mranderson214
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- August 3, 2010
- Messages
- 162
- Reaction score
- 1
- City, State
- Brooklyn, NY
- Year, Model & Trim Level
- 2002 XLT
Hey Everyone,
It's been a while since I was able to post on this forum, but I hope everyone is well. I know that this is a topic that has been discussed at length, and I've done a ton of research on the matter but have come up with nothing that worked in my case, thus far. Basically I have a lean condition and Check Engine light; and as I've done so much research and troubleshooting, this may be quite lengthy, my apologies in advance..
I have a 2002 Ford Explorer XLT, V6/4.0 L, with nearly 231,000 on the odometer (and still going strong). I have a small leak in the valve cover gasket, seen mostly on the drivers side, but my mechanic said that it could wait as the leak is small and I change the oil every 3,000 miles. After about a year and a half, I went in to have him change it one day but he mentioned that one of the bolts was stuck on/near the upper intake manifold. Ultimately he didn't change the valve cover gasket out of fear of breaking the plastic on the intake.
Shortly after that, I got a Check Engine light, P0171 and P0174. Checked all the hoses, cleared the light. It came back. Put a clamp around the air intake breather hose because it was loose where the hose met the intake.. same codes came back after about 10 miles after that. Cleared code, it came back again. I've driven it about 500 miles with the CEL and everything runs normal: no rough idle, no unusual fuel consumption.
I began working on it again, as my inspection is due by the end of July. Changed the air intake breather hose with a new one, cleaned the MAF, checked for loose hoses and worn hoses, took off the PCV valve hose and inspected it, changed the PCV valve, changed the fuel filter, checked hoses again, reset the code again. After about 15 miles, the code came back. One mechanic I had check it said it's probably a weak fuel pump, but I don't think so. I got the CEL done after the fuel filter, now I have a P0156 (Oxygen Sensor Circuit Malfunction (Bank 2 Sensor 2)), P0171 and P0174. I doubt that its a faulty O2 sensor considering both banks are "lean".
Reading the forums, I've come to the conclusion that it might be an intake gasket? I was planning to have a smoke test performed to check for vacuum leaks, but I was wondering if its possible to see an intake leak with a smoke test. Is there anything else you guys can think of that might've caused this?? Willing to take any advice anyone can provide.
Thanks in advance!
It's been a while since I was able to post on this forum, but I hope everyone is well. I know that this is a topic that has been discussed at length, and I've done a ton of research on the matter but have come up with nothing that worked in my case, thus far. Basically I have a lean condition and Check Engine light; and as I've done so much research and troubleshooting, this may be quite lengthy, my apologies in advance..
I have a 2002 Ford Explorer XLT, V6/4.0 L, with nearly 231,000 on the odometer (and still going strong). I have a small leak in the valve cover gasket, seen mostly on the drivers side, but my mechanic said that it could wait as the leak is small and I change the oil every 3,000 miles. After about a year and a half, I went in to have him change it one day but he mentioned that one of the bolts was stuck on/near the upper intake manifold. Ultimately he didn't change the valve cover gasket out of fear of breaking the plastic on the intake.
Shortly after that, I got a Check Engine light, P0171 and P0174. Checked all the hoses, cleared the light. It came back. Put a clamp around the air intake breather hose because it was loose where the hose met the intake.. same codes came back after about 10 miles after that. Cleared code, it came back again. I've driven it about 500 miles with the CEL and everything runs normal: no rough idle, no unusual fuel consumption.
I began working on it again, as my inspection is due by the end of July. Changed the air intake breather hose with a new one, cleaned the MAF, checked for loose hoses and worn hoses, took off the PCV valve hose and inspected it, changed the PCV valve, changed the fuel filter, checked hoses again, reset the code again. After about 15 miles, the code came back. One mechanic I had check it said it's probably a weak fuel pump, but I don't think so. I got the CEL done after the fuel filter, now I have a P0156 (Oxygen Sensor Circuit Malfunction (Bank 2 Sensor 2)), P0171 and P0174. I doubt that its a faulty O2 sensor considering both banks are "lean".
Reading the forums, I've come to the conclusion that it might be an intake gasket? I was planning to have a smoke test performed to check for vacuum leaks, but I was wondering if its possible to see an intake leak with a smoke test. Is there anything else you guys can think of that might've caused this?? Willing to take any advice anyone can provide.
Thanks in advance!