2016 Mustang GT Ticking issue

[kenand1988]

Hello all,

Just bought this car 2 weeks ago, has 29k miles on it. After doin an oil change noticed the ticking sound and began googling. I was really heart broken to see this is a pervasive thing from all 5.0 owners not just 6 gens but also the previous 5th gens have been having this issue. My heart sank more when finding youtube videos showcasing the exact sound my car was making only to learn in the comments or later in the forums posts that either a new short block was put in or an entirely new motor.

I dropped the car off at Chapman Ford Scottsdale today. Its still under the base warranty so w/e happens should be covered but the service advisor acted like he had not heard about this issue, even though a quick google turns up pages of results for these cars. I replicated the sound with ac on and off and he confirmed it did not sound normal.

here is a clip of the ticking for reference, keep in mind it did not display this behavior when I first bought it.



I used only ford motorcraft oil and an stp XL filter.

I wanted to make this post to chronicle the process of taking it in and hopefully the eventual happy resolution.

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[kenand1988]

Service advisor from chapman ford scottsdale called about an hour ago to say their tech was not sure what to make of the sound. He said at first he thought it was exhaust related. The advisor asked me when i first noticed it. I told him just a couple days ago i noticed it at a drive thru and that's when I started googling the issue. Chapman ford is saying, probably acting, like they have no idea about this issue. Ive sent them 3 different videos of GT's making this sound and i've told the advisor at least 2 times to just google it, its all over the internet. The advisor said the tech put in a ticket with ford's "hotline". Now, I'm not sure what that actually means.... Do they really have no idea what to do? or are they asking Ford how far can they go under warranty? Maybe someone here could chime in about that.

Advisor said he'd probably be giving me a call by tomorrow afternoon with an update.

 

[CEHollier]

Mine is at the Ford dealership going through the same process. The mechanic looking at it changed the short block on a buddies car last year with the same tick. Mine began at 28K after an oil change. F150 trucks also have the same issue. With a mechanics stethoscope I located my tick at the timing chain area. Tensioner pressure is regulated by oil pressure. Hence the tick starting with an oil change. Temperature below 185 no tick when oil is thicker. I noticed the hotter the weather the more it ticks. It is a shame Ford has yet to address this. I have a GT 350 manifold/LU47 injectors/JLT CAI/Lund flex tune and a tank of E85. The mechanic said he wanted to take it back to stock to work on it. My reply Ain't happening.

 

[kenand1988]

Mine is at the Ford dealership going through the same process. The mechanic looking at it changed the short block on a buddies car last year with the same tick. Mine began at 28K after an oil change. F150 trucks also have the same issue. With a mechanics stethoscope I located my tick at the timing chain area. Tensioner pressure is regulated by oil pressure. Hence the tick starting with an oil change. Temperature below 185 no tick when oil is thicker. I noticed the hotter the weather the more it ticks. It is a shame Ford has yet to address this.

Are you having to fight with the dealership much on getting it fixed? I feel like that's whats about to happen with me and this dealership but lets hope not. This may be a dumb question but why replace the whole short block and not the timing chain tensioner?

 

[CEHollier]

They are diagnosing what the problem is so no fight at this time. The reason for replacing the short block is detonation issues resulting is cylinder wall damage.

 

[kenand1988]

They are diagnosing what the problem is so no fight at this time. The reason for replacing the short block is detonation issues resulting is cylinder wall damage.

Thats exactly whats goin on now. I called the service advisor this afternoon and he said Ford's techline has not gotten back to them yet about the next steps. He explained it could take a couple days. The dealership agrees the noise is not normal but their tech is saying he cant pinpoint it and that's what he told Ford. So i am just waiting to hear what Ford will authorize doing.

 

[kenand1988]

I went ahead and filed a claim with ford, just in case. The ford rep told me the issues been escalated to chapman's service manager and he will have direct contact with Ford's hotline now.

 

[CEHollier]

Well the service rep just called. Getting a new short block. The tech wants to put my car back to stock tune. It currently has a tank of E85, LU47 injectors, and a GT350 IM. If he starts it on a stock tune it won't be good. So options?

 

[kenand1988]

I'd be glad it covered with all those mods. you may have to foot the bill for them to drain the e85 and refill with 87. but its a small price to pay to have a new bottom end. did they even tear down your car before they arrived at the solution of a new short block?

 

[kenand1988]

Update with a bit of mixed news.

Ford has yet to respond to the dealership a request of what to do next.

However I did find out that according to the dealership they did a compression check with 0% loss, they looked inside the cylinders and saw no damage, they cut the fuel injectors one by one and the sound did not change. They also disconnected the vct solenoids to lock in the phasers and the noise did not change. Last but not least they used a borescope to check the intake runners and they are all fine. They were able to tell me the noise is strongest on the passenger near the manifold.

So at this time still waiting on Ford.

 

[Catbus]

I just got an oil change around 35k miles on my 2015 GT (Auto) and that day driving around i noticed this same sort of nasty tick. It is fairly intermittent and does increase frequency a bit as the rpm's climb, but still is not consistent, and I can really hear it as the rpms fall. It fades off around 2500 rpm (or i cant hear it because of the exhaust). The only mods I have are axle back exhaust and a removed sound tube.

So i took it in that day once i noticed it and they thought it might be exhaust. I loosed and tightened everything myself and had no luck getting rid of the tick. Brought it into Ford service and they recognized the noise and took a look. After a while he came back and said another 2016 GT (Manual) they had there was making the same noise. Therefore they said it was a normal noise, but then they also mentioned it could be the throttle body, but the way it sounds that just does not make sense to me. No car should be making this awful noise and if it was normal wouldn't it have had it from day 1??? Drove it home and it is just as bad as ever. I hate it.

I am going to escalate this to Ford and see what they say... I have till 2020 for my powertrain warranty, so i may deal with it for a month and see if it dissipates. I may also get the power pack 2, start running premium, and use synthetic oil. I will keep everyone posted on my situation. I will record a video of the sound when I get a chance. It will not be for the faint of heart.

The most frustrating thing is that, I was ok with the interior squeaks and rattles...I understood that I bought a car with cheap interior finished, but it was supposed to have a rock solid motor. I had the resonator replaced because a baffle snapped off and now this. I know people with supercharger kits that are having less issues... what is going on here?

 

[kenand1988]

I know people with supercharger kits that are having less issues... what is going on here?

Million dollar question there. Not sure what exactly is going on. I do understand that many many Ford 5.0s have this tick buy I also don't think it should be considered normal. The sound is embarrassing, I highly doubt Ford built their sports cars to sound like typewriters. That being said I'm not convinced it's doing damage but the sound is coming from somewhere and I think it is more than likely metal on metal related.

 

[Catbus]

Million dollar question there. Not sure what exactly is going on. I do understand that many many Ford 5.0s have this tick buy I also don't think it should be considered normal. The sound is embarrassing, I highly doubt Ford built their sports cars to sound like typewriters. That being said I'm not convinced it's doing damage but the sound is coming from somewhere and I think it is more than likely metal on metal related.

I definitely agree. I drives fine, but it sounds worse than my '93 Saturn SL1 did when it had 260k plus miles....

 

[Chainsaw]

Those that change their oil and get a tick. Do you get a tick with the recommended Motorcraft FL500S filter?

 

[Catbus]

Those that change their oil and get a tick. Do you get a tick with the recommended Motorcraft FL500S filter?

I'm assumed the dealer used the correct Ford parts, but I suppose I could check.

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