1997 Ford F-150: engine knocking or ticking

Filed Feb 23, 2015 · Electrical · CA · fire

The truck was parked for at least 6 hours and our neighbors come knocking on our door because our truck was on fire under the hood. It melted up everything under the hood. We got the fire out and the fire department came and made a report. The fire started on the driver side under the hood.

Filed Jun 13, 2012 · Engine · 86,069 miles · TX

4.2l f150 had a slow loss of coolant and not being notified that this could be a potential problem which could lead to engine destruction, I would simply add more coolant. This condition resulted in complete hydro lock and destroying #5 rod bearing. While I can well understand problems associated with vehicles of 1997 vintage I can not understand at all ford not advising consumers of potential problems with their vehicles before they spend 4k$ in rebuilding and installing this long block and finding out they had squandered their money on trying to resurrect a dead horse with 86069 miles on the odometer.

Filed Apr 17, 2012 · Engine · 102,000 miles · PA

Truck has a 4.2 liter, v-6 engine. A week prior to incident the truck was driven then parked in a my garage. On the incident day I tried to start the truck but heard only a loud, hard knock when the starter engaged. The engine would not turn over. The battery voltage checked out ok. I had the truck towed to a local repair shop. The starter was removed and checked out ok electrically. The mechanic manually rotated the engine backward 1-1/2 turns (he could not rotate it forward) then tried to start it but the engine again made a loud, hard knock sound. The mechanic though the timing chain failed or a push rod was bent. However, since the truck ran fine the last time it was used I felt the problem developed during its last use and last cooldown. I concluded a gasket failed (or a head cracked) allowing coolant to leak into one or more cylinders during its last cooldown. I had the truck towed back to my garage. I removed all spark plugs and found coolant draining from the passenger side front cylinder which was causing hydrolock. I rotated the engine backward 4-1/2 turns then forward 9 turns. The engine now turned freely. A total of 4 to 6 ounces of coolant came out of the cylinder. I spoke with a mechanic who checked the ford alert system and found a posting for the 1997 4.2l v-6 engines that indicated they are prone to intake manifold o-ring failures. I found many reports of similar failures for this year and engine type. I intend to check in with the local ford dealership to get their take on this problem and find out why I wasn't notified about a "recall".

Filed Jun 2, 2011 · Engine · 30,000 miles · AL

Tl*the contact owns a 1997 ford f-150. The contact stated that when starting the vehicle he noticed that the engine would start knocking and making a loud noise. The vehicle was inspected by an independent mechanic and they advised him that it was a defective motor and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not replaced. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 30,000.

Filed Apr 29, 2011 · Engine · 89,000 miles · FL

I have a 1997 f150 4.2 v6 that I purchased new from ford. I noticed that it was losing coolant, but could not find a leak. In 2005, with only 89000 miles on the vehicle I started it up one afternoon when I was on my way home from work and it was running rough. I drove it home and parked it and went out approximately an hour later and started it up and it had a very loud rod knock. I was just researching rebuild kits and rebuilt engines when I came across all the posts about hydrolock. I now know that this was a situation that ford was aware of, but did nothing to correct and left people like myself with a vehicle that was well maintained and did not last. Unfortunately, I did not have the means to repair and the vehicle has been sitting all this time. I think they should have taken responsibility when they found out and people like myself would have had protection on our investment.

Filed Apr 27, 2011 · Engine · 132,000 miles · FL

Tl* the contact owns a 1997 ford f-150. The contact stated that while driving, he heard a knocking noise and the vehicle stalled. The contact was unable to restart the vehicle and it was towed to his residence where a mechanic inspected the vehicle. The mechanic advised that the coolant leaked from the intake gasket into the cylinder in the engine which caused the failure. The contact was informed that the engine would need to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact called the manufacturer who offered no assistance. The current and failure mileage was approximately 132,000.

