The ticking sound started at about 24000 miles and has been getting progressively worse since then. It now has 46000 miles and sounds like a loud diesel. Took it to a local mechanic and he says that the timing chain is ready to fail and "I better not travel out of town with it in this condition". Said it would be around $2500 to fix.

I wanted a second opinion and took it to our local ford dealer. Having read enough complaints about this problem I was ready for the worst. Sure enough, ford said the engine needs to be replaced for $7300. What? 46,000 miles and needs a new engine? I told him "I thought it was supposed to be ford tough?" He had no reply.

I bought this vehicle new and serviced it regularly. Something is very wrong here! Ford needs to be accountable and recall this engine. Ford knows there is a problem with this engine but refuses to do the right thing. Time for class action law suit!

Yeah..I'm pissed off with Ford..Chevy I loved your superbowl slap and the face you gave Ford. I have a 2004 Ford that has being seviced by the dealer on a regular basis and one day my engine starts knocking...guess what the dealer says you have to replace the engine it's going bad...WTF...the truck is paiid for and looks brand new.Oh Ford said this is normal problem with this engine and repairing it is not posible since the engine is a bad design...so I said ill trade it for a new Ford...Guess what..the dealer offered me a whole $5500 for my truck and said that was a good deal but if the engine was good they would give 12500 to 13000...F*&K you Ford...Im going to blow this crap and get a Toyota...yeah I said it a Toyota..so much for Made and America, I'm going to drive Toyota and leave FORDs ..Found on th Road Dead...and if Toyota gives me $1000.00 Im still going to trade this sorry ass truck that FORD want fix are recall for it's so called American customers....

I have lost all faith in Ford Motor Company. My 2004 F150 FX4 is quite possibly the biggest pile of junk i have ever owned. Just purchased about 6 months ago, already had to pay 1200 bucks to the Ford dealer to get a tune up... thats right a tune up.. thanks to a faulty spark plug design by Ford. Now i have found out that the ticking noise coming from my engine is faulty CAM PHASERS, and that if I do not get them repaired soon, my engine will sh*# the bed. Ford has quoted me 3500 dollars to fix this issue. I pay about 420 bucks a month to drive this piece of crap, I cant afford to keep fixing one thing after the other on it. Ford refuses to help with anything. BUILT FORD TOUGH... I think not. This money pit has got to go. Buyer Beware!!! Go get yourself a Toyota.

Our truck ran like a champ until the knocking noise started and we had the plugs changed a few times to try to help it out. When our mechanic finally got into the engine there were pieces of spark plugs falling out. Each mechanic told us the same thing - it was the type of spark plugs the truck required and Ford knows that they are a problem. Apparently from what we have read in many Ford forums Ford changed the type of plugs beginning in 2006 but doesn't care about the older models. I believe one of the mechanics told us that Ford did issue a recall on older than 2004 ford models but won't recall on the 2004 & 2005. We just read that someone on this forum contacted a lawyer for what we think is the same problem so we would like to know what the lawyer said, if possible. Thank you.

I love this truck, but it's got the dreaded "Cam Phaser" knocking or tapping. The dealer wants $2,000 to fix the one head and claims that I will need 24 lifters/followers and has never investigated the problem other then listening to the engine. Also, engine has an exhaust leak on the same side of the engine he wants $700 to replace the exhaust manifold gasket. When I asked him why so much the idiot service guy says "Well, those are exhaust manifold bolts and can snap off and need to be drilled out if they break off" I asked him if he ever heard of penetrating oil. He just shrugged his shoulders. I'm going to take it to a mechanic I trust who will do it for $200. I feel that Ford has a bad design and to add insult to injury the dealer is trying to hose me for repairs.

Ok, several weeks after purchasing my first new vehicle ever, It starts sounding like a diesel---it's gas. Take it back to the dealer and they replace the cam sensor/phasor/actuator or whatever they wanna call it. Guess what! Noise comes back at 30k but not as bad but still very annoying. Dealer says they all do that, and no long term consequences. Oh yeah? I talk to another Ford dealership. Mechanic says yes, I know what you're talking about. He went on to say that early on, the fix was to replace the defective part with the same part that was destined for failure. And guess what--it did. He also said that now they have a part that won't fail. The cost of the part isn't bad. It's the labor rate of $95 per hr.and 4 hrs to fix it. Should be done for free!

WHATS UP FORD OWNERS?I JUST BOUGHT AMERICAS NUMBER 1 TRUCK AND IT MADE ALL MY DREAMS COME TRUE UNTIL ONE DAY I STOPPED AT A LIGHT BESIDE A CHEVY AND I HEARD A TAPPING NOISE----------------------I TOLD THE GUY YOU SHOULD HAVE BOUGHT A FORD HE STARTED LAUGHING AND SAID DON'T MEAN TO HURT YOUR FEELINGS BROTHER BUT THAT NOISE IS COMING FROM YOUR TRUCK AND THAT'S WHY I BOUGHT A CHEVY OR SHALL I SAY CHEVROLET .DAMN MY FEELINGS WERE HURT.I'M SITTING AT THE LIGHT WITH AMERICAS NUMBER 1 TRUCK AND FORD WONT STEP UP AND FIX THIS PROBLEM.I STILL BELIEVE IN THE FORD BRAND BUT IF THEY DON'T STEP UP AND FIX THIS PROBLEM THEIR NAME WILL REALLY BE HURT.I HAVE RAN INTO ABOUT TEN OTHER PEOPLE WITH THE SAME PROBLEM AND THEY SAY FORD SAYS ITS THERE PROBLEM NOW COME ON FORD STAND BY YOUR NAME ITS OBVIOUSLY A BIG PROBLEM IS IT REALLY BUILT FORD TOUGH OR IS IT BUILT TO LAST A LITTLE WHILE?

