I have a 99 ford ranger 2.5L with 95k miles that pings, it doesn't matter if its cold or hot. I have dealt and researched this problem for over two years and have just about given up. She runs great since i replaced all these parts however the ping is always there. Have replaced just about every part related to the ping. Here is what i have replaced and done so far;

1. Spark plugs and wires
2. fuel pump and filter followed by checking pressure
3. checked timing
4. EGR system replaced that includes DFPE and pipe.
5. checked compression, 175-182
6. checked valves
7. both o2 sensors replaced
8. MAF, tried two different brands
9. TPS sensor
10. IAT sensor
11. Tried several cans of seafoam through the intake
12. Checked and rechecked All vacuum lines and hoses. Also checked pressure.
13. Air filter
14. PCM
15. Brought the truck to two different dealers, both shrugged their shoulders then raped me. They both basically said to run high mileage oil and high octane gas.


Here is what i haven't done along with why I haven't;

1. Fuel injectors= I haven't replaced the injectors because she runs and idles like brand new. Purrs like a kitten

2. Cleaned carbon deposits= It pings no matter if its cold or hot.

3. Ignition coils= Checked by dealer and falls out of the range of any TSB

 

I guess that was my next question, does pinging stop completely with 93 octane fuel?
If it does then you are pretty much down to spark issue


Going down this particular rabbit hole because of what has already been tried, lol.

The base spark timing on 2.5l is done by Crank sensor and tone wheel on crank pulley

But on the 2.3l and 2.5l, 1995 and up, the tone wheel is not Keyed to pulley, it is a press fit, which is fine 99.9% of the time, but I have seen them slip

You can't check this with ODB2 data because base timing is what is off a mechanical issue, computer is getting wrong data so garbage in garbage out
I would expect Cam sensor to pick that up but it is more concerned with injector timing

Not sure if 2.5l even has a 0 TDC mark on pulley and case, but you would need to make one, and add degrees BTDC to the pulley
Then use old fashion timing light on Spark plug #1 to see timing
Problem is there is no way to take computer out of the picture, and I don't know what the correct timing should be, what to look for?
There are some computer data reading in this thread: 2.5L ignition timing, torque pro - The Ranger Station Forums
You could compare those to actual crank pulley marks

2.3l and 2.5l are pingy engines because of compression ratio(9.3:1) so they have to be timed correctly to run on 87 octane.

 

Thanks for the reply Ron every bit helps. 93 octane just covers it up, it still pings at certain times but not near as bad. Whenever i check the timing with the old fashion light its usually on 10 however when i checked it this morning it was a little high around 12-15. Tone wheel? Hope it isnt that..lol. The pcm has been replaced. Thanks for the link, checking it out right now

 

Problem fixed,
After all these years just found out the problem was from a bad fan clutch. Even though it seemed to work and the temps stayed within the "normal range" it was still causing the head to get hot which caused pinging. Didnt take but a few minutes to warm up even in the cold.

 

Cool (pun not intended) but i gotta know, how did you come to this conclusion?

 

Another failure, i thought it fixed the pinging but it came back as usual, just going to turn up the radio real loud next time..lol. Ive done just about everything besides remove the heads.

 

So, you said that higher octane fuel improved the matter, but not completely?

I don't think you should discount the injectors just yet, it's obviously a fuel/air issue in my mind at this point.
The delivery rate of injectors at idle/cruise is low.

Did you gap the new plugs?

 

Are you sure you dont have a small vacuum leak causing a lean issue?

What did you gap your plugs to? What brand plugs?

Does it only ping when loading the engine or does it ping at WOT also?

What brand gas do you use? I USED to run Shell only but then noticed that it was the only brand fuel that would cause my Ranger to ping. I also have a 2013 F150, i was running a 87 octane performance tune in it. The computer was pulling timing due to the knock sensors. Put 93 octane in the tank while keeping the 87 tune and it was still pulling timing, not as much but still pulling. Switched to Marathon 93 ocatane and the truck started ADDING timing! So unless im going to be stuck on the side the road with no gas i wont use Shell again.

Does the engine burn oil? Oil lowers octane rating and cause led to pinging. I had a oil seperator laying around in my shop after upgrading the one on my F150 and decided to install it on the ranger. It actually catch a decent about of oil, maybe look into that.

Wayne

 

Yes the plugs were gapped, I believe youre right about the injectors just not 100% sure since it idles and runs awesome besides the ping. What about the coils? Could the coils cause the ping?

 

It added timing because it might have an octane sensor. My truck doesnt have a knock sensor or octane sensor. I gaped the pluggs .44, Use 93 since it started pinging. "Does it only ping when loading the engine or does it ping at WOT also?" It will ping at WOT if its already at high rpm. Its really weird, there is a sweet spot it starts to ping which is at 73mph. Im guessing it is because the engine is under constrain to keep up with the speed. However it can ping earlier if im accelerating like im passing someone or speeding up to merge onto a hwy.

 

So, ping is (as you probably know) pre detonation, if the coil isn't sparking on time, or giving a decent spark, it *could* cause it. Not sure how you'd test that though, outside of trying a new unit.

Is that the right gap for the 4 cyl? that's the 3.0 gap, didn't think the 4cyl was the same.


Again, injectors being gummed up etc could absolutely cause this, i would check their resistance first, and if they're all ok/match, then i'd use a strong dose of either Redline SI-1 or Techron Concentrate (not the other versions, just concentrate)

Both of those have a high PEA concentration (don't tell people that out loud) and will do a pretty good job of getting the injectors unclogged.

 

I understand your truck doesn’t have a knock sensors to advance or retard timing. I was just explaining an issue I had and found it to be Shell gas, no matter if it was 87 or 93. Switched to Chevron, Valero or Marathon and no more issues.

Wayne

 

Been there done everything only one thing got rid of the ping OCTANE BOOSTER and it was completely gone., and better mileage