Flooding, Vacuum or Timing chain issue?

[dcm0123]

Purchased 1999 Ford Explorer Sport 4.0 SOHC 93K miles, loaded, excellent condition but not running on EBAY. Vehicle sat for about 6 months. Week end project, fixing up for my son.

Dealer who had it told me it was diagnosed by Ford dealer to be a TC issue.
Recently replaced by previous owner or dealer- new MAF sensor (Ford OEM part), plug wires, some but not all spark plugs (not sure why) and possibly a new coil.

Ran compression check on middle cylinder in each bank, both were about 75 PSI. Checked the firing order as well. Checked the fuel pressure- is 60 PSI. which according to this forum is right for a system without a fuel return line.

I removed the TC cover and was surprised to see it looks like the main TC, tensioner and guide have already been replaced and are in very good condition. Looking at the grease build up on the screws around the cover, they were replaced a long time ago.

About 7 days later put the TC cover back on temporarily with a new crank sensor and tried to start it. It started ran about 5 seconds then I turned it off (has no coolant in engine). Tried to start it again and it flooded. Could not get it to start.

Pulled the fuel pump relay and cranked it to burn up all the fuel. After about 20 seconds of cranking it fired and burned the fuel up then stalled.

Put the relay back in and started it, it runs rough like missing on one or more cylinders. Shut it off after about 45 seconds because I did not reinstall the coolant, water pump, radiator etc.

No codes on the Actron 9180 code reader. TPS was about 12% at closed throttle.

Next weekend-
Pull all plugs and run comp check on all cylinders. Put in new plugs.
Pull EGR valve to verify not stuck open.
Not sure if I should pull IAC because I would assume engine would race if it was stuck open, which it did not.

Does anyone have any other suggestions on what I should look for?

If I can not find anything, I will remove valve covers and use the OTC tool to verify cam shaft timing. Want to do this last since I will have to disassemble the upper part of the engine.

Would appreciate hearing from you if you have any ideas.
Thank you!

 

[dcm0123]

What size external torx socket is needed for jack shaft?

Follow up from above
Took of timing cover and found no problems. Someone replaced main timing chain, guide and tensioner not to long ago. Looks like Ford OEM parts.

Found plug wires were mixed up on coil. Put in new crank position sensor, spark plugs and checked compression. All about 110 PSI. Started engine, ran excellent for about 20 seconds then I shut it off.

Dealer I bought it from said at one time it ran but did not have a lot of power. Decided to check timng alignment with OTC tools and found both camshafts are off about 15 degrees. Rotated both cams into alignment then used OTC alignment tools to lock them in place. One tool is on each cam. The cams were in syc with each other but not the crank. Plan is to loosen the front jack shaft bolt, rotate the crank into propper position then tighten the jack shaft bolt. Then everything will be in alignment.

Does anyone know what size external torx socket is needed for the front of the jack shaft? Tried Sears and Autozone and no one had one large enough to fit. Will need to order on line so I need to know the size.

Do people replace this bolt or do they re-use it? I believe this bolt is a torque to yield and has to be replaced but is did not look like it was.

This is a great forum. I would not have made it this far without the helpfull informations found here.

Thank you in advance!

 

[Ferox]

Just curious if you resolved this issue or not?