rattle in motor or trans??

[Bandido]

Hi,
I don't know if that has already been discussed, but I don't know how to search for that:

When the Explorer is idling I can hear a rattle from underneath. When you are looking under the hood the fan and the valves etc. are louder, so that you can't hear it.
But then I crawled under the car and it sounds like a rattle from inside the motor or transmission (can't really locate the sound). Sounds like some piece is in there.
any ideas what that could be?

 

[jimbo74]

have you heard about the dreaded cam tensioners on the sohc? there used to be a recall about it but not sure if its still around

 

[Glacier991]

can also be cat heat shield or tranny heat shield....notorious

 

[Bandido]

I prefer it being a heat shield...

I think I came across the belt tensioner issue and I don't know if that has been fixed in my explorer, since I have it for a couple of months only and bought it at 102,000mls.

So if anybody has more info on the belt tensioner issues... or pricing or is it even possible to do it yourself?

thanks, I appreciate any info.

 

[TPLYNCH]

Ford can check whether work was done using your VIN. Timing Chain Cassettes were covered by program 01M01 that extended warranty on the parts to 100K miles.

 

[Bandido]

oh, so I just go to a Ford Dealership and have them check my VIN?

 

[dreamr]

The OHV also has a Ford Service Bulletin out regarding what they call "marbling noise"
It literally sounds like a marble in the bell housing. They claim it is common in the 4.0 ohv and that it will cause no damage or harm to the engine. Drives me nuts, but so far they have been right and it has caused no concerns. I did take it to two dealers and called another before I began to believe them though.

 

[amessie]

Don't overlook your RH/Passenger side chain cassette. Do you hear rattle/detonation under hard accelration? If you do your cassette may be broken and plastic particles and metal shavings are being produced, which can lead to engine failure.

 

[south59]

I had a similar problem and it was the overfill metal piping for the tranny tapping the floorboard. It drove me CRAZY, so i finally ripped the carpeting up and pinpointed the rattling on my floorboard and then fixed it with a ziptie.

 

[Pheonixx77]

try reving the engine, if the sound gets louder with higher rev's you could have engine issues. i had the heat shield problem before and it quieted down when i reved engine.

 

[Bandido]

I can't hear it from inside, and also not when you are just looking under the hood. But if you go a few feet away from the car, you can hear it and when I crawled underneath I heard it and tried to locate it and I think it came either from the tranny or the motor...

 

[david_86]

Well, I think I may be having the same issue. (Some of you may remember me mentioning it in my tranny post when it died in style and got rebuilt). I can hear the rattle when the transmission is enguaged and I'm sitting still. (And I can REALLY hear it when something solid is beside me, like a fence.) Also, when I slam my door, I can hear it rattle too. When I was in my driveway, I pressed on the brake really hard, then gently starting giving it some gas, and as the engine started to rev up over idle speed, the rattle went away. I went to Canadian Tire and asked them. They were ready to bet money that it is simply the cat heat shield, and they could rip it off for like 15 bucks. My only concern is, is that a good idea? Or will the missing heat shield start to cause more problems down the road? Should I just get it re-welded if I can?

Also, one more quick thing. How hard is it to change the drive belt on the 4.0L V6 on a 96 Explorer XLT 4x4? Mine is showing many small cracks, and I picked one up at Canadian Tire for like 35 bucks. Never replaced one before. Any hints or warnings?

Big thanks!



Dave

 

[Longjohn119]

Most people I know just get a big stainless steel hose clamp (or two if one isn't long enough) and use that to clamp them down to the cat or muffler to stop the rattling yet still get the benefits of the heat shield .... it can get a bit uncomfortable for the passenger's feet or behind if you take those shields off ...

 

[96limitedX]

i had the exact same kinda noise..sounded like someing baging together in the tranny..well turns out it was a cracked flex plate..so if you have a 4.0 OHV watch out for it. replaced the flex plate..shes quiet as a mouse now!