Engine Failsafe mode and clicking/grinding noise when coasting.

[stu05]

Slowing down to come off the freeway the dash beeped and displayed "Engine Failsafe Mode" and this loud rattle or grinding started until I hit the gas again. The exp made it home, shut it down and restart and everything seemed fine. The next day about 4 miles from the house while I was coasting to a stop light it started again. Shut it down and everything seems ok but then it happened again in a couple miles. Read the codes with a simple reader and got P2106.

The noise is very loud, as loud as an electric radiator fan running in overload mode. Sounds like it could be teeth slipping. Once the mode starts if I coast I hear the noise, the noise will go away while the engine is under load but comes back when coasting.

This is on a 4.6L with 107K miles in good shape - until the other day.

Anybody else see this before?

 

[BigRondo]

This has been discussed many times. A search of failsafe returned this: http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/search.php?searchid=4832691

There should be some good info in that link. Hope this helps out.

 

[stu05]

I have read over those but did not see anything like this. The only code I get is the P2106, nothing else. I'm wondering if the P2106 is just the standard code you get when the engine goes into fail safe no matter what the reason.

Driving around a bit today it's looking more like a transmission or transfer case problem. Three times today slowing down - coasting - from about 45 MPH it happened. The speedometer drops to about 25 even though I'm still going over 40, a loud grinding sound and failsafe engine mode appears on the dash. If I give it a little gas the grinding sound goes away and my speedometer comes back to over 40. From this point on until I shutdown the exp it will make the grinding sound when I take my foot off the gas. If I pull over and turn the explorer off and back on it's fine until I coast back down from the 40s or so.

Engine is running fine.