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Sure hope somebody might have an answer, Forced to buy a truck quick as my other one died.
, I found a 1996 F150 with 4WD, a 4.9 liter - inline 6 motor, and a 5 speed transmission. Has just over 275,000 Km on it, and nothing for rust. Perfect wheel wells with no bubbling around them. Bought it quick over Christmas. However, do to a freak snowstorm and unaccustomed neg 30 deg windchill I really couldn't check it out as much as I would have liked. Needless to say there were \some issues. I did drive it first and noticed what I think is a lot of lacking power. It was missing the muffler, yet the cat and all the single tube piping were still inplace.
Because it's a manual 5 speed, I expected more bottom end power as well as faster than 110 Km/h on the freeway. However, It sounds and feels like its labouring and even slightly chugging when accelerating from a dead stop. I installed a new muffler NAPA Auto Parts recommended as well as a new air filter. Topped all fluids, plus when I was under the truck I noticed the emissions return tube from the cat was disconnected, so i reconnected it. Plugs and wires are also new, being done by the past owner 3 months prior.
Some improvement was gained right away, but still the power is not all there that it should have. Gearing up from 4th to 5 on the freeway made me wonder why they even had a 5th gear. The difference in speed was minimal. Around town i just use 3rd. at about 2500 RPMs. Not to mention, with every gear change and accelerating, the engine has a quiet ratchet sound when my foots on the gas. Also, it sure sucks down the fuel a lot quicker then it should. Almost seems like this little inline 6 has a much bigger appetite than my 7.3 powerstroke diesel.
4.9 inline 6 with a 5 speed manual
I have NO access to a scanner and the key hack with the blinking lights or numbers coming up on the odometer to get any error codes doesn't seem to work on a 1996. So I don't know what the codes are. Plus I dont have the $$$ for any shop time to have it diagnosed. Have to come at it kinda old school, pre scanner days to find the problem.
However, has anybody ever come across this issue of lacking acceleration with this configuration of motor, trans and truck style.
Your truck should be Fuel Injected and has Catalytic converter. The two main things I would look at it the Cat is stopped up and/or the compression is very low. Either or both at the same time will make it have little of the torque it is known for. My first thought is the Cat with the EGR tube unhooked, It is plugged up!
With that said, the 4.9 is one of the best Longevity engines ever produced. It is not a horsepower engine with between 90-100bph. But it is a Torque engine with around 220 foot pounds at about 2500rpm. So stepping on the peddle won't burn the tires but it will drag the 500hp car backwards. LOL
The other thing I would looks at is what the Differential ratio is. Most of the truck about that time was 3.55:1. A great street ratio for MPG or KPL but not much on power! Look up the Transmission and find the gear ratio. You may find the 4th and 5th are 1:1 and 1:0.75 and on a hill that would make you gear down.
Thank you, gentlemen. the information and advise was helpful. Upon a closer examination this is what I found and fixed so far. The most upstream O2 sensor had the wires snipped. I’m guessing the old owner was going to replace it, but didn’t. So, I changed it out at the same time I reconnected the muffler and also noticed the return pipe from the cat to the EGR was separated at an elbow, that was fixed as well.
It ran a lot better now, however there was still issues.I took it for a drive and still noticed some hesitation especially when going from 3rd to 4th gear, as well as a lack of power. Drove 5 miles and my truck died. After waiting for 30 minutes, it started right up so I drove back home. Half way home it died out again. Called a friend with a scanner and al, that I got was 1 code. P0174 which means “System to lean (cylinder bank 2)”
What I found was this:
The most common causes of the P0174 code are the following:
Vacuum leak due to damaged intake manifold gaskets or punctured vacuum and positive crankcase ventilation (PCV) hoses
Malfunctioning mass air flow (MAF) sensor
Clogged fuel filter
Failing fuel pump
Clogged fuel injectors
Failing fuel pressure regulator (although this usually causes rich codes rather than lean)
PCM issues (e.g., software in need of an update, though this is rare)
Worn-out oxygen sensor (NOTE: O2 sensors may “flatline” and then come back, which will usually set both rich and lean codes)
Checked the MAF, sensor wires were not broken and clean. The PVC hose was not clamped to I added clamps and tighten them. Checked all the vacuum lines. Some where loss and not secured to where they were connected to. So, I got some small clamps and secured them, fallowed by a spay test with Kleen starter fluid. No leaks indicated. I changed out the online fuel filter, after which my truck wouldn’t start at all.
When it did eventually start, again it ran really rough. Had to keep my foot on the gas peddle and make sure the engine didn’t drop below 1100, or it would stall. The second time I ran it, I had to put the gas peddle to the floor to get it started, When it did, their was a ton of white exhaust. It eventually died. I tried to restart the motor, and at this time it will not catch.
Up date: Upon consulting with a few friends or friends that know this engine, the head gasket needs replacing. As it appears, this might have been the major issue once the codes were handled. To be honest, the lack of a "Check Engine" light most likely is the result of a blown bulb which I haven't even looked at yet. It didn't overheat, well hot enough to do any damage, and being a cast iron block and head i don't think I warped either part. After watching what must be every youtube video on the Re & Re of my Head Gasket.
Starting by taking a ton of pictures of my top end and a few videos, I'll be able to have a reference when I put it all back together again. With every nut and bolt I either replaced it into the hole it came from when a part was removed, or I tagged it with a number and letter written of masking tape then made a list describing where each of those said nuts and bolts came from and what they attached to.
