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PREEMPT A TIMING CHAIN REPLACEMENT OR NOT.

CDA 455 II

CDA 455 II

ANFAQUE2
Joined
May 19, 2020
Member Number
25
Messages
4,050
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No Country For Old Men
Bronco's 5.0L has 260,000 miles on it.
I think the timing chain is factory original.

nOOB question:
Should I replace the timing chain even though engine appears to be running fine?
 
Once my buddy had a rebuilt TBI 350 in his Jimmy, we had slammed a doubler in it and were trying to head to Moab one weekend and it would not run right all week. Got it home and realized the timing chain had jumped because at one point the motor was spun backwards lining up a torque converter bolt. It happened one time, missed the bolt and spun it backwards a quarter turn to line back up, chain jumped. The single roller cheap chain installed at rebuild had loosened enough to jump.

Since then I have been paranoid to spin a motor backwards, and I would change it as preventative maintenance.
 
Run it till it drops.
 
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I think it's lipstick on a pig.
The engine already has 2.6x the amount of miles on it that it was designed to last for, so you're already money ahead.

My skewed sense of doing things "right" would prevent me from throwing anything other than basic consumables (i.e. oil, filters, coolant, water pumps) at an engine with 260k miles worth of wear in the bores and valve train. It just doesn't pencil out IMO. Run it till it doesn't anymore and then get on with the cummins swap :flipoff2:
 
In your 94? So it is a roller motor?

Then no.

I had a 96 with a 5.8 I had to do a waterpump about that time and decided to do a timing chain. There wasn't anything wrong with the old one at all, but figured I was there.

So the new set was off. Cheap set I imagine. Had to pull it back apart and degree the cam in.

That preventative maintenance caused my engine to run hotter and lose a couple MPG until I fixed the cam timing.
 
willis_racing said:
I think it's lipstick on a pig.
The engine already has 2.6x the amount of miles on it that it was designed to last for, so you're already money ahead.

My skewed sense of doing things "right" would prevent me from throwing anything other than basic consumables (i.e. oil, filters, coolant, water pumps) at an engine with 260k miles worth of wear in the bores and valve train. It just doesn't pencil out IMO. Run it till it doesn't anymore and then get on with the cummins swap :flipoff2:
Click to expand...
I definitely see your points.:beer:

I need the motor to last another three years.
In said three years I'll be able to order a new truck/or finish building the rest of the Bronco (front axle/new engine/tranny/T-case)/or build another rig with a 1ton frame ('05+ F-350/550/600).

In the meantime; I need this motor to last while I camp in the backcountry (driving on mostly groomed fire/dirt roads) over said three years.

I've spent the last four years replacing worn out parts; both regularly scheduled, as well as life time parts (TTB bushings/water pump/starter).
In a couple of months I'll be replacing the factory original body mounts.

From my nOOB stand point; these remaining I fear of failures:
1) Timing chain
2) Head gaskets
3) Front and rear main seals
 
Tiha said:
In your 94? So it is a roller motor?

Then no.

I had a 96 with a 5.8 I had to do a waterpump about that time and decided to do a timing chain. There wasn't anything wrong with the old one at all, but figured I was there.

So the new set was off. Cheap set I imagine. Had to pull it back apart and degree the cam in.

That preventative maintenance caused my engine to run hotter and lose a couple MPG until I fixed the cam timing.
Click to expand...
Don't know if it's a roller; but I think it is?😬🤷‍♂️

I almost did that when I replaced my factory original water in '20.
But I was so focused on the water pump; I didn't want to expand beyond that.
 
CDA 455 II said:
1) Timing chain
2) Head gaskets
3) Front and rear main seals
Click to expand...
1) If it's not making tons of noise and jumping teeth, I see no reason to fret.
2) Not technically a consumable. As long as you don't overheat the piss out of it they'll stay put just fine.
3) If no leaks, no issues. if some leaks but no more than "there is residue on the bottom of the pan" Not even worth the effort of dropping the pan, timing cover and probably either speedi-sleeving or replacing the damper.
CDA 455 II said:
So far; this tends to be the general consensus.

This is probably what I'll end up doing being that it would be reasonable based on the replies.👍🏽
Click to expand...
Things get worse before they get better, generally speaking. If it starts up easy and putters along nice and strong like it should be it's pretty unlikely to just let go of something and leave you stranded. Anything is possible, but anything is still possible even with turd-polishing.

Sounds like it runs good and shows no signs of distress to speak of. I think she's good to run. Have fun with it!
 
Hows the blowby on that engine, ya given it a leak down test or compression test ?
 
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