of vehicle before handle the job, if something happens can you fix cross treads from spark plugs, or a busted stud in a manifold,get yourself a classic project car and learn from it your dad will be proud of you, beside if you damage his truck you can run but cant hide

 

Here's some advice from a a crabby old guy who raised a teenage boy:

Do not learn how change plugs on a 5.4 as a starting point. You will muck it up and end up in the doghouse. Let the old man take care of it himself.

You're just starting out and these engines and emissions controls systems are NOT the place for a kid to be experimenting without either a tutor or a teacher to help keep them out of trouble. One of the benefits of experience is that we've already made a lot of those mistakes and, if you pay attention and keep your ego out of the way, you can learn without making them yourself.

You can learn a lot just using the SEARCH tool to follow previous discussions. Just plug in keywords such as fault codes or common terms relating to the task at hand.

Steve