My 5.4L saga ...

[Dan Faoro]

My 2009 F-150 hit 185,000 miles and it was going through bouts of the cam phaser issue. It finally threw a rod or something and we had a decision to make. Put in a Jasper at the local repair shop with I think it was a 3 month warranty and labor warranty only at that shop OR put in a new Ford motor at the dealership with a 12 month warranty good at any Ford shop. As I recall, the pricing installed was roughly $7,000 for the Jaspar and $10,000 for the Ford. I went with the Ford and am now at 225,000 miles with no other issues.

 

[Goofy173]

I read just the beginning where your mechanic said it was burning it, already. Get rid of that moron.

 

[ManUpOrShutUp]

My 2009 F-150 hit 185,000 miles and it was going through bouts of the cam phaser issue. It finally threw a rod or something and we had a decision to make. Put in a Jasper at the local repair shop with I think it was a 3 month warranty and labor warranty only at that shop OR put in a new Ford motor at the dealership with a 12 month warranty good at any Ford shop. As I recall, the pricing installed was roughly $7,000 for the Jaspar and $10,000 for the Ford. I went with the Ford and am now at 225,000 miles with no other issues.

$5k is about the max I would be willing to drop into this truck. I still have all the local mechanics shrugging their shoulders though. No one wants to diagnose anything anymore. They just want to throw parts in or replace the engine.

I read just the beginning where your mechanic said it was burning it, already. Get rid of that moron.

I'm done with him and should have been a long time ago. He didn't bleed my coolant system at all when he did the intake gaskets and he tossed in some garbage tstat (without asking me and when the old tstat was working really, really well), so now I have to drain the radiator and replace the tstat he just put in. Honestly, I'm not 100% sure he didn't cause some of these problems. He's lazy AF and shortcuts everything.

 

[Dan Faoro]

$5k is about the max I would be willing to drop into this truck. I still have all the local mechanics shrugging their shoulders though. No one wants to diagnose anything anymore. They just want to throw parts in or replace the engine.

I get it, but my truck is in such great shape (I just posted engine pix and a recent pix at 225k) that I felt I could justify it -- especially since I'll have to drop $60k+ to get a new equivalent.

 

[Hamfisted]

Pulled some coolant today and did the sniff test. I don't smell anything other than coolant and I have a pretty good sense of smell. I also did the combustion leak test. In fact, I did it 3x at hot idle and then I accelerated a couple times also. Test fluid remained blue. I then pulled the pump and blew into the tapered end of the tester twice (as per Lisle) to make sure the fluid was actually good and it turned yellow as it should. While I had some coolant out, I packed some up for Blackstone for good measure.

That's good news ! Then it's something much simpler. What thermostat did you order? I've found that a 180 degree is the coolest I can run without getting the "thermostat stuck open" error code. So I'm running a Motorad 180 High Flow thermostat and it works great, even when towing. Even has the triple bridge construction to make it very dependable.

Motorad High Flow Thermostats at Rock Auto






.

 

[ManUpOrShutUp]

That's good news ! Then it's something much simpler. What thermostat did you order? I've found that a 180 degree is the coolest I can run without getting the "thermostat stuck open" error code. So I'm running a Motorad 180 High Flow thermostat and it works great, even when towing. Even has the triple bridge construction to make it very dependable.

I went with the same Stant SuperStat that I had been running previously (192F high flow). It's discontinued (Stant was bought out in 2019) so I had to hunt one down on eBay. After USPS lost track of it for weeks, it finally showed up late yesterday. It's on my to-do list for this weekend. I am hoping that solves the temp problem. Then I just have to find out what is causing the excess pressure in the engine.

 

[Ellison Brown III]

If you do find out the engine needs to be replaced I think I’d stay away from Jasper. Find a more reputable source. Many things I read about them during my search for a replacement engine (for my 04 5.4 2v Eddie Bauer with 297k miles) were not good. Good luck!!!

 

[Hamfisted]

With the engine at idle are you getting a good vacuum there at the crankcase ventilation hose ? Do you see any condensation ( or milky oil...) on the oil cap innards ?

 

[ManUpOrShutUp]

With the engine at idle are you getting a good vacuum there at the crankcase ventilation hose ? Do you see any condensation ( or milky oil...) on the oil cap innards ?

No signs of issues on the oil cap. I haven't checked the crankcase vent hose or the PCV yet.

 

[mdjeterva]

No signs of issues on the oil cap. I haven't checked the crankcase vent hose or the PCV yet.

I'd look at the PVC and crankcase vent hose before I do anything else, blowing oil filters/gaskets is a pretty serious sign of over pressure in the crankcase. If they look ok, I'd do a compression leak down test on cylinders, if the head gasket is allowing combustion pressure into the crankcase, it's also probably sucking some oil into the cylinder. If it's a head gasket, you are basically looking at a top end rebuild and you should go ahead and do both sides while it's apart. With $85-$90/hr shop labor you are looking at around $2500 for it and having the heads redone at the same time. That's a lot cheaper than a reman engine if the lower end is still ok.