Jump to content
Ecoboost Owner Forums

Intermittent Slow acceleration issues


Recommended Posts

Alright guys, I hate to join the forum and start off asking questions, but I am having some issues. I bought this 2010 Taurus SHO from Tenvoorde Ford (oldest Ford dealership in existence in the world) with 29,000 miles on it about 3-4 weeks ago. It has been driving great up until this last week. I noticed on a drive home from a friends house that when i went to pass someone on the highway that it was very sluggish. It felt like the turbo's weren't spooling up. It didn't seem to make any strange noises and it wasn't shaking or anything, just felt like i had no boost what-so-ever. Well, I have been experiencing these same issues intermittently over the past week or so. It seems to be at all speeds when it does it. I just went over to a friends house a mile or two away and on the drive there it felt just like i had no turbo's on the engine and i also notice a slight 'shutter' possibly, not terribly noticeable though. BUT!!!...i started it up to go home and hell, she ran like a champ. I stopped by a local ford dealership last weekend and scheduled to have it looked at for the transmission TSB and it goes in tomorrow morning for that, but I'm wondering if i shouldn't have them looking at something else as well. I was thinking possibly the spark plug TSB?

 

When i bought the car I looked it over pretty well, pulled the lines from the intake to check for oil, checked for leaks around the turbo's, etc. and from what I saw it all looked alright in that respect (mind you my knowledge is limited in regards to turbo's).

 

Just to get you all familiarized with the car a little more, it is a 2010 SHO Taurus with 31,000 miles with almost every option you can get, it DOES NOT have the Performance Package, the build date is 02/10, and prior to my purchase it was a 1-owner lease(and very well taken care of as far as how good of shape it's in).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 53
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Congrats on your purchase! And welcome aboard. This could be possibly knock sensor wire chaffing, it has yet to be acknowledged by ford. You can try searching the form, but a sure others will chime in and add a link to the thread. Other than that, what grade of gas are you running? even though your can run on regular, its recommend to run premium for best performance.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Probably the wiring harness ( 2 small white wires are uncovered at the tip if I recall) that is between the air box and the engine, the uncovered portion is touching the metal... I remember having read it somewhere and when I looked at mine, they were very close to touch it, so I replaced them to make sure they wouldn't touch the metal never... I hope you can find it with my poor description or maybe your researches will lead you to a better answer, but I am pretty sure that is your issue like Crash712us suggested .

 

Welcome aboard and keep us posted,

 

Cheers!

 

Steve

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Funnily enough, I had read a while back about the Knock sensor wire chaffing and took a look at that last weekend. The wires WERE exposed from the black heat shield and WERE touching the engine and i tried to "hook" them over another wire that had a loom around it, but I am not sure if that was enough to take care of the issue. I should add that i tried wrapping electrical tape around them but gave up after wearing the stick-em off the tape every time i attempted to contort my hands into the small opening.

 

I didn't think the wires were wore out or anything. Would they look bad if they had any chaffing? Also, do i need to get a loom around them or tape them to ensure they do not chaf? I am not exactly sure what you guys would consider warrants having to have them replaced? Also, even if that is the issue, shouldn't i only experience this after my engine has heated up? I was noticing this issue immediately upon driving after the car had sat for a couple days.

 

Edit: I should stipulate that the bare wires weren't showing, but the black wire coating does not go all the way to the connection, there is about an inch of the wire showing with the single yellow/black coating visible.

 

Also , I went out and got a few quick shots...they turned out horribly though shooting free-hand while holding an L.E.D. trouble light.

 

View from the left quarter panel.

 

DSCN0156.jpg

 

View from the front of the car.

 

DSCN0157.jpg

 

I also noticed this REALLY fine white powder on everything when i pulled the plastic cover off that I honestly do not remember being there a couple days ago, although it may have been and i just didn't notice it as i had it sitting outside in the sunlight and was not using an L.E.D. trouble light(which really show's the dust.)

 

DSCN0161.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well I have somewhat of an update. Brought it in this morning and had them check the transmission and also told them to look into the power loss problem I've been experiencing. They could not reproduce any transmission problem, but they are going to do the TSB anyway and they will have the parts for the valve body in tomorrow so i will be taking it in to get that done.

 

As for the other issue, they didn't find any problems and said since it was intermittent there wasn't much they could do at this time...alright, w/e, so i head out on my 30 minute drive home after stopping to get some wire loom to try to take care of that Knock Sensor wire. It was not running right on the drive home, so as soon as i got back, I put some wire loom around both of the wires and took it out for a drive...no change at all...very low on power. So i call the dealership up again with my car still running and tell him that there is definitely something wrong and that it needs to be figured out and he comments on the noise my car is making in the background which i was just going to tell him about. It makes a ticking noise more-so than i fell these engines should make and that's what he thought also from what he could tell over the phone.

