1993 E350 Motorhome Rattling and Power Loss
 

Hi guys,

Vehicle is a 1993 E350 motorhome, 7.5L gas with automatic transmission, approximately 80k miles.

The problem is an intermittent (but fairly reproducible) hollow rattling/chattering sound, accompanied by a loss of power to the wheels. The noise appears to be coming from the engine area (forward of the driver's seat).

This happens primarily in third gear, and sometimes in OD, especially after coasting and then lightly accelerating (feathering the pedal). It happens anywhere from 30-60 mph.

If I press harder on the gas, the noise grows, and there is still reduced power. When I pull my foot off the accelerator and push it harder, it operates normally (even without downshifting).

I took this to a truck shop, who said the noise was coming from a rotted exhaust heat shield. They didn't think they'd be able to find a replacement, so they put a clamp on it to tighten that down. The noise is less since they did that, but that was obviously a side effect symptom of all this vibration.

I plan to bring it to a Ford truck dealer. I'd love to hear ideas before I go and get taken for something silly.

Thanks in advance.

Mike

Any ideas? Could this be as simple as a tune-up / timing issue?

Mike

did you ever figure out this problem

Clogged exhaust will give you a loss of power.

Do you mean the cat because I have been dealing with same issue

No, not yet. It does throw an occasional (rare) CEL, so I need to read the codes.

Problem is, the CEL light is always on dimly (when engine is running), so I need to fix that first. I'm hoping that's as simple as cleaning the green crud off the back of the instrument cluster (I noticed that while fixing something else last year).

So, my plan is to clean the cluster, read the codes, deal with any issues there, and get a good tune-up.

Mike

Yes, Cat or any exhaust obstruction. Sometimes big rust flakes internally can block parts of the system. Or rodents can set up house in the system.

I have the same problem with my 1992 E350 motorhome. I am looking for a solution as well dealer here had no idea.

BTW, this loss of power is only at a specific (low) throttle range. If I let off the gas and then punch it, it has plenty of power.

Mike

The catalytic converter on my 1990 E350 RV recently started knocking. It's because the honeycomb inside has broken. It hammers at idle but at speed the exhaust presses it in place so it can't rattle.

Does it throw a code (CEL) when that happens?

Mike

Mine is not throwing a code. At least, the CEL is not on.

Steve

Anyone figure this out yet?

btw, what are the dates of the posts?

thx

The dates of the posts are at the top of the post.

Sounds like a bad Throttle position sensor (TPS) on the OP 1993 E350.
The sound would be a lean fuel mix.