2006 Ford Ranger Squeaking Issue

[pierson181]

I have a 2006 Ford Ranger 3.0 V6 and it has a squeaking issue. I thought it was the belt and my mechanic took the old belt off and cranked it up with no belt and he said he could still here the squeaking noise. So, he put on a new belt and he said the noise got better but you can still hear it. He said he thinks it could be the flywheel but I read that it is rare that a flywheel goes bad? So my question is what do yall think it is? And what are somethings I should check because if it was the pretensioner or anything to do with belt wouldnt it have stopped squeaking when the belt was off? Thanks in advance for you help!

 

[rwenzing]

With the 3.0L, a possible squeaker at the rear of the engine is the Synchronizer. The Synchronizer is an oddly named part that is actually just an adaptor for the Camshaft Position (CMP) Sensor. It fits into the hole that would have housed the ignition distributor on an older version of the engine. The shaft is gear driven at right angles from the cam buried inside the block and its function is to get the rotation of the camshaft to a location where a CMP sensor can be mounted and is accessible for service. It has an aluminum housing with a steel shaft turning inside and does not have pressure lubrication. Sometimes, after some time and miles accumulate, the lubrication in the Synchronizer can dry up and the squeaking/chirping will begin.

If your problem does turn out to be a failing Synchronizer, don't ignore it. When the Synchronizer bore dries up and gets sloppy and its drive gears eventually fail, you also lose the oil pump drive and that means catastrophic engine failure.

 

[pierson181]

Thanks for your reply. My truck only has 75,000 miles. How can I check to see if the synchronizer is bad?

 

[rwenzing]

I would use a mechanic's stethoscope to see if the squeak is coming from the Synchronizer. It is roughly in the rear center of the engine block and may be partially shrouded under the upper intake.

 

[pierson181]

Okay I will look into the stethoscope. Thanks for the diagram and advice. I really just wanna make sure that it is the cam shaft synchronizer before I go replacing anything. I am kind of on a tight budget. I have another truck to drive I dont wanna risk locking the motor up over a 100 part give or take on the price. But I am thinking that this is what it is since the squeak or chirp is still there with no belt. The squeak is usually pretty constant when I am driving and is worse or louder on some days than other. Does that go along with the sync going bad?

 

[rwenzing]

100 part

This is one of those situations where I would stick with a Ford part and not go to the aftermarket. There have been many reports of fitment issues and/or early failure of A/M synchronizer assemblies.

One way to save money on the original equipment part is to research the Motorcraft part number rather than the Ford part number. As odd as it seems, an identical Motorcraft part often costs significantly less. Also, plug the Motorcraft number in at Amazon and RockAuto where the savings is often even greater. As an example, I bought a Ford/Motorcraft 5.0 Synchronizer on Amazon for $90 when the dealer wanted close to $200.

When the new Synchronizer is installed, The Cam Position Sensor must be correctly "timed" to the camshaft. This is usually done using a special alignment tool that can be ordered. The aftermarket Synchronizers often include an alignment tool but the Ford/Motorcraft do not.

Be aware that there are different types of CMP sensor and each must be used with the matching Synchronizer and the correct alignment tool. This varies with the engine displacement and also by model year.

You'll need to do some careful research to get the right part numbers. It may also be helpful to look on YouTube for installation videos.

 

[pierson181]

Thanks for the help! I am going to get a stethoscope tomorrow and check and make sure that it is the synchronizer. And I will go from there. Thanks

 

[pierson181]

Is it necessary to change the sensor too?

 

[rwenzing]

Is it necessary to change the sensor too?

Possibly. Check to see if the windowed rotor of the Synchronizer has been hitting the CMP sensor. That sometimes happens if the Synchronizer clearances have become large enough. If not, then the sensor should be OK. If needed, the sensor is a lot cheaper than the Synchronizer.

 

[pierson181]

Thanks. I put the stethoscope on it and it is the synchronizer that is bad. I am going to change it this week. Thanks for all your help.