Merc's Marauder is died

[merc]

After a nice leisurely cruise looking for new homes and enjoying the beautiful day the Marauder had a major engine failure. Wow, this is very weird. My wife and I noticed a slight metallic sound which both of us assumed to be garbage or road hazard that I ran over as we approached a stoplight. Mrs. Merc and I looked like synchronized swimmers as we inspected the rear view mirror hoping to find the source of the noise. As I looked forward to the speedometer I notice the engine has shut down and I coasted 10 feet to a stop. You know what I am thinking at this point. At the green light I tuned the ignition and the engine barely started and at maximum pedal the Black Beast could only make a couple miles per hour shaking and knocking as it crossed the road. Mrs Merc and I now transformed ourselves into a NASCAR Pit crew with limited tools. Oil compression was 50 P.S.I, Transmission was 180 degrees, and all gauges were normal. An inspection of the undercarriage revealed no fluid leakage or damage, but something was extremely wrong. My best guess was that I lost a timing gear or chain. Believe me I when tell you I was not hot-dogging the car at all. It was very painful the see the flat bed tow truck take my car away. Hours before the incident I polished the wheels and paint, the reflection was blinding. The good news was L/M roadside assistance was on the seen within the hour with several callbacks to verify that I was ok.

[TAF]

merc,

Sorry to hear this...please keep us updated. I'm sure some of the more experianced wrenches here will have some specific questions as to what you saw, heard, smelled when this happened.

[WolfeBros]

Merc, sorry to hear the bad news. I am hoping that it is not an internal engine failure but it sure sounds like one. I noticed in your sig that you have a lot of add on goodies.....I hope you and the dealer SM are on very good terms. Please keep us advised to what they find and how you are treated. Again sorry.:depress:

[SergntMac]

Man-oh-man, I'm really sorry to hear this.

That "metal on metal" sound, and lack of power to no run at all, sounds real familiar to me. About a month ago, my '98 Mountaineer (78K miles) acted similar. I was just pulling away from a stop light, when I heard lot's of grinding and chunking for maybe 10 seconds. Before I could decide the direction of the sound, it stopped, but so did the car. I coasted to the curb, and I could get the car to idle, but very roughly, then not at all. Had it towed in to a local repair shop for diagnostics.

Fuel pump, the 586 dollar kind that's mounted in the fuel tank. The noise must have been the death groan, I can imagine it stuttering and shaking, and banging against the sides of the fuel tank. The rough idle until dead, must have been the residual fuel available.

Please keep us posted on the progress?

[MAD-3R]

Sounding VERY familier... :(

[jgc61sr2002]

merc - Hopefully everything will work out. Sorry about your MMplease keep us posted.:(

[merc]

Originally posted by TAF
merc,

Sorry to hear this...please keep us updated. I'm sure some of the more experianced wrenches here will have some specific questions as to what you saw, heard, smelled when this happened.


The metallic sound alerted me the problem. No smell, no early warning signs and the car was just serviced by the dealer a couple week’s ago. I started the engine one more time for a couple of seconds and believe me she was very sick. The exhaust noise was not normal and she shook from side-to-side. Loud pinging sounds could be heard easily.

[merc]

Originally posted by MAD-3R
Sounding VERY familier... :(

I hope it's not the same problem MAD. Although I was forced to take the car to the L/M dealer I will have Chris pickup the car in the morning for inspection. You know, wax on , wax off.

[Warpath]

I hope that wasn't the sound of detonation pinging.

[merc]

Originally posted by Warpath
I hope that wasn't the sound of detonation pinging.

It certainly sounds that way to me. Maybe my onboard computer failed or something less serious.

[MAD-3R]

Get those bits OFF, and get the OEM stuff on. And please keep us posted.

[merc]

Originally posted by SergntMac
Man-oh-man, I'm really sorry to hear this.

