The latest on cam phasers, valve covers and the cooling hose leak.

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bobward757

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Hello fourth generation friends. Thank you for all your participation. You’ve helped me keep my expedition and TopForm as I’m about to round 100,000 miles in two years.

Oh, after getting the phasers done on the guy that had the oil leak and then discovered that there is a new and upgraded valve cover. Five months later, and I am still waiting for the valve covers to come in.

My dealer acknowledged the heating pipe problem and has run across it in about 1/3 of the cam phaser vehicles he has done. He has gone to bat with the regional service people and is replacing them without the hundred dollar deductible if you have the extended service plan. he does recommend replacing the hose connection if and when you do get the cam phasers done, but he has only run across leaks and 1/3 of the jobs they have done.

Again, thank you for this forum and for your participation please keep these threads alive as you come across other cam phaser related issues.

Merry Christmas, happy Hanukkah, and a happy new year to you all bob
 

Jon2099

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One would hope that one of the advantages of having a newer vehicle would be improved parts availability vs having an older one. I guess there's probably a sweet spot between really old and really new, and we're too close to the really new end? I did my own cam phasers, ordered parts in August and just decided to stop waiting for the drivers side valve cover I wanted to replace in November. With that said I haven't had any leaks yet, and if I do it's not that hard to get back to the valve cover. I had a fairly heavy knock when warmed up in addition to the startup noise and it just didn't seem to be running as well as before, so I didn't want to wait any longer. Replacing the phasers and associated parts and spark plugs at the same time fixed that and all the unwanted noises. Bobward757, I agree, and can't thank everyone here enough. It's all the little bits and pieces that make up the totality of everyone's experiences that led me to believe it was something I could do as well as understanding what it was actually doing. Thanks to all the participants in the forum for sharing and seeking information.
 

5280tunage

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One would hope that one of the advantages of having a newer vehicle would be improved parts availability vs having an older one. I guess there's probably a sweet spot between really old and really new, and we're too close to the really new end? I did my own cam phasers, ordered parts in August and just decided to stop waiting for the drivers side valve cover I wanted to replace in November. With that said I haven't had any leaks yet, and if I do it's not that hard to get back to the valve cover. I had a fairly heavy knock when warmed up in addition to the startup noise and it just didn't seem to be running as well as before, so I didn't want to wait any longer. Replacing the phasers and associated parts and spark plugs at the same time fixed that and all the unwanted noises. Bobward757, I agree, and can't thank everyone here enough. It's all the little bits and pieces that make up the totality of everyone's experiences that led me to believe it was something I could do as well as understanding what it was actually doing. Thanks to all the participants in the forum for sharing and seeking information.
Wowsa! You did your own phaser replacement. Sheesh, when the tech did mine he showed me three others getting the same job done in the bays at the same time, there is a ton of stuff they remove to get this done. He actually even showed me an F150 where they just ended up removing the entire cab to get things done. I love wrenching but I definitely don't have the experience, tools, or space to do something like this.
 

Jon2099

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Yes, I did it myself after a lot of research and some youtube videos. It took a fairly large assortment of tools, but nothing exotic. I needed three torque wrenches to span the various required torques, an impact, an air ratchet (battery powered would work too), a ~$5 set of quick fuel line release tools, a pulley puller, and then odds and ends like a 3/4 inch socket was really helpful in seating the crankshaft seal, sockets, extensions, etc. It worked perfectly. Ultimately I decided to do it myself for a few reasons. 1. I could do it on my schedule, 2. When I watched videos of some of the "pros" doing it they said they could do it in five hours and didn't pay much attention to torque specs, just tightened everything up based on experience. It was either bragging about being so fast and it wasn't real, or it was a lack of care that I would provide on my own vehicle, and 3. For a much lower cost I could replace and see all the parts I wanted to, like a new water pump, thermostat, chains, guides, tensioners, solenoids, spark plugs, new belts, etc. Many of those may not have needed replaced, but with 95k miles, it seemed like the cost was minimal compared to labor.

As you mentioned, there is a lot of stuff to take off, but for me I just approach it as "it's only turning bolts" and I can make myself satisfied at every step before moving on. That's probably why it took 20 hours. It's not a job for everyone, but for someone who will be careful, check and double check everything, and has experience doing other jobs on their cars, it is doable. Being a mechanic isn't my day job.
 

5280tunage

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Yes, I did it myself after a lot of research and some youtube videos. It took a fairly large assortment of tools, but nothing exotic. I needed three torque wrenches to span the various required torques, an impact, an air ratchet (battery powered would work too), a ~$5 set of quick fuel line release tools, a pulley puller, and then odds and ends like a 3/4 inch socket was really helpful in seating the crankshaft seal, sockets, extensions, etc. It worked perfectly. Ultimately I decided to do it myself for a few reasons. 1. I could do it on my schedule, 2. When I watched videos of some of the "pros" doing it they said they could do it in five hours and didn't pay much attention to torque specs, just tightened everything up based on experience. It was either bragging about being so fast and it wasn't real, or it was a lack of care that I would provide on my own vehicle, and 3. For a much lower cost I could replace and see all the parts I wanted to, like a new water pump, thermostat, chains, guides, tensioners, solenoids, spark plugs, new belts, etc. Many of those may not have needed replaced, but with 95k miles, it seemed like the cost was minimal compared to labor.

As you mentioned, there is a lot of stuff to take off, but for me I just approach it as "it's only turning bolts" and I can make myself satisfied at every step before moving on. That's probably why it took 20 hours. It's not a job for everyone, but for someone who will be careful, check and double check everything, and has experience doing other jobs on their cars, it is doable. Being a mechanic isn't my day job.
That's awesome. I've rebuilt motors from VW beetles to pushrod V8's and I love the work. I just have very limited space these days and even less time. You know, competitive soccer for the kids is more important than anything :). I think my biggest concern with jobs like this on these is just the fact that Ford has chosen to use so much plastic, I mean seriously, the cam phaser parts from what I've seen are plastic. I've already broken several parts with the work I have done. It just feels like so many things are single use, case in point, all of these folks talking about their weeping coolant lines that use plastic couplers and fittings. WT..F? The temperature differentials, caustic environments, etc... Plastic for things that must maintain a seal just doesn't make sense. In an $80K+ vehicle, you want to save maybe $1 on a plastic coupler vs say an aluminum one?

Anyway, very cool. You've given me a little hope, and maybe I can do more things since I have 4 torque wrenches now, lol... you know, since the lugs need 150lbs, my old torque wrench only did 120lbs but has worked for 20 years...
 
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