chirping sound when idling

[fourwheelford]

yeah steer clear of any mechs that have never heard of one of the most common problems that plague and kill the poor little 3.0.

 

[kimcrwbr1]

Using a stethescope or a long screwdriver up to your ear will isolate where the problem is before you or someone else takes it apart. Just set it on different portions of the engine and components you will be able to listen to bearings, rockers, injectors ect. It is kinna fun listening and you can actually find problems before they leave you stranded once you know what to listen for. Just be careful of moving parts and plug wires.

 

[yamag7d8]

i have a friend that has a friend in denver that works on cars. he said he'll do it for $100. the biggest thing he has worked on was transmission so i'm sure the synchronizer would be easy money for him.

 

[yamag7d8]

also he's a taurus guy with a 3.0 as well so i'm sure he knows the problem...

 

[yamag7d8]

i just got the synchronizer and sensor replaced with a friend. the sensor was good and sync looked good as well until i turned it couple of times. it was making that chirping sound. i guess it was just barely the beginning going bad. heres the vid:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4z8VLXJ5uY

 

[fourwheelford]

Good job man rest easy now that its done. Goes to show that dealer mechs aren't always as good as they should be, the pin was out of that grenade just a matter of time till it killed your engine

 

[JP02XLT]

Glad you got it fixed

JP02XLT

 

[TomB1269]

Nice video as well.......Can it get a sticky so that others can see and hear the problem?

 

[matteo_g]

Does the Camshaft Synchronizer rotate freely?

Thanks for sharing the Taurus video, yamag7d8. Thank you too for the efforts and the final confirmation.

My 3.0L Ranger is now exhibiting an infrequent chirping sound as well, but only when hot after driving on the highway for while. Never when it starts cold or at normal temp, and never after around-town driving. There is still a chance it could be the serpentine belt as a result, so I have to work on that. However, I started studying all the write-ups on the camshaft synchronizer since it does appear to be a common issue on the Ford 3.0L motor around the model year of my vehicle.

I had one question on your replacement. Besides the obvious precise matching of the gear engagement down below so that metal tab at the top that excites the camshaft position (CMP) sensor is in the right spot for ignition timing, does the body of the camshaft synchronizer also spin freely (around the shaft held stationary by the gear engagement) once it is inserted into the engine block hole and before tightening its single hold-down bolt? I am thinking the answer to this question is yes, and this is precisely why the Taurus guy used the toothpick and the white correction pen method of aligning groves on the top of the synchronizer's body. I also noticed online that Ford sells a special alignment tool for this replacement job, which I believe is for the same purpose. Obviously, even with the right gear tooth lined up, spinning the body of the camshaft synchronizer itself would throw off the timing.

Please confirm if you can. I realize that your post here is almost 3 years old.

Thank you.

 

[matteo_g]

UPDATE - JOB DONE AND COMPLETED SUCCESSFULLY:

The chirping quickly worsened only a couple days after my last post. No doubt, this 3.0L Ford Engine was yet another candidate for the camshaft synchronizer replacement. After a little more internet research, I went ahead and ordered the OEM Motorcraft part online for $100 (versus ~$200 at the dealer or perhaps more that twice that for the entire job). It arrived none too soon as the noise was worsening and the engine did buck a couple times.

In another post above, the original author of this thread posted a YouTube video of the same job done on a Ford Taurus 3.0L. Below is a link I found to another YouTube video for the job done on a Ford Ranger 3.0L. The Ranger is much easier to work on than the Taurus since you don't have to remove anything else. The only items in the way are some spark plug wires and a harness. Both can be pushed aside to accomplish the job.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ECx5XvUp4sk

Because of my original concern and question to the blog about whether or not the body of the camshaft synchronizer can rotate, I fashioned an alignment tool out of an old clothes hanger. (Photos below.) As it turns out, the body of the synchronizer DOES ROTATE freely after installation. Therefore, not only is it critical to get the inner mechanism aligned to precisely the same gear tooth as the old one, it is also very important to position the body of the synchronizer in the same angular position as well in order that the sensor that aligns and bolts to the top reads the camshaft timing correctly.

In all, the job took about an hour. The chirp is gone.