2003 4.0 sohc flex engine

[eyoung429]

Ok...was coming home thursday and drive the freeway everyday. went to get on and couldn't get it over 50, check engine light came on and pretty much had to baby it up to about 1 mile after getting on...engine then picked up and was able to do 65...got off at the next exit, no smoke or smell at all.. got up to the light and could hear a knock..drove the rest of the way home and the sound of the knock wasn't related to rpm albeit when changing gears it would get hella loud...thought the thing was going to drop a rod. got it home still making all kinds of knocking. backed it up and was very little noise for a second or two then rattled.

pulled the intake (what a friggin nightmare, dropped my first and only T30 bit under that dang thing they put in the valley area..) dug around and no other bit..did I mention I am 23 miles from the nearest town?

was going to jump on my quad cat...and rembered there was a lot of Torx on it...sure enough, there was a wrench that was a t30...back 2 bolts were a nightmare...I am described as a Squatch...am 6'5, 359 lbs and freakin bananna hands.

anyway...6 hrs later and have the valve covers and intake with most of the front of the engine torn down...

Guides look great
valves seem to be where they need to be
need new spark plug wires...last owner must have glued them in...came apart in pieces.

oil a little burnt but thought if it dropped a valve or chewed a bearing that would be expected.

so, didn't seem to be any of the above. Figured...might as well drop the pan.

Mind you...I have worked on v8's my entire life...from 427 side oilers to a couple of '92 hemis that I had in a '55 F100.
Dropped the pan and thought...dang that was easy...even in a 4x4.

Looked in the pan and other than some discolored oil...no metal, no plastic..WTF???? This thing sounded like an old Boss 351 that someone had taken the revlimiter off and starved it of oil prior to windowing the block in 2 places....

arrrrrgggghhhh....ok.. decided to look at the bearings anyway...got under the truck and HUH??? what the heck?? where is the crank and rods?? I can see the oil pick up tube and block??? Ok...weird....searched on the web and cannot find anything.

Is this a windage tray or part of the block?

If I take it out, is it gonna drop the crank and all??

who designed this thing other than a midget with very small hands?

Oh...and don't get me started on the tranny...what dumb azz in their right mind would take the dipstick tube out of an auto and seal it?? Mine has just started doing the shudder whenever od is engaged and figuring will be diggin in to this as well.

BTW...this rig only has 128,441 miles on it. I am sooooo dang tempted to take my 377 Cleavor and drop it in this thing if I didn't have to do so many miles daily...

HELP!!!!!

 

[imp]

Ok...was coming home thursday and drive the freeway everyday. went to get on and couldn't get it over 50, check engine light came on and pretty much had to baby it up to about 1 mile after getting on...engine then picked up and was able to do 65...got off at the next exit, no smoke or smell at all.. got up to the light and could hear a knock..drove the rest of the way home and the sound of the knock wasn't related to rpm albeit when changing gears it would get hella loud...thought the thing was going to drop a rod. got it home still making all kinds of knocking. backed it up and was very little noise for a second or two then rattled.

pulled the intake (what a friggin nightmare, dropped my first and only T30 bit under that dang thing they put in the valley area..) dug around and no other bit..did I mention I am 23 miles from the nearest town?

was going to jump on my quad cat...and rembered there was a lot of Torx on it...sure enough, there was a wrench that was a t30...back 2 bolts were a nightmare...I am described as a Squatch...am 6'5, 359 lbs and freakin bananna hands.

anyway...6 hrs later and have the valve covers and intake with most of the front of the engine torn down...

Guides look great
valves seem to be where they need to be
need new spark plug wires...last owner must have glued them in...came apart in pieces.

oil a little burnt but thought if it dropped a valve or chewed a bearing that would be expected.

so, didn't seem to be any of the above. Figured...might as well drop the pan.

Mind you...I have worked on v8's my entire life...from 427 side oilers to a couple of '92 hemis that I had in a '55 F100.
Dropped the pan and thought...dang that was easy...even in a 4x4.

Looked in the pan and other than some discolored oil...no metal, no plastic..WTF???? This thing sounded like an old Boss 351 that someone had taken the revlimiter off and starved it of oil prior to windowing the block in 2 places....

arrrrrgggghhhh....ok.. decided to look at the bearings anyway...got under the truck and HUH??? what the heck?? where is the crank and rods?? I can see the oil pick up tube and block??? Ok...weird....searched on the web and cannot find anything.

Is this a windage tray or part of the block?

If I take it out, is it gonna drop the crank and all??

who designed this thing other than a midget with very small hands?

Oh...and don't get me started on the tranny...what dumb azz in their right mind would take the dipstick tube out of an auto and seal it?? Mine has just started doing the shudder whenever od is engaged and figuring will be diggin in to this as well.