That "metal on metal" sound, and lack of power to no run at all, sounds real familiar to me. About a month ago, my '98 Mountaineer (78K miles) acted similar. I was just pulling away from a stop light, when I heard lot's of grinding and chunking for maybe 10 seconds. Before I could decide the direction of the sound, it stopped, but so did the car. I coasted to the curb, and I could get the car to idle, but very roughly, then not at all. Had it towed in to a local repair shop for diagnostics.

Fuel pump, the 586 dollar kind that's mounted in the fuel tank. The noise must have been the death groan, I can imagine it stuttering and shaking, and banging against the sides of the fuel tank. The rough idle until dead, must have been the residual fuel available.

Please keep us posted on the progress?

Mrs. Merc and I agree the sound did emit from the rear of the car. Thus explaining the rough restart because of an improper air and fuel mixture. The lack of external metallic evidence would match your theory if the sound were apart of the fuel tank. I hope that's all.

[RCSignals]

Most interesting. No check engine light? Maybe Mac is right about the fuel pump. The way you describe the engine acting after you restarted it sounds like a fuel starvation, or ignition/timing problem to me.
If it had points and condenser I'd think you fried a condenser :lol:

[SergntMac]

I didn't get a check anything, RC, had me wondering for 24 hours.

[Bigdogjim]

Well this is not the kind of news I like to read? Could be a few differant things. One thing I have learned well over the years is sound travels in any car. Lets hope it is only some like a fuel pump. That way L&M takes care of it. One thing you did not post was the miles? Or I missed it?
Hope you are back in the road quick.......

[RCSignals]

Originally posted by SergntMac
I didn't get a check anything, RC, had me wondering for 24 hours.

The fuel pump must not be part of the "check engine" diagnostic system.

[merc]

Big Dog the mileage is 10,478. Ok, Chris has my car and is trying to identify the problem. We plugged into a hand held computer to hopefully obtain an error code. Unbelievable the response was negative, and after 5 plus minutes no check engine light appeared on the dash. Next we checked for fuel pressure and if I am not mistaken the reading was 38 or 40 P.S.I. Then we moved the car on a lift to do a detailed inspection of the belly, again no problems found. This problem was starting to be elusive until he removed the spark plugs. Man oh man, a complete bank of four spark plugs were fouled black and with thick black grit covering the arch of the plug. The problem plugs were found on the driver’s side area of the engine. This would account for rough idle and low power I reported at the beginning of this tread. We are still somewhat puzzled about the cause of the problem, but a good nights rest should improve our insight. The good news is that my motor at this time does not seem to be broken. He will be looking closely tomorrow at the wiring harness as a possible cause. Thanks to the information posted on this site I may be up and running in the near future.

[jgc61sr2002]

merc - The diagnosis sounds very positive. But as you stated what made the plugs foul? Are you using a name brand of premium fuel?:(

[merc]

Originally posted by jgc61sr2002
merc - The diagnosis sounds very positive. But as you stated what made the plugs foul? Are you using a name brand of premium fuel?:(

Most of my fuel has been purchased at Costco’s. Other Gas Stations include Sunoco, and other band name stations providing 93 octane and above gasoline. I would find it odd that bad gas would be the result of my problem. As I described on my previous post, only four spark plugs (One complete bank) exhibited problems. The other bank of plugs on the passenger side was pristine, or what you would expect with a car with less than 11k mile on it.

[TripleTransAm]

Originally posted by merc
We are still somewhat puzzled about the cause of the problem, but a good nights rest should improve our insight.


Oxygen sensor? Plugged cat?

Using the computer, look at the fuel trims on that bank of the engine. Have a look at the O2 sensor readings and compare them. One possibility is perhaps an O2 sensor (pre-cats) on that side is falsely reading lean and pulling up the fuel delivery incorrectly.

If that checks out, look for an exhaust leak on that bank. Extra air being sucked in will throw off the O2 sensor readings and result in the same situation I described above. Exhaust can be pushed out of an exhaust leak during an exhaust pulse, but the ensuing low pressure immediately after the high pressure pulse might actually suck air INTO the system. That's why low-restriction exhausts 'pop' when decelerating, by the way.

