Mekanik

You mentioned that it sounds as if it is popping through the intake and exhaust. I have heard of some and seen one that was popping through the intake. I think either the intake valve was leaking or sticking. Can you determine if it is coming from one specific cylinder? If you were confident that it was popping through the intake, you could run the engine with the intake removed.

Jim-No, I listened to the tensioner and accessories when the noise happening and couldn't hear anything abnormal. MBL35-I think the RPM is too low for IMRC, but that’s an interesting theory. I’m not even sure if it has an IMRC. The booster did not fix the concern. The next thing I did was swap the check valve for the booster from an Explorer. That changed the noise making it a lower pitch, and also harder to get to happen. I think it almost made it acceptable. Next I swapped the valve from another 2010 Escape and the noise sounded the same, but also was less frequent. When I put the original valve back in, there is a night and day difference. My service director even agreed that it is easier to produce and a higher pitch and more of a tinny noise (with the original check valve). When I unplug the vacuum line to the booster the noise is completely gone. My service director is going to drive another 2010 Escape and listen for the noise this afternoon (I'll be dressed as Abraham Lincoln at my 1st grader's school Halloween Party). I never tried to get the noise to happen in a similar vehicle because it is so hard to produce, but that is where I’m at right now with this truck. I really think the noise is coming from the brake booster because I hear it more on the driver’s side, and applying the brakes and removing the vacuum line (with it plugged) eliminates it.

I agree, but he was clearly uneducated. The guy at the parts store that sold him the diesel additive was just as uneducated, but I don't hold that against him because ultimately the customer should know what he should have to purchase and put in his truck. Keith if one of your girls was sick, would you be certain that you were getting the right medicine at the drug store and make sure you give them the proper amount? I know I would.

I have a 2010 Escape with a V6 that I’m working on. It sounds like an engine noise that occurs on light accel from a stop when the engine is really warm. I can also get it to happen in park around 1300RPM and around 1700RPM. It is a very hard noise to duplicate, and even harder to recreate so it happens consistently. I can hear it in the passenger compartment, not at all in the engine compartment or when I'm under the vehicle. This makes it VERY difficult to diagnose. It seemed like the rear cam phaser was louder than the front, and I felt that it reminded me of a 5.4L phaser that was noisy. Well the phaser didn't fix it. Two hours later I notice something very peculiar. When I can get the noise to happen, as soon as I step on the brake pedal the noise stops. I take my foot off the brake pedal, keeping the RPM at the same speed and the noise comes back. It's funny the way it starts because it sounds like it starts slowly and then builds up. Yeah, I've spent a lot of time on this truck and I'm really tuned into it by now. I've got a brake booster ordered for tomorrow. I think that the diaphragm inside the booster is loose and rattling around when it gets just the right amount of vacuum applied to it. In eighteen years I have NEVER replaced a booster for a noise that sounds like it's coming from the engine.

I had a truck yesterday where the customer put a bottle of diesel additive in the DEF tank. The MIL lamp was on and there was a DTC for low reductant pressure. I really didn't think it would be a big deal. I added a jug of DEF and removed the dosing module with the intention of testing the flow and purging the system. The DEF tank was empty, so it must have used the entire diesel additive. I wasn’t able to get any flow out of the dosing module, because the pump wouldn't build any pressure. I ended up replacing the tank as an assembly with the pump because it is actually cheaper than the pump by itself. At the end of the day, let’s just say that it was a very expensive mistake for the customer. Judging by the owner's manual that was still wrapped in cellophane, he wasn't very educated on this expensive piece of equipment that he was driving.

This thread is making me hungry.

The bolts we're not supposed to remove? Did you re-seal the bolts one at a time?

More times than not, I'm replacing a regulator with injectors.

My hat's off to you. I spent about an hour once TRYING to check fuel pressure at the filter housing.

I kinda like it. I eat a lot of canned vegetables, but I never buy Green Giant.