BTW...this rig only has 128,441 miles on it. I am sooooo dang tempted to take my 377 Cleavor and drop it in this thing if I didn't have to do so many miles daily...

HELP!!!!!

Buy a ####ing Chevy and deal with twice as many headaches. imp

 

[2000StreetRod]

made in Germany

The block was designed and manufactured in Cologne, Germany. When the engine was modified from an OHV V6 to an SOHC V6 a block girdle was added to strengthen the bottom end. The girdle has to be removed to get to the crankshaft. You're obviously not familiar with the engine and will learn that it is much easier to disassemble than to put back together correctly. It is an interference engine and if not timed correctly will be destroyed on restart. So far it sounds like you've done nothing that affects the timing.

If the knock was not rpm related why did you take the engine apart? Was it vehicle speed related? Could it be the transmission, exhaust heat shield, driveshaft, differential, etc?

How did you determine if the timing chain guides were OK if you're not familiar with the engine? Do you have any photos to post? No metal or plastic particles in the oil pan are a good sign but sometimes the guides break into large pieces that can't make it to the pan. The rear guide may actually look like the one below.

I am also opposed to sealed transmissions which seem to be more popular in models made is the last decade (VW for example as well as Ford).

 

[eyoung429]

Thank you for the reply.... in your mentioning of non-rpm related noised, I have had dropped valves, broken rockers, pulled rocker arm studs, head from a bolt that mysteriously was bouncing around in a timing cover on a 318...none of which at times were rpm related...
due to the volume of the knock, I was looking for the obvious... neither of the chains have any slack in them and the plastic looks good...

The knock was not tinny sounding, not a thunk but definately material upon material.

Just trying to eliminate the obvious. Today i will be removing the transfer case and dropping the tranny...will look there.

Was just shocked to see that mess, am used to windage trays and stud girdles...

So, without pulling the engine...there is no way to physically inspect the bottom end....definately not one of Fords better ideas....

 

[2000StreetRod]

removing the girdle

As I recall it is very difficult to remove the block girdle with the engine in the vehicle on a 4WD model. Also, if it is removed there is an alignment that should be done when it is reinstalled that would also be difficult with the transmission in place. There is also a special procedure for torquing the block girdle and for sealing it. The photo below shows my engine with the cradle removed. It was full of sludge - probably due to the previous owner removing the thermostat.

The 4WD model has a balance shaft driven by a chain connected to a crankshaft sprocket. It also has a tensioner (frequently breaks in less than 100K miles) and guide. However, when the balance shaft chain tensioner breaks it usually results in leaf spring particles in the oil pan.

I'm curious about the "knock". Please post the source when you find it.

 

[eyoung429]

<insert groan here>

Got up under her this morning...thought...this shouldn't be too hard. marked the front drive shaft and marked the rear. got ready to take the front shaft out.....hmmm..10mm and cannot put a box wrench on it...at this point in the game after dealing with the engine..removed the rear driveshaft, disconnected the starter, removed the shifter arm, safety neutral switch, primary cross brace that goes under the bell housing.

Wait...something is a little off here.

bell housing - check
front drive shaft - still there....
engine girdle, ladder...offending piece of aluminum crap - check
starter out of the way - check..

Then it dawned on me....WHERE IS THE DAMN INSPECTION PLATE TO GET TO THE TORQUE CONVERTOR NUTS???

What monkey ****ing a football did Ford hire to design this crap?? Ok...am over the sealed tranny crap, over the stupid aforementioned cradle..

I bought this truck and the right to work on it myself...so why is it so dang stupid not to put an inspection plate on these....hell, they have been doing it for over 50yrs now ppl....


AAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!

Now I know why there are no videos nor pictures of the 3rd gen on the web...

 

[2000StreetRod]

remove the starter

You have to remove the starter to gain access to the torque converter bolts.

This post may help you get the starter off: 21 Starter motor removal
It may be a little different for your 3rd generation.

 

[eyoung429]

Wow...wish I had that much room to view that clearly...gonna try and see if I can reach it from above...no clearance below like that...

btw...how do you take the inner fenders out of the 2003?? got all the body clips out and the 2 screws at the front...2 screws at the top...they wont come out....

Miss the day when it was 6 bolts to bellhousing, 4 bolts for drive shaft, 4 bolts for cross member, 2 bolts for starter, 1 connector for shifter and 4 nuts for convertor after taking the inspection plate out and the 2 coolant lines and speedo cable. 4hrs to completely replace with beer and snack.

 

[2000StreetRod]

No access from above

Wow...wish I had that much room to view that clearly...gonna try and see if I can reach it from above...no clearance below like that...