Finally, there's always the chance of a bad injector. Since the O2 sensor is an OXYGEN sensor and not a fuel sensor, a locked-open injector will flood a cylinder such that the oxygen remains unburned, and the O2 sensor falsely reads this as a LEAN condition, and further tries to richen the entire bank.

Forgot to add: if the MM uses an on-demand type of fuel delivery system, it will only provide the fuel quantity necessary to arrive at the necessary pressure, not more. If this is the case, you have to check fuel pressure under load, as it may not be able to provide the same pressure once the fuel demand is greater.

Just some ideas to look into... good luck.

[TripleTransAm]

While you're at it, visually inspect the harnesses! If one got sliced through and is shorting an injector, it'll mess up the fuel delivery in this manner! (extra oxygen in the exhaust, lean condition falsely detected, etc.etc.etc)

[capt512]

Sorry to hear about your MM Merc.

Hope it is nothing serious and that you will soon have her back.
With no fluid leaks hopefully it will be the fuel pump or something like a computer problem.

Man it had to hurt to see one of these beauties riding on the back of a tow truck. Ouch!

Wish you and Mrs. MM the best and keep us all posted.
Mike :bigcry:

[joflewbyu2]

what mods do you have if any? ie.) chip, different plugs, cooler stat?

[merc]

Originally posted by joflewbyu2@aol.
what mods do you have if any? ie.) chip, different plugs, cooler stat?

Mac 8.8 gridle Cover
Addco Sway Bar (http://www.addco.net)
Diablo Chip
4:10
Dynojet Tuned
FormulaONE 35% Tint
Marauder Car Cover (www.covercraft.com)
True Autometer gauges
StreetGlow Xenon bulbs
MagnaFlow Mufflers

[merc]

Originally posted by TripleTransAm
While you're at it, visually inspect the harnesses! If one got sliced through and is shorting an injector, it'll mess up the fuel delivery in this manner! (extra oxygen in the exhaust, lean condition falsely detected, etc.etc.etc)



Not much progress was done today Chris was working on another issue that was pass due. I was able to do a short visual inspection of the wring harness, but without removing some parts I could not identify any chaffing. This doesn’t mean I will rule out the possibility. I was also interested in fuses relating to the PCM computer. Does any have access other then the L/M Service Manager to Technical Bulletins concerning wiring harness chaffing issues? TripleTransAm I thought I read a tread you started addressing a similar problem concerning the wiring harness.

[joflewbyu2]

maybe pull the chip, replace plugs with OEM and crank her up.

[TripleTransAm]

Originally posted by merc
TripleTransAm I thought I read a tread you started addressing a similar problem concerning the wiring harness.


Oh yeah, and the bastages still haven't coughed up any sort of remuneration for the expenses I incurred in order to get my family back home instead of leaving them stranded 200 miles away from home. Nice touch....

If your PCM fuse(s) had popped, I doubt the car would have even run. In my case, once I popped the engine into reverse, the torquing of the engine on its mounts made the exposed wire short itself to the sharp cowl bracket by the brake booster. Instant stall, and it never ever wanted to crank, much less start.


:mad2: :mad2: :mad2: :mad2: :mad2:
Just thinking about this again has made me VERY angry...

[RF Overlord]

Originally posted by TripleTransAm

:mad2: :mad2: :mad2: :mad2: :mad2:
Just thinking about this again has made me VERY angry...

Note to TooManyTransAms:

Chill, my brother...!

Sky up a doobie, crack a colden Molson Golden, and repeat after me: "Sweateth Not ye Small Stuff, for I am Truly Blessed With Mine Quartet of Ebony Beauties in Yon Carriage-House"...

:rasta: :beer:

[merc]

Originally posted by joflewbyu2@aol.
maybe pull the chip, replace plugs with OEM and crank her up.

Good idea, I will try it in the morning. I guess

I guess I will have to revise one of my favorite quotes from the Dirty Harry movie; I know what you're thinking. Did he have a six cylinder or a supercharged eight cylinder? Well, to tell you the truth, in all this excitement, I've kinda lost track myself. But being as this is a Mercury Marauder, the most powerful 4 door Sedan in the world, and would blow your bumpers clean off, you've got to ask yourself one question: Do I feel lucky? Well, do ya punk?

