2011 Ford Expedition XLT 5.4 3v - Idle issues about 60% of the time - No codes - Engine runs great otherwise

[FordMafia]

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[FordMafia]

Thanks for the suggestion. No air in the cooling system. I really don't know how you would in a Ford v8 as compared to a Honda especially with the return hose on the top of the intake along with the thermostat. If there was air in the system you would not get a good flow of coolant and would most likely overheat. And I can have a rough idle on cold start as well as the engine running normal temp.

I didn't have any overheating even with about half the coolant amount and definite air in there. But maybe I didn't drive enough to give it the chance. The most I did was a few rips down the highway at 80mph for a couple min. I also knew that I needed coolant so I was checking constantly and had the remaining fluid sitting in the car ready to be added. Sorry that wasn't your fix.
Best of luck.

 

[ccondor]

I have a 2011 Ford Expedition 5.4 3v with 260k miles. Owned since new.

Issue is rough idle about 60% of the time. Rough in the seat of your pants. It never stalls but at times it appears to be close to a stall and other times it runs as smooth as it should.

No codes.

I'm 61 and work in high tech but spent the first 26 years of my life working in my fathers Auto Parts store and Machine Shop in North Central PA (best job I ever had). I do most of my own maintenance on my vehicles.

I purchased a Topdon Phoenix light 2 scanner that reviewed on Scanner Danner's channel.

I have replaced all the timing components with OEM as well as the Melling Hi Volume oil pump. This included chains, guides, tensioners , phasers, roller followers with the smaller oil holes, lash adjusters and both solenoids. Again all OEM.

I even replaced the throttle body with an aftermarket one because I broke some plastic on the original but it I was having idle issues with the original one as well.

I have replaced the Mass Airflow sensor as well but no change.

Oil is changed every 7k and now using 5W30 Mobile One instead of 5W20 Mobile One due to mileage.

I also use the Purolator Boss oil filters and change them every oil change.

I run Seafoam through the gas and oil on occasion to ensure the inside is clean.

When I had the valve covers off the top of the head was clean as if new. No sludge or discoloring.

I have replaced all the plugs, checked gap, torqued them to spec and replaced all the fuel injectors and COPs as well and all with OEM parts.

It runs great while driving. Acceleration is perfect and from zero to 60+ it runs better now than it did when new.

Gas mileage on a trip is over 19 MPG with 87 octane and over 20 with 93.

There is no knocking or any noticeable noise from inside the engine.

Short and long term fuel trims are low where they should be and normally hover around the low +- single digits.

I have spent a lot of money on this and have had one shop try to diagnose the issue twice but they came back with nothing significant.

The shop I used said they can sense a vibration at low RPM using one of their tools but to me that is hard to tell if there is a mechanical issue or a fuel or air or spark issue or even torque converter issue.

As far as I can tell the VCT error value hovers around 0 as well using the Topdon.

Relative compression is perfect.

Power balance is fairly good with no detectable misfires and the little bit of imbalance could be caused by one of the items noted above.

I watch Scanner Danner's channel and Ford Tech Makuloco. I followed his suggestions on the timing component refresh.

What I am looking for is if anyone knows of a good mechanic in the Northern Virginia area who is a good diagnostic technician who may even have experience with Ford 5.4 3v engines.

I have had many theories but so far none have panned out. I wonder if at low RPM the PCM is not giving enough power to the COPs at times to keep the idle smooth but not low enough to cause a code.

I am lost and have exceeded my diagnostic skills and I am not ready to throw the towel in yet.

Any ideas? I would appreciate.

Thanks!

I have owned a 2011 Expy for about 15 years encountered the same problem troubleshooting led me nowhere. Changed the coils and problem solved. Try MAS coils brown boots about $75. Hope it helps.

 

[watsonlee24]

Hey there- having exact same issue in 2010 F-150 after doing the timing job exactly as per FTM’s video series. Did you ever figure out what it was?? Brand new plugs and coils, I’ve cleaned throttle body & did relearn procedure and swapped MAF sensor with no change.