I doubt you will be able to access the bolts from above. I took that photo laying on my back with the front of the vehicle on jack stands.

btw...how do you take the inner fenders out of the 2003?? got all the body clips out and the 2 screws at the front...2 screws at the top...they wont come out.... . . .

I can't help you with that. The only thing I know about the 3rd Generation is the SOHC V6 because that's what's in my 2000 Sport.

 

[eyoung429]

Lets see how this works

Pic from below.
large item going into bushing is control arm
red clear arrow is starter (already loosened and pulled back 2in had to go above frame to get upper bolt out)

green clear arrow is the pivot mount for the front center section

red solid is the tranny

This is from above the frame rail with starter pulled back...cant get it to drop or move out of the way with wires connected.

 

[eyoung429]

For Pete's sake.....
do I have to freakin pull the running boards and the trim to get this liner out??

found a freaking screw on both sides....

flashlight is where screw is from outside fender

all I want to do is pull the stupid tranny out...not disassemble the whold dang truck...

 

[eyoung429]

nvm...just cut a hole in the outer to get to the screw...

 

[eyoung429]

Ok, time to stop procrastinating. I ran into a guy who had an 05 that was t-boned. 52,133 miles on it. Picked it up from intake to pan, fan to flywheel for $800 took us 2 batteries, 2 metal blades and 2 zip saws...very easy removal

Getting up tomorrow and going to get the starter out and drop the crossmember....have to get the flywheel nuts out...still havent figured that one out yet.

Was reading on the web and someone mentioned taking a panel out from under the console to access the upper bolts and the sensors...does the 03 have this?

BIG THANKS OUT TO Dale for the engine manual!!!!!

anyone have the service manual or online chilton or haynes manual for the 03???

Thank you!!

 

[2000StreetRod]

replacing the engine

Apparantly you've decided the knock was coming from the engine and are swapping the engine. To remove the flexplate bolts you remove the starter and then rotate the crankshaft until one of the flexplate bolts is accessible thru the starter opening. Remove a bolt (you need a correct fit socket and extender or you may strip the head of the bolt) rotate the crankshaft 90 degrees and remove the next bolt. There are four bolts.

I removed the engine to transmission mounting bolts without removing the floor tunnel inspection plate. I used a combination of extensions and wobble joints to work around the exhaust pipes. See post #26 of this thread: 1 SOHC V6 Engine Removal Procedure

 

[eyoung429]

ok...getting down to the front area....how the holy f*%$ do you get the radiator out? I got the support out, disconnected the upper and lower radiator hoses...

removed the two pieces of the shroud earlier.

disconnected the tranny lines

hmmm...why are there screws coming from the BACK SIDE of the supports??

removed the two upper supports from the side braces holding the condensor to the side supports

reached my friggin paws down and managed to get the upper screws, the two screws holding the tranny cooler in......HOW THE F*(* do you get the bottom two out?

 

[eyoung429]

Never mind....body saw works great on the bolts..

I have epoxied nut clips on the back side of the side brackets and on the tranny cooler....I will put bolts through the shroud side where the hell they belong in the first place.

modern day engineers....more like monkey's humpin footballs...never see such backwards azzed engineering in my life...

 

[eyoung429]

so, have no way to pull from the front...after all is said and done..damn truck is 8in too far to the right.....

 

[eyoung429]

yay...can't get the fkin bolts out now...no more room to drop tranny...my 365lb 6'5" azz cant get to the tranny jack with it dropped down now.

dumb fuel line bracket...why 3 f'in bolts to hold it in??

stupid drivers side bolt is under the loom....

glad I have multiple wrenches

what a freakin mess

got the exhaust from the 03 on the new engine...have to change motor mounts, well....friggin everything other than the longblock

both together...it's beer time...

 

[eyoung429]

YaY!!! It's Saturday!! 18deg and no heat in the garage...
figured its a good time to get the truck moved over a couple of inches to ease the install......was the easiest part of the entire job

got the engine in the bay

she really looks great...took 2 hrs to get everything lined up

Then started putting in the bolts and then saw this wrench..(pic was prior to engine going back in)

That is one of my really nice ratcheting wrench with the pivot....only problem is that it ratchets one way and then to change it you flip it over.

I now have a chip in the windshield where the screwdriver bounced off after being launched by me. Truck is without wheels in the front, tranny jack under the truck where I cant reach it, tranny won't move down to allow me to get the wrench out and flipped....

have the nuts on the convertor, 5 of the bellhousing bolts in, motor mounts bolted up and the wrench is now jammed on the bolt which is now jammed between the firewall and block.

I am going to bed now....still can't find the dang screwdriver either...........