New Version: I know what you’re thinking. Did he have a 4 cylinder or a supercharged eight cylinder? Well, to tell you the truth, in all this mechanical mess, I’ve kinda lost track myself. But being as this is a Mercury Marauder on a Flat bed tow truck, currently the least powerful 4-door sedan in the world, and would blow your bumpers clear off if running, your got to ask yourself one question: Do you have bus fare? Well, do ya punk?

[TripleTransAm]

Originally posted by RF Overlord
Chill, my brother...!


:fire:


(think nice thoughts... nice thoughts...)

:mad2:

(more nice thoughts... niiiiice thoughts... Pamela Andersson... that chick from Alias...)

:mad:

(nice thoughts... 14-second 1/4 mile times from my MM... 1-2 upshift tire barks...)

:(

(more Pamela Andersson... nice relaxing vacation-related thoughts...)

:P

(there... feeling much much better)

:D

(whoops... just thought about Ford's Roadside Assistance again...)

:uzi: :uzi: :uzi: :nono:

[Bigdogjim]

See this is what happens when you do not have a hobby!!!!

[schuvwj]

Merc I replaced my stock plugs last week with Denso's and I also noticed a lot of black carbon on them. Only had 12,000 miles on them and they look very carboned up!
I will post some pics of the stock plugs.
Maybe this problem is much bigger than we think!

[merc]

Day four, the Marauder has the same ugly disposition. Chris removed the diablo chip and installed new plugs. Then reviewed the wire harness discussions listed on this board. This dog won’t hunt and the problem is still illusive. The next targeted area is the system computer. We are running out of options and soon will need Dealer assistance on this problem.

[merc]

Originally posted by schuvwj
Merc I replaced my stock plugs last week with Denso's and I also noticed a lot of black carbon on them. Only had 12,000 miles on them and they look very carboned up!
I will post some pics of the stock plugs.
Maybe this problem is much bigger than we think!

I was wondering if someone else was having foul spark plug problems. I don’t believe it’s due to performance modifications at this time. schuvwj, what is your computer code? It is located near the driver’s side door. Open the door and look at the hinges, you should see a white label with an alpha code. I think my code number is BMDO.

For those that are mechanically inclined and have between 10k to 15k on they’re 300A. Please check one of your plugs this weekend, also if you could report your mileage please. Maybe this should be a separate tread with a poll or survey attached to the subject. What do you think Logan?

[Murader03]

I'll pull a couple of mine tomorrow and check. I'm running the DR orginal stage 1 with the Autolite plugs. The chip and plugs have been installed for the last 23k miles. The car has a total 27k+ right now. I also have the BMDO, but the chip now runs the show.

[merc]

After six days at Chris’s shop no real answer could be easily identified. A good bolt on shop installer in no way should be substituted for a factory-trained mechanic. Sorry, in no means would I endorse that every mechanic that bears the company logo and certification of their vendor knows what he is doing. Some of the best machine heads don’t have a diploma, and that includes high school. What I am saying is there becomes a point of diminishing returns. How much time can be spent to resolve a problem that should be covered under warranty? So it’s back to the L/M dealer for service. Hopefully they can figure out the problem without an extended hassle. Chris believes that the computer is the primary culprit. Whatever the problem turns out to be I will post information and updates.

Thanks Chris for the time spent and dedication toward helping me with my problem. Although many hours were exhausted on this issue he charged 0 dollars for his investigation and karate skills, your know, wax on wax off. Customer service and pride in workmanship still lives in a small town called Manassas.

:)

[RF Overlord]

Originally posted by merc

For those that are mechanically inclined and have between 10k to 15k on they’re 300A. Please check one of your plugs this weekend, also if you could report your mileage please.

merc:

Not sure if this will help, but here goes:

I also have a 300A with the BMD0 code, but have had a Dennis chip from about 3000 miles until 10,000, then a re-flashed ECM from 10,000 to current (13,xxx). I replaced the stock plugs with the cooler coppers when I installed the chip, and the originals looked fine. I then replaced the coppers with the Densos when the ECM was re-flashed, and the coppers that came out also looked clean.

