2001 Ford F-150 Rattling Noise Upon Acceleration

Tiny
BHAINEAULT
  • MEMBER
  • 2001 FORD F-150
  • 6 CYL
  • 2WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 131,000 MILES
I bought a used Ford F-150 recently that appeared to be in good shape. I started noticing a slight rattling noise coming from the engine only during acceleration. It tends to get worse as the engine heats up. It is just a little rattling noise only when pushing the gas. As soon as you let off the gas, it goes away. Somebody told me it could be the oil pump and said it could cause major damage and bills, so I am a little worried now.
Thursday, November 19th, 2009 AT 4:41 PM

7 Replies

Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 110,176 POSTS
Relax, oil pumps don't rattle. I want you to try something. Take a rubber mallot and tap on the exhaust system to see if you can hear the rattle. My guess is you have a loose heat shield or the inside of the catylatic converter is loose.

Try this and let me know what you find.

Joe
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Thursday, November 19th, 2009 AT 10:22 PM
Tiny
BHAINEAULT
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  • 9 POSTS
The guy I talked to was saying the oil pump could be going out causing low oil pressure which would cause something to vibrate in the engine. Not sure if that helps you out anymore.

Thanks for the quick response. I will try that out and hopefully find the source.
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Friday, November 20th, 2009 AT 11:02 AM
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 110,176 POSTS
If the pressure gets low enough, the lifters could make a ticking noise.

Have you been having trouble with oil pressure? Does the oil pressure gauge in the vehicle show that it's low?
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Friday, November 20th, 2009 AT 11:27 AM
Tiny
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  • 9 POSTS
My oil pressure gauge seems fine. It is centered right between high and low.

One thing I didn't talk about was I have a check engine light for "low flow error". Everybody says it is the O2 sensors, I just haven't replaced them yet. Could that be something else involved?
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Friday, November 20th, 2009 AT 11:39 AM
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 110,176 POSTS
The sensor wouldn't cause a noise as described. Have you had trouble with oil pressure?
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Friday, November 20th, 2009 AT 8:52 PM
Tiny
BHAINEAULT
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Not that I know of. Truck seems to run great, and the pressure gauge always shows good readings. What would I need to look for if I had oil pressure problems?

The noise is not a consistant ticking noise, but rather it seems like rattling. It is louder sometimes, and sometimes I may not hear anything. I just thought it was weird that it only did it when I was on the gas and gets worse as the engine heats up.

If you haven't learned yet, I am not much of a mechanic or car expert!
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Monday, November 23rd, 2009 AT 1:03 PM
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 110,176 POSTS
Chances are it is a heat shield on the catylatic converter, the exhaust, or the inside of the converter is loose. Take a rubber mallot and tap on the exhaust system to see if you hear the sound.

Let me know what you find.

Joe
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Monday, November 23rd, 2009 AT 1:26 PM

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