2001 XLS Intake gasket upper and lower

[Aliceinchainsaw]

Hey all,

2001 Explorer XLS sohc

Currently have codes p0171 and p0174 along with a bit of a rough idle on start up (worse when cold) that evens out after some revs of the gas pedal.

I did a light smoke test today and see there is smoke coming up from the spark plug area on the driver side. I'm assuming this is going to be a lower gasket intake leak but wanted to check here first for some confirmation or ideas on what else it could be so I'm not chasing the wrong rabbit.

I was also planning on doing an oil change and a complete radiator flush but don't want to do something in the wrong order and waste time/supplies. What is the best order of events for all of this? Gaskets and then the rest or does it matter?

Thanks

 

[XLTrunner]

Doing an oil change and radiator flush will have no affect on your lean codes. I think you're correct in assuming the codes are a result of bad intake gaskets. Your symptoms are classic for these. The LIM gaskets get hard and take a set after all these years and it shows up most when the engine is cold. Then, as it heats up, the gaskets swell just enough to fill the voids and allows the engine to run a little smoother. I just did mine a couple months ago on a 180K mile engine and can't believe how smooth it runs now.

 

[Aliceinchainsaw]

Sweet, thanks for the info.

I didn't want to change the oil or coolant just to find out I have to turn around and drain it when I go to do the gaskets.