[schuvwj]

Originally posted by merc
I was wondering if someone else was having foul spark plug problems. I don’t believe it’s due to performance modifications at this time. schuvwj, what is your computer code? It is located near the driver’s side door. Open the door and look at the hinges, you should see a white label with an alpha code. I think my code number is BMDO.

For those that are mechanically inclined and have between 10k to 15k on they’re 300A. Please check one of your plugs this weekend, also if you could report your mileage please. Maybe this should be a separate tread with a poll or survey attached to the subject. What do you think Logan?

Merc my computer code is the same as yours BMDO!
I will post the pics tomarrow.

[phil]

do a compression test,4 fouled plugs on one side sounds like the chain let go. phil

[BUCKWHEAT]

Also, hope this helps. I have same computer code. Pulled the stock plugs out at 12k miles, to put in the Denso's. The old plugs looked so good I kept them!

[merc]

This is a responce I recieved from a e-mail that I sent to Diablo Chips pertaining to my problem.

Its hard to say what would cause the entire bank to have this type of an issue. What type of fuel do you run in the car? Were there any signs of pinging, or detonation in the car? This could be a result of detonation and damage to a piston, thus causing oil consumption on the side of the engine where it has taken place. It is important to use only the best premium grade fuels, and pay attention to pinging or detonation, as it can create risk to the durability of the engine. We have seen no evidence of this being an issue in this application, I believe this would be the first such incident that has been brought to our attention. The durability of the 2003 Mercury Marauder has been excellent. Please feel free to contact me on the best way to handle the Ford dealer in regards to warranty.

[b4z]

I am late to this thread, but wasn't there a problem with 1 side of the 4.6L overheating or something?
i seem to remember an issue with the supercharged Cobras and the Aviator.
Could this be it?

[merc]

Day three at the Dealership and no mechanic has looked at the car. This could be a result of scheduling problems or other issues. I have known the service writer for over 5 years because I have my 1996 Continental serviced there also. I had a conversation with another L/M service manager in another ford sales district. I explained to him I was trying to have ford correct the damage that resulted due to my purchase of a factory car cover. He asked if I purchased the car from his dealership or did I have my car serviced at his location. I replied no, with a puzzled face. I thought it didn’t matter which dealership or service facility I selected, as long as it was Ford or Lincoln Mercury dealership. I can’t remember the exact details of the conversion, but I found an article on Blue Oval that resembles what he was trying to convey.

http://www.blueovalnews.com/2003/dealers/select_awa020103.htm

[merc]

I finally got some news today. No compression was found on the passenger side of the motor, which included all four pistons in the bank. As I reported earlier, the driver side spark plugs were extremely fowl, that’s still a mystery at this time. I was present when the mechanic pulled the value cover to find that a chain was missing from the cam, but the chain was intact on the values. Now the question becomes, what caused that problem? It looks like I will be in the shop for a while. Stay tuned to this tread for more updates

[RF Overlord]

Originally posted by merc
a chain was missing from the cam, but the chain was intact on the values.

merc:

At least that clears the Diablo chip...

I know you must be bummin', and I feel bad that your baby is in the shop, but I have to ask if you can clarify the statement above...

Did you mean the chain was missing, but the CAMS and sprockets were intact?

Thanks, bro...

:(

[merc]

Originally posted by RF Overlord
merc:

At least that clears the Diablo chip...

I know you must be bummin', and I feel bad that your baby is in the shop, but I have to ask if you can clarify the statement above...

Did you mean the chain was missing, but the CAMS and sprockets were intact?

Thanks, bro...