 

Well, as the conversation progresses I decide I'm going to make the journey back since the problem was showing itself and i hadn't turned the vehicle off yet. When i get to the dealership they have a technician ride with me and he thinks it feels down on power as well, but want's to get the transmission TSB taken care of and if the problem is still there, he will look further into the issue to see what else could be causing it. So hopefully tomorrow I will find out what the hell is going on. I talked to multiple technicians there and they all felt that it wasn't something I should be too worried about, and like I keep trying to tell myself, it's still under the 3 year/36,000mile warranty so I shouldn't worry so much, but I'm still nervous as hell about it being something worse than I originally thought or that they flat out tell me nothing is wrong...oh, and as for the ticking noise, when i got there it wasn't as noticeable as when i was on the phone with them, but i got to thinking that the auxiliary fans weren't running when i was on the phone with him, but they were when i got to the dealership. So I turned the car back on when i got home for the second time and sure enough, the sound is much more noticeable with the aux. fans not running, so i will be sure to mention that when i take it in tomorrow.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

That is true EBB :P, I was just further expressing the ridiculousness of my worrying...and I still think maybe that knock sensor wire has something to do with it as the problem I'm having sounds spot on with what others have reported after fixing their wires, but I'm pretty sure i had the wire looms on fairly well and I also had the wire kind of tucked over another set of wires so it was not resting on the bare metal. If they can't come up with anything tomorrow I might just see if they'll replace that wire and make sure it is properly shielded...I'm just terribly nervous that they are going to say nothing is wrong, I hate when technicians say that, when you know something isn't running properly.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Read through ALL of this thread 1st......

 

http://www.ecoboostownerforums.com/showthread.php?312-Wow!-Car-woke-up!

 

Show it to your Service Technician if need be at the Dealer. Why?

 

Well 1st of all, you've already acknowledged the wires were chaffing. Even though you've moved them away, the resulting damage may have made the knock sensor that those wires lead to, to crap out on you. You may need to have a new knock sensor in that specific location completely replaced.

 

This issue is NOT documented anywhere in FMC's database. Even though this is a very common, known issue to fellow members (not only here, but elsewhere to).

 

2nd, servicing the trans with the TSB although may beneficial/helpful, it's not going to do jack-diddly-do for your alleged power/performance issues.

 

3rd, these 3.5L EcoBoost engines are signifigantly louder than most. I suspect the ticking you are hearing is directly related to the high-pressure fuel pump and I'll add, the sound is completely normal.

 

Thanks for the updates, you're under warranty, so continue making observations and/or have your servicing dealer follow-up with any necessary repairs etc.

 

You'll be alright.

 

Mike :yo:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

http://www.ecoboostownerforums.com/showthread.php?312-Wow!-Car-woke-up!&p=3470&viewfull=1#post3470

 

Thinking I'll print off that section with photo's to take with just in case. Do you think that's enough or should I bring the entire thread with? I mean, it's possible that this isn't even my problem, it just sounds very similar. I haven't noticed any visible chaffing, I just mentioned that the black shielding does not go the full length of the wires. There are no bare wires showing, sorry if I mislead.

 

Have any of you seen where the chaffing occurs? Is it on the colored part of the wire that is exposed or is it wearing through the portion that has the black coating on it? If it's on the black coating then I wouldn't even be able to see if that was worn out without pulling pieces off the engine.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

That is a good idea EBB, I will do that. I have NOT seen any CEL's thus far. When they do the transmission TSB, shouldn't they be flashing to the latest PCM strategy? PCM and ECM are the same thing correct? I get confused with PCM, ECM, TCM, ECU, etc.

 

Edit: Well it looks like the latest one on this website is 11-08-19, but there is no expanded list for that one. Over at another forum they have the expanded info for these two.

 

http://way2evil.com/tsb/tsb10-17-10.pdf

 

http://way2evil.com/tsb/tsb11-05-03.pdf

 

Should i just mention 11-08-19 or should i print off the full list of one of those other ones?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well guys, it hasn't been too good of a day for me...Got to the dealership at 9:30 this morning and they went to work on the Transmission TSB. 2 hours later I get a call saying they replaced the parts and updated the PCM so they wanted me to drive it to see if my power loss problem had been cleared up. Alright, sounds good with me, so I take it for a drive and head straight for a highway. This time I have my friend with me who has ridden on a long drive in it prior to my noticing the loss in power. I get to 65 and find a 'safe' spot to put it to the floor...no different...my friend even commented how it didn't put him back in his seat at all like it did last time he rode in it...and i demonstrated that i could take my hands off the wheel when putting it to the floor at 65 and it held a perfectly straight line, no torque steer what-so-ever, the wheel didn't budge. So i call Ford back and tell them I will be bringing it back to look further into the matter. I did give the Technician those papers to look through and give him some possible solutions.

 

Time to play the waiting game again so I catch a matinee flick since the theater is nearby. A little after 2 hours later i get a call again saying that they have found no issue and there is nothing else they can do. So, 100-some odd dollars in labor charges and 5 hours later and all I have is a car with no power that now shifts noticeably smoother and roughly 30-some miles of Ford Tech's rodding the piss out of it as my mileage was around 13 when i got in it to leave.

 

I looked through the sheet of what they did as far as checking for issues. They hooked it up to a computer to scan for DTC's and checked the wire i had mentioned in the papers i gave them. That was it. So, I mention my dissatisfaction and get the customer service number for Ford so now I'm contemplating where to go from here.