Let's not forget that vehicles require much less maintenance nowadays verses fifteen years ago. I believe that in years to come in most dealerships there will be one or two actual technicians and a couple handfuls of monkeys that can reprogram a PCM, rotate tires and change fluids.

Aaron, I'm thinking either an IPR or ICP. I had one a long time ago(the IPR didn't fix it) with an intermitent dead pedal. The customer drove it with the VDR for three months and never got it to act up agian.

I agree with you. It seems like Ford it trying to turn the dealerships into tire stores. This all started around 2000, when Ford realized that the people that sell tires usually end up doing the brake repairs too, along with suspension work and other maintenance. Ford decided it didn't want to loose business to Pep Boys and other 'under car shops'. I agree that we need to be competitive, but it isn’t really worth it for me to do a brake job anymore. I still sell brakes if they are worn out, but it just isn't as profitable as it used to be. I would rather be fixing something that is broken. I agree with Jim that Ford and any other vehicle manufacturer doesn't want to spend millions of dollars on a commercial announcing that their over priced vehicle for taking the kids to soccer practice will leave them on the side of the road some day. It seems like Ford is doing so much work to get customers in the door to buy a set of tires or have a new set of brake pads installed, but I too wish that they would put out some benefit to having broken vehicles come in the shop to get fixed. As far as the inspection sheets are concerned, I have always felt that it is important to look vehicles over, and I really don’t mind filling out those sheets; however I do get paid .2hrs for doing a multi-point inspection.

How much fuel is in the tank when this happens? Does it happen after a hard accel? I ran into one like this a long time ago, where the orange bypass plug in the fuel pick up (in the tank)was missing, and it would take a big gulp of air on hard accel, as the fuel would move to the back of the fuel tank. It would always start out as a miss and then die. Then have a hard time starting due to the air in the fuel system.

I can't wait to try this.

Is it possible they meant that oil can leak from the turbo shaft into the exhaust, and then drip out between the turbo and the downpipe? You mentioned earlier that everything has been replaced. Has the rear cover been re-sealed? If it was, I'm going to assume that the rear main has already been replaced. I think it's worth mentioning that I have seen two different techs install the new style rear main seal backwards. One leaked, and the other did not. Go figure. I have to say that it's a genius idea to run this engine with the transmission removed. There aren't many engines where the starter motor isn't bolted to the transmission. Have you checked crankcase pressure? If it was excessive, it could push oil out of the rear main, especially on hard accel.

Thanks for the input, I let the tech working on the truck know this info. Our manager just wanted to service part the O-ring and get the truck back on the road, but I'm sure it will be returning soon enough.

Really? It looks as if someone has been cutting at the center of that O-ring with a razor.

No coolant contamination.

Okay diesel gods, we’ve got a weird one in the shop. We've got a 2005 F450 with a 6.0L that has a coolant leak from the big O-ring that goes between the intake and front cover. About 4,000 miles ago we replaced the EGR and oil coolers in the truck because it had a leaking EGR cooler. The front cover gasket was replaced two weeks before the EGR/oil cooler repair at a different dealer, and supposedly the engine was overheated. When the tech took the engine apart to replace the coolers, he noticed that the big O-ring was all chewed up on the inside part of the O-ring. We thought this was weird because the part is only two weeks old. Well here we are again. The truck has an external leak from the O-ring. It is chewed up on the inside again and is now split too. Has anyone run into this, or have any recommendations?

It's hard to not lose respect for the machines we fix all day, with all the moving parts, the tools that help us do our job, and of course the razor blades that will cut right to the bone if not used carefully. I'm just saying that it's too easy to get too comfortable working in the dangerous environment that we work in.

I think I have gotten an hour, JUST to program the FICM.

That's terrible. Years ago, I saw a guy lose his pinkie finger using a Ford spring compressor, installing the front coil spring in a Town Car. My heart goes out to him.

I was seriosly thinking the EXACT same thing.