Intermittent engine ‘moaning’ sound
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Joined: Oct 2018
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From: Cincinnati, Ohio
Intermittent engine ‘moaning’ sound
Hi all,
I have a ‘96 Ranger with the 4.0L V6 pushrod engine and about 200K miles. Did fairly significant work chasing codes when I first bought it, getting all but the airbag codes cleared. Some of this work included replacing the intake manifold gaskets to correct an internal vacuum leak between the ports for cylinders 1 & 4.
Fast forward several years. Motor is still running strong and smooth but has developed what I can best call an intermittent ‘moan’. It started a few years ago and was very infrequent and only during very cold weather but has progressed to nearly constant during a wider temp range outside.
The ‘moan’ is a low pitch, always the same pitch and volume. Earlier, I could discern no pattern other than cold weather. Now, it’s mostly when idling, decelerating or steady speed, or when vacuum is higher. That suggest a possible vacuum leak of some sort but I’m getting no codes for this.
As it happens, it has a healthy valve cover oil leak, so I’ll be in there anyway. My question is what could/should I be looking for as a tell-tale for this sound that I could address while in there. I’d hate to cycle through the top end again only to still have this annoying sound. Thoughts?
I have a ‘96 Ranger with the 4.0L V6 pushrod engine and about 200K miles. Did fairly significant work chasing codes when I first bought it, getting all but the airbag codes cleared. Some of this work included replacing the intake manifold gaskets to correct an internal vacuum leak between the ports for cylinders 1 & 4.
Fast forward several years. Motor is still running strong and smooth but has developed what I can best call an intermittent ‘moan’. It started a few years ago and was very infrequent and only during very cold weather but has progressed to nearly constant during a wider temp range outside.
The ‘moan’ is a low pitch, always the same pitch and volume. Earlier, I could discern no pattern other than cold weather. Now, it’s mostly when idling, decelerating or steady speed, or when vacuum is higher. That suggest a possible vacuum leak of some sort but I’m getting no codes for this.
As it happens, it has a healthy valve cover oil leak, so I’ll be in there anyway. My question is what could/should I be looking for as a tell-tale for this sound that I could address while in there. I’d hate to cycle through the top end again only to still have this annoying sound. Thoughts?
Not alot to go on
Could be power steering pump, Fords are not quiet, lol
Try turning wheel while stopped at idle
Could be heater core is getting clogged up, try reversing the heater hoses at the firewall, should do this every 2 years in any case, reverses flow thru the core to keep it cleaner and last longer
Fan clutch, these wear out and are temperature sensitive, thats how they work, radiator temp, which should be cooler in winter, warms up the fan clutch to engage the fan blades more for cooling, like when stopped at idle
IAC Valve, although usually described as "whistle" noise, there is an air vent on the side, usually has a plastic cover on it, this vents air from BEHIND the valve inside so it can slide back and forth, cover should just pull off and snap on, pull it off and see if noise changes, if so then the valve inside has a leaking O-ring
Could be power steering pump, Fords are not quiet, lol
Try turning wheel while stopped at idle
Could be heater core is getting clogged up, try reversing the heater hoses at the firewall, should do this every 2 years in any case, reverses flow thru the core to keep it cleaner and last longer
Fan clutch, these wear out and are temperature sensitive, thats how they work, radiator temp, which should be cooler in winter, warms up the fan clutch to engage the fan blades more for cooling, like when stopped at idle
IAC Valve, although usually described as "whistle" noise, there is an air vent on the side, usually has a plastic cover on it, this vents air from BEHIND the valve inside so it can slide back and forth, cover should just pull off and snap on, pull it off and see if noise changes, if so then the valve inside has a leaking O-ring
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