I'm looking for a sanity check on this diagnosis for my 04 Ford. At 108,127 miles I had the cam phasers, timing chain tensioners, cam position sensors, and the right VCT solenoid replaced. Now at 145,718 miles my check engine light came on took to the dealer who diagnosed oil getting into plug holes on right side. Said cause was leaking valve cover gaskets. Replaced gaskets, 4 coil boot seals and found coil #1 bad and replaced it as well. The dealer said all is well and gave me my truck back. After driving it down the road 40 miles, check engine light came on, oil pressure went to zero, truck died and would not turn over. After having it towed back to the dealer, they now say I need a new engine. They are saying the oil is milky, oil pressure jumping between 50psi and 20, timing chain rattle. None of this makes any sense to me. Is it possible they caused this further damage by their "repairs".

 

Even if it is "possible" how could you prove it?

 

I guess I can't prove it. It just seems suspicious that after fixing my engine, 40 miles later they say I need a new one. When they replaced the valve cover gaskets, they also did an oil change. No mention of timing chain noise, no mention of milky oil. The timing chain tensioners have only 36,000 miles.

 

tow it somewhere else, is all the advise I can give you and don't let them touch it anymore.

 

I agree - get a second opinion from a qualified independent service shop with no connections to Mother Ford.

BTW "milky" oil suggests coolant is leaking into the oil passages and into crankcase - usually a faulty head gasket.

Best of luck!!

C.W.

 

Couldn't the coolant get into the oil through a bad oil filter adapter replacement? If that happened how long would you expect the engine to run before it was damaged?

 

That's highly unlikely. The coolant passages are usually not in the area of the oil filter. The most likely cause points to the work performed on your valve train. Since the engine's heat generator is the combustion chamber, the heads and cylinder walls contain lots of coolant passages and high coolant flow rates to pull off all that heat. One misstep by a mechanic can really foul things up.

It's hard to say how long your engine will run with water in the oil, but clearly it will cause major damage. The moving parts must remain lubricated by oil, not water.

BTW the italics mean the statement is not conclusive. For example, in your engine, there very well may be coolant passages in the area of the oil filter boss. My point is it's not very likely.

Best of luck Scooter!