Help! Skipping lifter noise

[Team Ford]

Hey guys,

For the past few days Ive noticed that ticking sound like my passengers side header to xpipe bolt came lose again but it was just a little louder then that. Anyway on my way to the garage to tighten up that bolt it, I stepped on it on a straight away and it felt like a belt broke or something as I lost power and the noise got very loud and now the car is skipping pretty bad at low RPMs under load. How do I fix this...just pull the cover and check clearences?

Thanks for your help!

TF

 

[blckstng96]

you sure you didnt break a valve spring? pull the cam cover.

 

[CobraRed_96_GT]

maybe a collapsed cam follower - i bet i could tell you if i heard it in person, my lifters had been collapsed for a long while due to a faulty head not supplying oil - but they can also simply collapse and cease working hydraulically although that's kinda rare.

 

[Team Ford]

you sure you didnt break a valve spring? pull the cam cover.

pulling it now

now why would ford use a 8mm deep well on these studs, I have a 7mm but no 8mm.

 

[trinity_gt]

You sure you didn't blow a spark plug out?

 

[Team Ford]

You sure you didn't blow a spark plug out?

wow trinity great call!

Yes as I had the last bolt out of the cam cover on the pax side I noticed the 2nd cylinder from the firewall COP spring stuffed under itself and the boot was shredded. So I pulled the COP out and yea the spark plug was just sitting in the hole I used a magnet to pull it out. The plug looks fine besides some carbon and a smushed electrode. The COP looks like a grenade hit it.

I pulled the cover anyway since I was already there and everything looks brand new underneath and all the springs seemed fine - nothing broken.

I had replaced these plugs about a 8mo ago.

Im off to the junkyard to get another COP.

Ill change the oil too...it smells pretty gasy as it should driving for 10 miles on 7 cylinders.

 

[blckstng96]

good call on the plug blowout,was just about to come in and type that until i saw that.u gotta check out those threads in the head.

 

[Team Ford]

good call on the plug blowout,was just about to come in and type that until i saw that.u gotta check out those threads in the head.

Damn you guys are smart...yea the plug blew out of the hole taking the threads with it. I just got back from Napa with a heli kit.

My question is how do i do this with the head in the car...those aluminum fragments are going to go into the cylinder....will they scar the piston walls or will they just get pushed out the exhaust valves?

Ill search online how to do this but if someone has done this before please chime in.

Thanks again guys!

TF

 

[Team Ford]

looks like I just need to bring the piston up and use grease to catch the shavings and clean the tool often, then a shop vac to suck up anything that I missed.

forums.modulardepot.com/showthread.php?p=889856

 

[trinity_gt]

looks like I just need to bring the piston up and use grease to catch the shavings and clean the tool often, then a shop vac to suck up anything that I missed.

forums.modulardepot.com/showthread.php?p=889856

That about sums it up. Go slow and take your time.

 

[Team Ford]

Im not sure which sleeve to use the Normal size or the Long. The long matches the length of the plug threads flush while the normal size like 5 threads extend past if you know what I mean.

Thanks!
TF

 

[Team Ford]

I used the normal length and its running fine. Thx guys!

 

[blackink00]

make sure you use an aluminum heli coil. so it disapated heat thru the plug. ive seen steel ones burn up valves.

 

[Team Ford]

make sure you use an aluminum heli coil. so it disapated heat thru the plug. ive seen steel ones burn up valves.

I've already used the set pin and permanent loc tight, plus the kit only had steel inserts. Was I supposed to ask for Aluminum inserts? Nobody mentioned it here or on other boards...anyone else heard of burning valves due to the helicoil being steel?

Thanks

 

[blackink00]

wow that sucks. i work at a ford dealership and i do about 3 heli coils a week and on some engines that i tear down with burnt valves they have steel heli coils in them. good luck with that cuz now the spark plug that you have in is meant for a specific heat range and now the heat range is off cuz steel doesnt disappate like alum

 

[Team Ford]

wow that sucks. i work at a ford dealership and i do about 3 heli coils a week and on some engines that i tear down with burnt valves they have steel heli coils in them. good luck with that cuz now the spark plug that you have in is meant for a specific heat range and now the heat range is off cuz steel doesnt disappate like alum

hope I dont burn a valve

 

[trinity_gt]

Steel will be fine.

blackink, do you have a partnumber for an aluminum thread insert? I've never heard of that before.

 

[blackink00]

i dont off hand but i can get one. all i do is say i need a heli coil kit and the parts counter gives me one. but ive done 2 4.6s with burnt valves cuz of them

 

[trinity_gt]

i dont off hand but i can get one. all i do is say i need a heli coil kit and the parts counter gives me one. but ive done 2 4.6s with burnt valves cuz of them

As far as I know, the insert in Helicoil's HEL5396-14 "Sav-A-Thread HT" kit is stainless steel. I don't think an aluminum insert (if it even exists) would survive installation, let alone service.

It's hard to see how a plug insert could cause valves to burn. I just don't believe the effective heatrange increase can't be so bad as to cause pre-ignition to set in due to incandescent plug tips. Even then, I'd expect the cylinder to die due to eroded plug terminals before valves burned or the piston holed.

 

[blackink00]

heres a kit. it has alum inserts. ++ BIG-SERT Sparkplug ++