Bought a 2004 F150 brand new w/ 5.4 liter eng. 52k later the tapping started, and got worse and worse. One dealer told me it was normal,another said it was the lashers(lifters),another said it was the "phasers'(fancy word for cam shaft sproket).And if they repaired it they said the tapping could come back in 100 miles ,10k miles or never. And pay 5 gran,,I didn't like the odds. I have owned fords for 30 years and for the most part they have been good vehicles.I knew it was just a matter of time before I would get stuck with the one that got past quality control.

I'm really pissed off that Ford hasn't step up to the plate on an issue that has been going on since they came out with this modular engine.No doubt that there are alot of them out there with well over 200k and runnig great ..but like I said I don't like beeing one of the few that got stuck. I have 80k on it now and will keep driving it till it blows,then I plan to repace it with a 5.7 liter Toyota drivetrain!!I'm sure I'l have better luck.

I am really disappointed in Ford. Bought a used vehicel in June 2010 with 138000 miles and I am looking at putting a rebuilt engine in or fixing the valve and follower plus 24.5 hours of labor at 80.00 per hour. I really think Ford needs to redesign this engine. What I have read is that there is a lot of problems with this engine. I am probably going to fix it so at least I can get rid of it and will not buy another Ford truck. I guess the saying goes Fix Or Repair Daily,. That fits my situation. I would like to know if there is a recall on this engine. Does anyone know?

I've had the same ticking/knocking problem for 3 years. I've taken this vehicle into dealerships since it first stated only to be told its normal or that they can't get the problem to replicate. Last week there was an accompany grinding noise which I'm told is caused by a lack of oil in the engine and that the ticking/thumping was the first indication that oil was not making it into the engine appropriately. To all that, I'm told that the cause was the oil and filter being used. During the warranty period I had all my oil changes done at a Ford dealership and that's when the sounds began. Ford wants 7500 to put in a new engine or...........get this.............they'd be happy to sell me a new truck. How convenient. Guess what else, this is the same dealership that told me the noise was normal!

i have a red 2004 4x4-4 door-ford thats paid for....and now my pretty fx4 sits in the yard as a reminder to never purchase a ford again- EVER !. was told by the top mechanic and 3 service personel at SAM GALLOWAY FORD, where i bought the truck that my 5.4 v v t was gone. ok- when did they put varriable timing on this motor ? anyone ? they did'nt according to thier shop guys. for $150 a crack they'll keep looking but really today they think its the cam phazers and roughly $2g's MIGHT get me back on the road.

along with having all 4 windows worked on and again one being held up by a wedge as we speak makes me absolutely sure why ford sells so many....because they have to...there is NO quality or toughness. my tranny went out at 40K...what does this tell you.NO, i do not run it hard what-so-ever, its pulled a lawn trailer twice, i live in town, not on a farm and even if i did are they really disposable at 85,000 non smoking miles-looks like it.

how can i get this info to a ceo or to bill ford himself..yes i am going TOYOTA !!! if anyone wants a great deal on a beautiful red southern truck to drive up fords ass let me know!

Not sure if I should be pissed or happy that I am getting new cylinder heads. Apparently, something has been in my motor that shouldn't have been (because the tapping has been occurring since day 1) and caused scarring on the cylinder heads. I did not notice any change in performance- just concerned about the noise and wanted it checked out. Now my engine is in pieces waiting on cylinder heads at the stealership.

At 56k miles, I think I have had way too many problems with a "built Ford tough" truck. I don't tow anything. Most miles are my 20 mile highway trip to and from work each day. I pay extra for synthetic oil, K&N air filter and take extra care to keep engine clean and maintained. If I didn't have the ESP to pay for these major repairs, Ford and I would be going to court. Problem is- I love my Ford truck.

Ya, bought a 2004 Ford F-150 4x4 with 10,000 and right around 15,000 the engine started making a ticking or knocking sound right after I started it. It was very faint, but noticeable. So I take it to the dealership where it was bought (Tousley Ford - White Bear Lake, MN) to have it checked out, and was told "Lady there is nothing wrong with this truck". After having 4x4 problems a week and a half ago, I drive my F-150 to the closest Ford dealer to where I live, which was 37 miles. When I pulled into the dealership the mileage read 75,031 miles and guess what, yep they don't have to warranty crap at this point which infuriates me. So the hub actuators have to be replaced which was just under $700.00. So a week later and 300 odometer miles later after leaving the dealership the engine knocking or ticking is soo bad I wonder if the damn thing is about to blow up. I am so tired of dinking around with these over priced dealership services, so I have an local independent mechanic look at it, and am still waiting for the dreaded call from him in a few days. Has anybody had anything similar like this happen with the knocking or ticking in the engine? What is it, and how much did it cost to repair?