cabinetmakermm

I live in Colorado and have to get emissions every year. I'm tired of messing with these cam phasers. I am going to do the lockout and sct tuner from 5 star tune on my 04 f150 5.4 3v. I would like to hear about anyone that has had an emissions test after doing them.
Thanks in advance

chayes627

I would like to know about this as well.

Martian

Locking out your cams shouldn't have anything to do with emissions. All that does is eliminate your variable valve timing.

cabinetmakermm

I have read in several places that Ford put it there to also help pass stricter emissions and improve power. I'm just afraid of doing it and then not passing

VTX1800N1

I think it will affect your emissions, and they may be able to measure it depending on how they test your truck. If they simply check for a MIL and then a tailpipe sniff test at idle, you will likely pass. If they do a dyno emissions test, you will likely fail. The VCT replaced the EGR system on this engine. EGR isn't active at idle, but it sure is at steady state cruise conditions. That's also why you lose a little MPG by disabling the VCT- it also eliminates all EGR functions on this engine. By partially filling the cylinder with exhaust gas, you are displacing some of the oxygen that would otherwise be there. This means you don't need as much fuel and so you can lean the engine (when comparing fuel injected v cylinder volume) without causing problems. Think of it as chemically altering the engine displacement.

Martian

Well damn. I learned something new.

VTX1800N1

The computer can vary valve timing by up to 60°. The most I've seen on my Gryphon is 54°. The cam starts out at full advance at idle, but any speed above idle at any position other than WOT, and the cam is usually being retarded by the computer. There are other reasons for doing this than just EGR, but that is the only mechanism for EGR function on this engine. If you disable VCT, you also disable all EGR.

Dirttracker18

Why are you having to mess with cam phasers? Installing the lockout is not a lot less work then fixing the issue causing the problems.

Far too many people are trying to fix a symptom and not the problem.

If you went to a doctor for a broken leg would you want him to just treat for the pain or treat for the pain and set the bone in a cast?

Yes the phasers can need replacing but my research tells me that their failure is more often a symptom of issues in the timing set.

I would seem that the failure of one or more parts in the timing set (plastic guides and tensioners for the timing chains) are the root cause of the downstream issues.

When one or more of these parts fails or begins to fail, it can cause a low oil pressure issue downstream (where the phasers, their solenoids and the cams are). When their is an issue or failure in the timing set, oil pressure can leak by the parts causing a low oil pressure issue to the parts that the oil flows to afterward. This is why phasers repeated fail or get noisy. By only replacing phasers you are just focusing on the symptom of a bigger issues. This would also apply to bypassing the phasers by locking them out. You are still just bypassing the true issues which lies in the timing set.

Thread after thread shows how only fixing the symptom causes the issue to return. They have also shown that those you replace the entire timing set see the broken parts during the repair and most never have symptoms again.

I would be far less concerned about an emissions test than I would be about not curing the true problem.

If anyone here cares to correct me on this I am more then willing to listen. However this seems to be the case and most people are either unaware of it or are unwilling to spend the extra money to truly fix the real problem.

cabinetmakermm

Thanks for the input. I agree completely. Last time I was in there I replaced everything except the oil pump. Sad to say, I used dorman phasers. Big mistake. I am going to put OEM back in and a melling m360 oil pump this time. That should fix the problem completely. Sounds like I can't do the lockouts because my emissions here is done on the dyno.

Dirttracker18

Not the first time someone on this and other forums has had the Doorman units fail them. Too bad because Doorman had a decent reputation years ago but much like most manufacturers, profits have trumped quality

Good luck