I do Have 1 question. Can I use a brass wire wheel to clean the built up carbon and old gasket materials from my block and head. both are cast iron. I saw a video where one guy uses scotch- brite pads and WD40 and another that said don't use scotch-brite pads. Just wondering what's the easiest and quickest way to clean both. Not sending them to a shop. Don't have the cash for that. Also saw a few videos that demonstrated how to clean my fuel injectors. So i'm definitely going to do that as well.
The only real problems I've come up against is the lower bolt (about 4" long) that holds the alternator to its bracket. Even after using Deep Creep on it for 3 days and even using a propane torch to heat up the surrounding area, she wont move at all. After slipping over the heads shoulders I just said screw it and managed to move it out of the way. Just hope it won't be an issue later. That added to the fact it's winter in British Columbia Canada, im working on it outdoors and on a muddy area.
They might be referring to scothbirte pads on a wiz grinder, definitely don’t do that, you’ll take material off. Personally I wouldn’t use any type of rotary tool on those type of surfaces, to risky.
I’ve used scotch brite pad by hand with a little laquer thiner to clean the decks, heads, and many other mating surfaces many many times. Cast, steel, aluminum. Wd40 would probably work too. Just put something in the cyl bores, rags, to catch the debris and clean Them out after. Oil the cyl walls with what ever engine oil your using after you clean them out too.
try not to use anything that will gouge or leave deep scrapes in the deck or head. I have a small scrapper I’ve used for a long time very carefully. Or micarta, plastic, old credit card, what ever you have, so long as you don’t leave marks on the mating surface.
As far as warpage, unless you have a machinist straight edge or gauges to measure, there really is no way of looking and seeing 0.005” warp. I’ve pulled heads and replace gaskets before no issue as well on equipment that needed to be back in service, no time for machine shop. Not the best, but you can get away with it unless it is badly warped.
That's what I got, the scotch brite pads. For the warpage, I do have a set of flat metal feeler gauges and a perfectly square and flat medal 16" long level. I used it when I was working for a manufacture making and installing marble and granite countertops. if the head and block are perfect, i won't be able slip any gage under it. Doing another soak on some pissy nuts and bolts giving me a hard time right now. In the meantime, I've started to clean all my parts, checking electrical connections and even built a https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=876760643368450&ref=sharing (Link goes to a public Facebook video if the link doesn't work, copy and paste this in the upper URL bar )
From what saw on some home mechanic videos, those guys are just touching a wire to the positive on a 12 volt battery to fire the injector solenoid. Myself, I added a push button for a short power burst to push the cleaning fluid through it. Works great.
So this is the outcome of way to many hours. However, there is some light. An auto wrecker in Cranbrook has 2 heads that should fit my truck. The only 2 in western Canada.
But, if they don't work, I have a plan B, the last hope and one hell of a hail mary pass of desperation. I'm going to try and weld it. Ya it's cast iron. Ya it's been mentioned to me how hard it is to weld cast and actually have it work. Yet, after watching and studying a few YouTube video this is what one welder suggested to do.
First the part has to be obviously perfectly clean. Next, grind out a V grove. Next, put the part in a tube of sand, as much as possible all around it, except the section being welded. Heat the part and sand up to 500 degrees. Apparently, a big BBQ will work nicely. When it reaches 500 deg. use a arc welding stick called "Certanium 784" start filling in the V grove.
Thinking more about it, the fracture really couldn't have happened in a better place. Lots of meat there to dig into. (I hope). I don't believe any chambers or ports are directly under it or close to the deck surface.
The sand keeps the part at temperature longer while welding. Like a blanket. Preheating to 500 deg. will allow the weld to fill the V grove and bond better with the cast iron. They said welding cold doesn't allow bonding and a micro fracture will develop between the weld and head.
Another video suggested to drill holes at the end of the fracture points to stop any more cracking during the fix process. The second welder was using a tig and some points he mad sounded very logical. He stated that cast had lots of carbon. Welding cast with the wrong stick or filler medals draws that carbon out, mixes with properties from the filler materials creating a third type of material that when cooled become harder than the surrounding cast, and hard things are brittle and will break.
What the second welderer was using during his tig welding was a Aluminum Bronze filler. He stated it's melting point was between 1800 and 1900 degrees. as well the aluminum bronze filler he was using did not draw out the carbon from the cast, there by it didn't cool to a hard brittle area. Creating a weld pool at a lower temp. was also more structurally sound for engine parts. It allows for the action of a engines heating and cooling cycles. Expansion and contraction of cast iron block and heads. He also stated he likes this method as arc welding sticks heat to 2800 to 2900 degrees for the melting pooling of the weld to start.
I'm no welder by any means, so I ask....Is he right? Anyways, i've got to try if its my last resort.
After which I'll grind down the excess to hopefully just a few millimeters above the cylinder heads deck. Then I'll hand file or dermal grind the rest to what I hope will be a perfect flat finish. Ya, like I said, it's a real hail mary throw. But, no other options. Can't afford another motor. And to find one that syncs with the 5-speed manual transmission, ya I don't think so. So that means engine and trans. Nope, Out of my price range.
So, welders, will it work? After all it's not like I'm going to over stress my motor and mat the gas pedal when done like I'm 20 years old. I don't need to go through this adventure again.
Opinions please. Or any other options?
Last edited by FreeBird101; Jan 20, 2023 at 01:43 AM.
Reason: needed to add information
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