2006 f150 5.4l triton help!

[dczerny90]

Just bought an 06 F150 Triton 5.4. 172K, 4x4, 2 inch leveling kit, supercab XLT. I had a miss so I changed plugs and 1 coil pack and threw a K&N filter in it. Noticed as I was doing so, someone had changed a coil previously so there are 6 original and 2 aftermarket. I used the new style motorcraft SP-515 plugs so they won't snap, and everything seems to be fine as far as the miss is concerned.

Now I'm noticing that at idle after its warmed up, its pretty rough, almost as if its choking itself out and idle drops when hitting the brake. No idle surge or anything, just rough idle that shakes everything in the truck.

The two other things that are going on...

Noticed when I am backing out or pulling out of a parking spot and I cut the wheel hard, I get a shudder/drag, almost like 4WD is engaged, but I know it's not and I get the same type of feeling at 60-70 MPH on the highway after OD kicks in.

I know the obvious repairs would be change all coils, fuel filter, air filter, flush fluids, etc. What I want to know is if there is something else that could be causing this issue and if anyone has done any of the "obvious" stuff and found that it fixes the issue.

Any input would be grately appreciated.

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

I bought an '04 f150 w/ 5.4l knowing it had cam phaser problems. That era 5.4 are known for for a seal leak that causes the cams to be out of phase at idle. You get rough idle and sometimes stalling. The solution I came up with was to use thicker weight oil. That's been working for me for a couple years now, ~ 25,000 km. I mixed 0w40 with 15w40. Now it seems that I'll have to run straight 15w40 since I'm getting rough idle sooner between oil changes. I suspect the leak is getting worse. The symptoms happen when oil pressure drops below ~25psi. I teed in a manual oil pressure gauge to keep track.
An oil change to 10w40 might be a cheap check or tee in a gauge and keep an eye on the pressure. IIRC the gauge is beside the filter in a very awkward to get place, but is possible...I did it.
Good luck,

Richard

 

[adsm08]

I'm not sure about the OP, but Richard, you probably just need solenoids, not phasers. Those can be done pretty easily, you only need to pull the valve covers.

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

^^^ Thanks, I'll check that out.

Richard

 

[Sasquatch_Ryda]

He more than likely needs tensioners....that is where the seals give out causing the low oil pressure concern. Left too long it can wipe the cams out.