:(

In our engines it seems there are 2 chain per head. One larger gear and one small gear. The small gear that is connected to the cam didn’t have a chain attached to it.

http://www.mercurygallery.net/mmnet/showphoto.php?photo=296&password=&sort=1&cat=501&page=1

This link has better graphic detail on the problem area. Notice the smaller gear and chain that is connected to the larger gear from the rear.

http://www.mercurygallery.net/mmnet/showphoto.php?photo=499&size=big&password=&sort=1&cat=501

[TripleTransAm]

That's a double overhead cam engine, so the smaller gear is on the camshaft that pops the intake valves open, and the larger gear is on the camshaft that actuates the exhaust valves. In your case, looks like your intake valves were stuck in the same position on that side of the engine because there was nothing to move the intake camshaft on that bank of the engine.

Is our engine an 'interference' type of engine? If it is, you might want to pull that cylinder head and check for punched pistons or mashed intake valves. This might explain your lack of compression.

An interference engine has no 'safety zone' where the valve can stay open and not get smashed by the rising piston. For example, if my Honda Civic was to pop the timing belt, I'd have a whole crapload of bent valves or holed pistons because there's no room for a valve to avoid getting crunched if it hangs at full open.

Now, I do believe Phil needs a round of applause for having nailed the right diagnosis a few posts back...

[merc]

My best guess was that I lost a timing gear or chain. Believe me I when tell you I was not hot-dogging the car at all. It was very painful the see the flat bed tow truck take my car away. Hours before the incident I polished the wheels and paint, the reflection was blinding. The good news was L/M roadside assistance was on the seen within the hour with several callbacks to verify that I was ok. [/B][/QUOTE]

timing gear or chain

Triple Trans Am I believe I was the one , not Phil, that needs a round of applause for having nailed the right diagnosis.

[TripleTransAm]

Sorry, my bad. I missed the suggestion in your first post, I apologize for the error.

[JET]

Merc,
What's next?

[merc]

Originally posted by marauder2306
Merc,
What's next?

The next logical thing to address is why the cam chain broke? The L/M service manager proclaims that he has never seen this problem before. He believes that a cam bearing lockup or the heads heating up caused some unknown problem with the cam rotation. Regardless of the cause, they have to find 100 percent of the chain or any fragments underneath the value cover. What I fear is that components from the chain may have found their way into the intake values. You know were I going with this, don’t you.

[MAD-3R]

New motor.

[cyclone03]

more than likley the cam chain tensioner failed or stuck,the slacked chain over road the sprocket then bound up and broke.
Or you broke a valve and jammed everything up from there.

The chain could have failed by itself.
I would guess all 16 valves on that head are bent,the head is banged up and the pistons have little "c"shaped pressings in them.

Now if we had FORGED pistons we may be able to just put a new head and valve train in,put with our "glass'pistons that baby is comeing apart.
My guess is you get a new engine and the old one is wisked off for further investigation.
tell them to order a Cobra motor by "mistake".opps...

[joflewbyu2]

http://www.blueovalnews.com/2003/powertrain/4.6l.cobracylhead.072903.htm

[merc]

I just got a call from L/M and a new motor is on it's way.

[TAF]

Congrats merc!^^^

Continue to keep us updated.

[MAD-3R]

Until they hand you the keys with the new engine installed, I will hold off on Congrats. they told me the same thing. Then the enginer from ford should up. Sence you were smart and had Chris restore to factory, I don't think you will have the problems I did. I wil say good luck, and fight the fight you can win.

[merc]

Mad-3R, I don't want to sound the victory trumpet. You are correct; this process is not over till I have keys in hand and out the door. I have mixed feeling about the process and questions on how it will affect the overall quality of the car. It’s one thing to have a factory-installed engine; it’s another to have a mechanic assumable the components, too many points of failures for me to calculate.

[MAD-3R]

They will have a drop in crate motor for you for just that reason.

Want to get together over a cold one and cry in our beers over the incapasitation of our babys? :)

[Petrograde]

Hey Merc, just curious.... will you mod your new engine exactly like your last? ... or will you make changes?

I'm glad the LM dealership is gonna square you away! I hope you're not away from her too long!

[Logan]

Closed by request...