I have an ongoing problem that I can't nail down. I really need help on this one. The dealer has had the car twice and they can't even replicate the noise. It doesn't help that my dealer is one the most incompetent I've ever encountered. The best they could come up with is telling me that I should run a higher octane gas rather than 87 (as recommended by the manufacturer). I let them know this is NOT engine knock. Not even close.

The car makes a loud, sloppy clatter sound right around 40 mph and up when the engine is cold. It sounds like something is extremely loose and flopping around either in or around the engine. Once the car is warmed up, the sound is gone. If the weather is cold outside, the sound is much more obvious.

The car does not have to be in gear or under acceleration to make the sound. This is not the sound of a loose heat shield or buzzing plastic. This is a sloppy, broken, irregular clatter.

I also drive the car nice and slow, keeping the RPM low until the car has been at operating temp for about ten or fifteen minutes. The car can be coasting to a stop and still make the sound, though it doesn't seem to make a sound at a complete stop. It doesn't get better or worse at a higher or lower speed, though. If it starts at 40mph, it'll stay about the same all the way down to 5 mph.

I'm going to the dealer in two hours to speak to the mechanic and try to take him for a test drive. Unfortunately, it's a hot day here in FL, so there's a good chance it'll be hard to hear. Just my luck.

I'd love to have a theory or two in hand if anybody has any advice. I'm completely stumped on this one, and my dealer isn't doing squat to help me out. They just wanted me to come pick it up (again) and deal with it rather than have it fixed under warranty. I wouldn't be so concerned except that it can be very loud and very bothersome...as though it could cause bigger problems in the long run. It's loud enough on cold mornings that it could be heard from outside of the car standing three or more car lengths away while driving.

 

I can't offer any technical assistance to help with your problem, but take your car to a different ford dealership if the one you currently are going to doesn't want to fix the problem. Not sure where you live, but if there are other dealerships around give them a try.

 

That's the plan. If they still can't do anything at the current dealership, I'm taking it to one about 45 minutes away.

It's an even bigger pain since the current dealership kept my car for four days before even looking at it. They just plain suck. No wonder people don't buy Fords. With dealers like them, who would want to go through the pain of it? I just want my baby back to the way it should be.

 

You said it happens in the cold and goes away when the engine is warm right? Is it like a ticking sound, as if you car is running a solid tappet cam? If so, the lifters may not be seeing enough oil pressure to properly adjust the rocker or the lifters are shot.

 

Sounds like you are not getting enough oil up top on cold starts. You may also have a noisy oil pump and that could be what you are hearing. If the pump is dicked, it might be slapping because it is dry. Pumps are really quite when filled with liquid, but when dry make a sound just like you describe.

Anyone who owns a Chevy Truck with miles and a 5.3 knows what I am talking about.

 

It's funny that you mentioned a chevy truck with miles more like 150,000 I know exactly what your talking about we beat the hell out of one in high school but didnt matter we bought it for $40

 

If you leave my Suburban sit for a few days w/o starting, it is loud as hell. Sounds like lifters, but it is actually the sound of oil being pumped up.

 

This is one of the things I dont like chevy granted strong motor but the accessories water pump, oil pump, etc just plain suck and eventually end up replacing them.

 

Got the car back from the dealership. They were unwilling to take a test drive with me while the car was still cold (the only conditions when the car acts up), and the mechanic began threatening me when I asked why we couldn't just drive up the street since I had been waiting for a week with zero answers and only ten or so minutes of poking around under the hood. Seems he would rather have a smoke than take 30 seconds to locate the problem. After speaking with the service manager and getting "He's a rough old guy and he does things his own way", I'm done with them ... aside from a letter to the owner of the dealership and one to Ford headquarters. Probably won't do any good, but might was well give it a shot.

Anyway, I thought about it being starved of oil, but it doesn't sound quite like that. I've heard that noise on other cars, but this is a bit different. It seems to be too irregular of a sound, and it doesn't sound like a metal tap of a lifter.

It's only happening when it's at speed at about 40mph. It won't do it standing still or at idle. Based on the sound, I'm starting to think it might be a tensioner or something that's a bit loose that isn't internal ... just enough to shake around a bit under certain conditions. Everything seems true when i've looked at it, but that doesn't mean it couldn't be a bearing problem that I'm not seeing or feeling. I'm not sure of that, but it's starting to seem less and less like an internal problem.

I'm taking it to another dealer after the holiday. Third times a charm. After that, I'll be paying a mechanic to diagnose it for me, then take that to Ford to have repaired. I just hope the new dealer can get to the bottom of it.

I'll post results once I have 'em. Until then, if anyone has encountered something like this, feel free to let me know.

 

Me and my cousin came up w/ better fitting motto for Chevy trucks: Like a pillow. There's a reason why Ford trucks are the best selling trucks...
Have you tried reving the engine to see if it does it not under load?

 

Yep. No luck.

I hate phantom sounds like this.