 

Do I call Ford CS and try to get them to open up a ticket on the issue? Do I have the dealership replace that knock sensor and wire and hope that clears it up? Where would you guys go from here?

 

I'm just really disappointed that the Technician who I specifically asked if he had driven the Ecoboost cars much (his response is he'd driven the MKS, but not the SHO...I'm pretty sure none of the guys in that dealership had seen one in person by the way they acted.) felt that it had the correct amount of power when myself and others who have ridden in my car and are not mechanics can CLEARLY tell that it is WAY down on power, especially noticeable at higher rates of speed.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My only advise is to get them to look at the knock count, this really the only thing from reading all these forums and threads that would rob you of performance. With these summer temps and non premium fuel will retard the performance level greatly. Experienced for myself my 1st summer with my car, very sluggish.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I guess i forgot to mention that I have been running Premium since i bought the car. 91 octane is the best i can find in the surrounding areas...sadly no one carries 93 : (

 

I will call Ford back and let them know to check that, although i thought that's what they were going to do today, but they took the easy route i guess...

 

You really think that's what it is even if the wires appear to be un-chaffed? I can't think of anything else it would be unless it's something with the turbo's.

 

What info can you give me on how yours felt? Was it sluggish at all speeds? More noticeable at higher or lower ones? Would you say it felt almost like the turbo's weren't kicking in or something?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I hate to spoil your dinner but I don't feel like my SHO has ever fully recovered from power issues since my knock sensor issue. I will say that I did have a nasty leak in my left turbo for quite a while and I think there was just so much oil that went through my system that it's caked up on everything from the intake manifold to the cats. There are times that my car runs awesome and there are times when it runs like feces.

 

You might also want to check out my turbo leak thread --> http://www.ecoboostownerforums.com/showthread.php?344-Oily-MAP-Sensor-Possible-bad-turbo

 

Those turbo's leak internally as well so you need to look internally for leaks. Quite simple, you can either pull the MAP sensor on top of the manifold to look for any wet oil on the cage of the sensor or disconnect the intake hose just before the throttle body and look in the hose for any wet oil. It should be dry as a bone, if there's any oil get yours turbos checked out.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I guess i forgot to mention that I have been running Premium since i bought the car. 91 octane is the best i can find in the surrounding areas...sadly no one carries 93 : (

 

I will call Ford back and let them know to check that, although i thought that's what they were going to do today, but they took the easy route i guess...

 

You really think that's what it is even if the wires appear to be un-chaffed? I can't think of anything else it would be unless it's something with the turbo's.

 

What info can you give me on how yours felt? Was it sluggish at all speeds? More noticeable at higher or lower ones? Would you say it felt almost like the turbo's weren't kicking in or something?

 

As to my sluggishness I experienced. Was it was very hot out and was only from a dead stop. The felt like it was shy of 300 horses but once up and moving power would return. This most likely to high intake temps and once air starts moving thru the system. Also these cars or any car that matter run as well on 50 degree day vs a 80 degree day. Night and day performance differences. Have them check the knock count, sometime a bad sensor or wiring cause excessive knock and will cause the ECM to back off the timing, killing your power. Other then the dealer to find out what the car is really doing is to get on a dyno, or data log some runs to see what exactly is happening with timing, boost, etc.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Alright, so I'm wondering if my issue isn't maybe the turbo's and not the Knock Sensor Wire. My power loss is much more noticeable at higher speeds and I wouldn't characterize it as a 300 horse loss. I'll stand by what I had originally said where it feels like I'm getting no boost when I put it to the floor from a 60-65 cruise(as to pass someone). I am wondering if maybe it's gone bad since i bought the car 3-4 weeks ago because it's only been this last week that I've been experiencing this AND i had checked these same spots for oil leakage the first week that I had it and there was maybe a slight presence of oil, but not as much as I have now. Maybe this is a normal amount though, you guys know more about it than I do.

 

DSCN0162.jpg

 

DSCN0163.jpg

 

DSCN0165.jpg

 

DSCN0170.jpg

 

DSCN0171.jpg

 

DSCN0175.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I called another dealership that is about 2 hours away and I am supposed to go there tomorrow, but things didn't sound much more promising after talking to him. I explained everything that has been going on and what the other dealership had done and he said that they would probably do the same thing. Scan for codes and if no codes are found there is nothing they can do. Is that all Service Tech's do anymore is hook up to a computer to scan for codes and if nothing shows up that's it?

 

I would like to get that Knock sensor info, even though that doesn't sound like my problem anymore. I would also like them to look at my turbo's, but it doesn't sound like they will even do that unless a code is showing up that signifies a turbo-related issue.

 

When your turbo went bad, were any DTC's showing up in relation to it? If not, how exactly did you determine it was bad, and what problems were you experiencing before replacing it?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm about to roll over 32,000 as well. Keep me updated on what you find out. Did they say much when you told them you had oil in your intake? Any idea what they are planning to do? I'm under the impression that the service tech's I've dealt with so far won't even pull a hose off the intake, let alone pull a turbo for inspection...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.


×
×
  • Create New...