Timing Upgrade

[oldmanlat]

Hi.
I have an 02 Windstar 3.8. How do you do a timing upgrade? Is this something I can do, or do I have to take it to a Ford dealer?
Regards,
oldmanlat

[LeSabre97mint]

Originally Posted by oldmanlat

Hi.
I have an 02 Windstar 3.8. How do you do a timing upgrade? Is this something I can do, or do I have to take it to a Ford dealer?
Regards,
oldmanlat

oldmanlat

Welcome to AFs!

Why is it that you want to do a timing upgrade? This would be a dealer item.

Dan

[oldmanlat]

Originally Posted by LeSabre97mint

oldmanlat

Welcome to AFs!

Why is it that you want to do a timing upgrade? This would be a dealer item.

Dan

It runs good. Quiet when ice cold, but as soon as it warms up it starts pinging. By pinging, I mean it sounds exactly like the clatter you would get on an older car (with old style distributer and points) when the timing was too far advanced. is there something else I should be checking first?
Thanks.
Regards,
oldmanlat

[LeSabre97mint]

oldmanlat

I would look into the EGR system. I'm thinking that your EGR ports are getting plugged with carbon and there isn't enough exhaust going back through the engine to prevent pre-ignition. Here is part of the post General Windstar Info from one of the stickies on top of this forum (it's also in my signature labeled "Must read) Cleaning the EGR ports isn't too hard if you know your way around an engine with tools. Wiswind and I both have pictures (both links are in my signature) posted on the web when we had that area of the engine apart.

Dan

EGR SYSTEM:
This is worth a mention. I do not know about the 1995, but the 1996 and newer 3.8L windstars have a EGR port for each cylinder. I show them in several of my pictures. These ports can become clogged by the combination of the EGR carbon, etc and the oil vapors from the PCV system coming together in the intake.
They seem to clog at cylinders 3 and 6, closest to the EGR valve, leaving cylinders 1 and 4 to be the last ones open....so they get all the EGR flow....often causing a misfire one of them whenever the EGR system is activated.
The EGR ports clog right at the end...so it is easy to clean them, once you have removed the upper intake manifold (gaskets are reusable).
Clogged EGR ports can give you a check engine light with codes P0401 for insufficient EGR flow, P0301 and / or P0304 for misfire on clinder(s) 1 and 4
For more information on this issue do a search on " EGR "

Exhaust gas flows through a tube that is connected to the front exhaust manifold and the EGR valve that is located on the driver's side of the lower intake manifold.

There are 2 small hoses that goe from the EGR tube to the Differential Pressure FEedback (DPFE) sensor.
In short, the DPFE senses the actual flow through the EGR tube.
The DPFE sensor is a common failure, and is easy to replace.

The PCM sends a signal to the EGR vaccum control solenoid to open the EGR valve for a certain amount of flow through the EGR tube, as measured by the DPFE.

The EGR vaccum control solenoid (located on the back side of the upper intake manifold, driver's side) opens and closes the vaccum to the EGR valve to open and close the EGR valve to maintain the expected amount of flow through the EGR tube.

If the PCM is not able to maintain the correct EGR flow, the Check Engine Light is lit, and a code is stored to indicate the problem.