2012 XLT Valve Tap Issue

[bigdaddyhame]

Hi there, long time lurker here. Also a complete neophyte when it comes to mechanical issues with vehicles so bear with me on this.

Anyway I've generally been happy with our 2012 XLT. It's up to 138,000kms (Canadian driver) now and we've had relatively few issues with it until the past year.

Started out with a rough idle, then progressed over time to a definite "valve tap" when starting from cold, and now the tap is audible at times during driving, particularly when going around corners or coming to a stop. The noise is *not* always there, and I do experience long periods of smooth driving, particularly at speed on the highway. Truck also has a good chance to stall when I come to a complete stop after a decent drive. Occasionally stalls when stopping at an intersection up-hill. Acceleration is *sometimes* affected but not always. Other times it runs fine.

Engine light came on, I hooked up my little BlueDriver to the port and pulled the codes. P0012 and P0022 - relating to Camshaft Over-Retarded. I took it into Ford and they gave me a laundry list of parts that would need to be replaced. I took that part list to my long-time mechanic and he did the work - replaced just about everything but the lifters in that area. It hasn't fixed the problem and it seems as though things are getting worse.

The check engine light comes on, but it will go away after a day or so. Then come back on after a bit of driving.

Here are the codes i pulled this morning:

Confirmed or Pending Codes
P0012 "A" Camshaft Position Timing Over-Retarded Bank 1
P0019 Crankshaft Position - Camshaft Position Correlation Bank 2 Sensor B
P0022 "A" Camshaft Position Timing Over-Retarded Bank 2
P0015 "B" Camshaft Position - Timing Over-Retarded Bank 1
P0344 Camshaft Position Sensor "A" Circuit Intermittant Bank 1 or Single Sensor
P0025 "B" Camshaft Position - Timing Over-Retarded 2
P0365 Camshaft Position Sensor "B" Circuit Bank 1

Given we replaced most of the parts involved in this issue (as far as Ford's response to those codes is concerned) - I am curious whether this might be something to do with sensors or a circuit board - giving a false report, and causing it to run improperly. Do we try replacing the lifters (not a small job) before looking at sensors or... ?

Once again forgive my ignorance if I'm missing something that might be obvious to a more experienced user.

 

[KayGee]

Did the Ford dealer actually diagnose the problem and provide an itemized list of repairs they thought needed to be made, or did you just ask them about the codes and they rattled off a bunch of things?

What repairs did your mechanic end up making? Did he do any diagnosis or did he just do what you told him?

You could have an issue with cam phasers, sensors, solenoids, oil pressure issue, or something else. PCM may just need to be reflashed to latest calibration. Codes are very helpful, but diagnosis is also very important so you aren't just throwing parts at a problem without understanding the real problem.

 

[bigdaddyhame]

I'll see about getting that part list and post it here... it was described as what the dealer found was necessary based on the codes being presented. I have a suspicion they didn't actually look at the vehicle at all, this was what they banged into their computer and it provided the "solution"...