Filed Jan 30, 2010 · Engine · 132,600 miles · OK

I was driving my truck and heard a loud pop, as if a tire had blown or drive component broke. My truck began to run rough and shake after the noise and continued when I came to a stop very shortly after the sound. It also continued after I came to a stop and put my truck in park. Also, it increased in severity but lessened in time interval, of an obvious knock. I learned I had blown a spark plug out of my head, taking the threads in the head with it. The two options are to remove the head from the motor, which costs about what the truck is worth, or to fix it with the head on the motor and take chances that no metal shavings enter the cylinders. Both options require a heli-coil for the head. I had to heli-coil my head to replace the spark plug since there were no threads for the spark plug to attach to.

Filed Nov 20, 2009 · Engine · 219,000 miles · GA

Tl* the contact owns a 1997 ford f150. The frontal head gaskets were leaking. Also he hears knocking in the engine caused by a defective connection rod. The vehicle was taken to the dealer. He was refused service because he purchased a vehicle from a different dealer. The manufacturer was notified and he was advised that there was a class action law suit for the failure. He was then advised to file a complaint with the federal safety agency. The failure mileage 219,000. The vehicle identification number was unavailable.

Filed Sep 25, 2007 · Engine · 125,277 miles · MS

My f150 xlt 4.2l engine had been operating normally prior to 9/21/07. The truck was sitting at home and had not been driven for approximately one week when I went to drive it. As I cranked it, the engine suddenly began making a very loud clattering noise. I immediately shut off the engine and opened the hood to see if something was hitting the fan blade or some similar event. After inspecting the engine compartment and discovering nothing unusual visually, I again started the engine and again the same horribly loud noise continued. I was told by an auto mechanic who lives nearby that the noise sounded like a rod "knock" caused by catastrophic engine failure. After learning of the 99b29 recall on this 4.2 engine for front gasket defects that cause complete engine failure if not stooped in time, I contacted the original owner and learned that he had never been notified of any such recall, and he specifically stated that anytime he was notified of a problem he always took the vehicle to the dealer as instructed. In fact, his father worked at a ford dealership and his father sold him the truck and he still had no knowledge of any such recall. I had recently added engine coolant to the reservoir before the engine failure because it was very low, but I discovered no leaks anywhere nor anything else unusual so there was nothing appearing out of the ordinary. The engine is now ruined due to the faulty gasket because the vehicle owner was never notified of the defective condition. In fact, the original owner took the vehicle to a ford dealership more that one year ago on may 18, 2006 for an electrical recall (05s28, cruise control) and they should have and could have also fixed the defective gasket at that time, which would have prevented my total engine failure from ever happening... But they didn't. Ford's failure to fix all recalled defects on 5/18/06 was inexcusable. Ford owes me a new engine!

Filed Apr 19, 2007 · Engine, Fuel system · 108,000 miles · OH

Tl*the contact owns a 1997 ford f-150. While driving 45 MPH, the contact heard a knocking noise coming from the engine. The vehicle was brought to the dealer and the engine was replaced. As a result, the engine began to overheat and a significant lost of coolant resulted due to a reservoir failure. At 80,000 miles, the contact began to experience oil pressure failure, which the dealer stated was caused by a bent piston rod on the crank case. The manufacturer would not assist the contact because the VIN excluded the vehicle from the recall. Ford claimed to have only issued a partial level b recall. The failure originated 6 weeks ago, but has been ongoing since june of 2006. The technician suggesting waiting until the engine fails to have it replaced again. The current mileage is 850 and failure mileage was 108,000.

Filed Feb 2, 2007 · Engine · 144,000 miles · LA

1997 ford 150, 144,000 miles. Engine knocks and is loosing coolant. After doing research just found out this was a common problem with the 4.2l v6 engine. I never received a recall from ford stating a problem with the manifold gasket. I am the original owner.

Filed Dec 3, 2006 · Engine · 120,000 miles · OH

I own a 1997 ford f150 4.2l. My truck has been losing coolant for a while! I have replaced the water pump, replaced hoses, replaced thermostats,etc. My truck is now having a ticking sound when I start it in cold weather. I have come to find that ford motor company had previously issued a recall on this trucks engine for a faulty intake manifold gasket. I was never informed of this recall!!! I was informed of other recalls like lug nut failure, cruise control cables,etc, but never about the most expensive, most vital part of the truck the engine. The information of the recall was discover as I was on the web trying to find out how to fix the knocking sound. The web site had over 350 messages of people with the same problem!!! Please help!!