2019 Mustang GT idle thudding/knocking, authorized engine replacement

[Marcelo C]

The plot thickens! Short block and associated parts arrived so work finally began. However, soon after, I got a call saying the tech found damage to the cam journals. Apparently the scoring was so bad your finger would catch. At 1060 miles... so a long block is now on the way.

Sounds like your engine has same damage mine had. I ended up with a long block!!!!

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[Dfeeds]

Sounds like your engine has same damage mine had. I ended up with a long block!!!!

Was the second engine also replaced?

I think I remember someone on here had their top end torn up because a sensor wasn't plugged in or something. These engines just seem so poorly assembled. Me thinks Ford is biting off more than they can chew with their engine designs.

 

[Marcelo C]

Was the second engine also replaced?

I think I remember someone on here had their top end torn up because a sensor wasn't plugged in or something. These engines just seem so poorly assembled. Me thinks Ford is biting off more than they can chew with their engine designs.

No second engine has not been replaced ,it is however starting to make same noises as the original engine!!! The dealer once again is playing the “it is normal “ game I hope you have luck with yours man

 

[Dfeeds]

No second engine has not been replaced ,it is however starting to make same noises as the original engine!!! The dealer once again is playing the “it is normal “ game I hope you have luck with yours man

How is it performing? I know my car would occasionally idle real rough (felt like my old one when I hooked up the wrong MAF sensor), and it consistently hesitated on acceleration and also occasionally felt low on power. Noises suck but, at this point, if it's not burning oil or down on power then I'd just continue to drive the car.

 

[Marcelo C]

How is it performing? I know my car would occasionally idle real rough (felt like my old one when I hooked up the wrong MAF sensor), and it consistently hesitated on acceleration and also occasionally felt low on power. Noises suck but, at this point, if it's not burning oil or down on power then I'd just continue to drive the car.

It’s got plenty of power not idling rough but I have metal shavings in the oil,only 700 miles on new motor

 

[Condor1970]

It’s got plenty of power not idling rough but I have metal shavings in the oil,only 700 miles on new motor

How many shavings, and how big? Some small amounts of metal in the first couple thousand miles is actually normal as the engine wears in. After that, switch to a really high quality oil.

 

[Marcelo C]

How many shavings, and how big? Some small amounts of metal in the first couple thousand miles is actually normal as the engine wears in. After that, switch to a really high quality oil.

Yes a small amount is normal for break in. But this is not a small amount there is def damage in the motor!!!!

 

[Angry50]

even for break in to my knowledge you shouldnt be able to notice shavings in oil, if you sent in for analysis then the metal contents would measure a tad higher. but maybe im wrong im just an average enthusiast

 

[Dfeeds]

even for break in to my knowledge you shouldnt be able to notice shavings in oil, if you sent in for analysis then the metal contents would measure a tad higher. but maybe im wrong im just an average enthusiast

I've searched and searched, because my experience with a fresh engine is zero, and can't seem to finda definitive answer. I keep seeing stuff like "I don't like the way it looks but I guess it's normal for *insert engine*." The color does matter, however. If it's metallic or copper then I think it's bearing related, and cause for concern. I think the metal we should be expecting is aluminum shavings left over from the machining process. An oil analysis also won't always pick up any metal if some is present, either. All I see in BITOG is that oil analysis are not a good way to determine premature engine wear.

My Mustang was the first time I've ever performed a "first oil change" of a car. Most have been near 100k or over. I've done top end rebuilds, and low end refreshes. The first time I did a headswap in my life (oh how we learn...), I failed to clean up all the gasket debris and left it on the pistons. 10k miles later, of beating the piss out of the car, I took the heads off to replace the springs and rocker arms. Aside from clear signs of running too lean (my fault, long story) the cylinder walls looked pristine. Cross hatching present, no debris, and slight scuffing towards the very top. Not bad for an engine with over 100k miles. I keep thinking about this when I see some pictured of the cylinder wall wear on some of these cars. These things look like they wouldn't last 50k miles. The engine I'm referencing was poorly maintained, over revved, ran low on oil, ran too rich, out of balance at one point... you name it, and eventually failed to rod knock (surprise!). It's hard to get rid of your first car, so it's still sitting in my garage, and I can't help but think I can go outside, swap the rod bearings, and get more life out of it than the 2019 that I haven't seen for 1.5 months, and drove for only two weeks. The engine is Ford's old, pushrod 5.0l, btw. Unsophisticated, underpowered, and heavy, but my teenage/early 20s self couldn't have asked for a more reliable ride. Sorry, ranted a bit there.

 

[GT Pony]

It’s got plenty of power not idling rough but I have metal shavings in the oil,only 700 miles on new motor

Did anyone check to see if the particles stuck to a magnet or not? That could tell something.

 

[Dfeeds]

Did anyone check to see if the particles stuck to a magnet or not? That could tell something.

In my case, I have no idea. My car is ready, btw. I'm going to be picking it up shortly. As par for the course it will probably sound good initially so I don't know how good of an initial update will be. I do plan to change out the motorcraft 5w20 right away, however. Maybe starting with something better may help.

 

[Dfeeds]

Alright just got it home. I think the thudding is still there but it doesn't make the rattle or bbq tick and it feels completely different. Clutch doesn't feel as sloppy and all the low end hesitation and lack of power that I was experiencing (all of which I thought was normal) is gone. What felt like a Mustang now feels like a refined sports car. She pulls hard from 2k rpms and shifts great. Hopefully this lasts!

 

[GT Pony]

Alright just got it home. I think the thudding is still there but it doesn't make the rattle or bbq tick and it feels completely different. Clutch doesn't feel as sloppy and all the low end hesitation and lack of power that I was experiencing (all of which I thought was normal) is gone. What felt like a Mustang now feels like a refined sports car. She pulls hard from 2k rpms and shifts great. Hopefully this lasts!

The "thudding" might just be stock header noise. Hope it stays noise free otherwise. Go get some Motorcraft 5W-30 synthetic blend to break it in, the go with a full synthetic 5W-30 like Valvoline Advanced which sounds good in my 2015.

 

[Dfeeds]

The "thudding" might just be stock header noise. Hope it stays noise free otherwise. Go get some Motorcraft 5W-30 synthetic blend to break it in, the go with a full synthetic 5W-30 like Valvoline Advanced which sounds good in my 2015.

I just went with 5w30 full syn pennzoil. The valvoline they had wasn't the dexos gen2 and api sn+ certified stuff (the 0w20 was but no). Pennzoil did have 5w30 with both certifications so I just went with that. I did a lot of reading and came to the conclusion that the synthetic oil being too slippery for break in is a myth. It's the same price anyways, so if I want to change the oil at 500 or 1000 miles then I'm not wasting money necessarily.

I hope the thud is something along those lines. No other Mustang I've heard (4, two auto 2018s, 1 auto 2019, and one manual 2019) make it, but I guess that means the odds of the new engine making the exact same sound are slim. The no rattle and how it feels made me keep on driving instead of turning around and saying something. Time to enjoy the car... even if a problem crops up again, I don't know if I have the patience to go through this again soon. I'll definitely keep the forums updated on how things go.

 

[GT Pony]

I just went with 5w30 full syn pennzoil. The valvoline they had wasn't the dexos gen2 and api sn+ certified stuff (the 0w20 was but no).

Must have been some old stock Valvoline 5W-30. The dexos1 Gen2 SN+ formula has been out since May/Apr 2018. Walmart always seems to have it on the shelf.

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