3.5 Ecoboost with 96,000 miles. Had a rough idle for a while and then got a check engine light, o2 sensor on bank 1, sensor 1. Replaced sensor 1 on both banks. Idle was still rough. Changed spark plugs, replaced plug boots, drilled a 3/32" hole in the intercooler. Huge improvement by cleaning the 2 MAP and 1 ATS sensors, filthy dirty on the intake manifold MAP sensor. Engine is back to being factory smooth. The spark plugs and MAP/ATS sensor cleaning were the biggest improvements. Did 300 miles today with zero issues. Already had the passenger side catch can.
I drilled a small 1/8" weep hole about 3 weeks ago. I had a fair amount of oil and water purge itself. I did not plug the hole. I did NOT notice any improvement in performance but that being said, I did not have any prior issues with performance. The reason I did it was that I had replaced my throttle body a couple weeks prior and noticed how dirty it was. It has to be coming from the cooler, so I drilled it to see if I had fluid in it. I did. As I mentioned, I did not plug the hole and have not noticed any issue at all. I wash my vehicle weekly (which sprays the under-carriage and it has rained a lot here lately. No issues at all. If you are worried about an exposed hole, then drive a stainless steel self taping screw into the hole.
I did it to mine, I have a 2011 f150 with the ecoboost , Was in the process of moving and this happened after I went through some of the Colorado Rocky Mountains, It did great driving up the mountains, but when I was on the straightaway, heading towards my new home, that’s when the loss of power and shutter began. I did drill the hole exactly the same place as you but I use a 3/32 inch bit and it did take away the engine code, but I still get a pending miss fire on number 3, So still going to run it one more day then put new plugs . I do pray it does fix this issue. It seems to be going according to other videos on how they say their process took for it to be finally fixed. Originally I had thought the divers side turbo was going out from the sound, Glad it don’t make that noise no more, But as of now, still a bit of bogging down on fast takeoffs , But no light and not as bad as before. Another note I wanted to add is that I had just put new coils and plugs in March 2024 and now it is June 2024 .
After watching several videos I did it to my 2017 Expedition 3.5 with 134k miles. Good night there was alot of muck coming out of there. No wonder it was going through spark plugs
I drilled a 1/16th hole on the driver side of mine. It doesn’t sputter near as bad as it used to. Next project will be to install some catch cans and change the plugs.
that is going to cause an oil mess over time. that oil is due to the closed pcv system the same as the diesels. the oil will never stop dripping. look at the air charge tubes and hoses after time. they leak around the clamps.
Subscribed for an update.?.?.? I would like to trust the engendering power of the ecoboost enginerds but this seems to be a logical solution. I recently purchased a used 45000 mile ecoboost flex. The charge lines are very wet, while every other mechanical aspect is in great order, turbo seals and compression have been Checked.
It's been working great for me. I've never had the truck throw a check engine light under acceleration like it used to. Only annoying thing it, I put folded up pieced of "pigmat" (it will only absorb oil,not water) material between the intercooler and bracket to absorb any oil that pushes out. After 3 or 4 months it will get saturated with oil and I have to change it. I agree that there needs to be a better solution. The check engine light coming on really isn't ever an issue if you regularly tow or full throttle the truck on a regular basis because that oil and water slury is regularly blown out of the intercooler in small amounts and doesn't really affect anything. It's when the truck gets driven gingerly for too long and builds up a large amount of oil and water on the cold side of the intercooler
I had intermittent shutter problems with my 2013 f150, 89,000 miles and thought about doing this ...until, I was heading up a hill the other day , felt a strong thump , lost a little power, threw the wrench sign. Few seconds later power came back. Dropped by auto shop, pulled a code P0717. Something about input shaft speed not matching RPMs. Before I drop by a transmission place, You think a misfire can cause this?? ...which of course leads me back to completing the 1/16 hole drill. -- thanks!!
I'm not sure if I'm late to this but I had the same input shaft speed code( 2011 3.5) wasn't thr same code as yours but it was the lead fram that needed replacing.. and it's inside the transmission kinda.. had to drop trans pan and get at it from ther..found remain lead fram on internet.. street smart transmission for fairly cheep. It's been 3-4 mouths now and it's running great
Mind did the same after I replaced the left turbo. Got ap0299 under boost. I see no leaks or problems with tutbos. Next is to swap blow if valve and intercooler
Just did this to the right side not really the left side . I did have a sputter issue at full throttle . This is the fight I see it being done on the left side . I used a 5/64 drill bit . Some oil came out . Seems to have fixed my issue. Will do plugs this week .
I drilled a 3/8” hole in my intercooler and now It keeps throwing the code P 0299 and I’ve lost some power. If I drive it for more than 20 minutes it goes into limp mode. I think I need to drill another hole on the other side to equal the pressure.
3/8 is way too big of a hole. I used a 1/16 drill bit. You will need to plug up that large of a hole. The computer is probably putting it in limp mode because it thinks there is an issue with the turbos because they are not making enough boost
Ya, I drilled a 3/32” hole, This is the biggest I heard that don’t give no codes or no problems. And it has helped my 2011 so far. Still in the early stages of getting that junk out.
Nothing noticeable at all. A 1/16th hole is very small. I had my buddy put it in gear & build boost while I was under it (dont try this at home) & it was hard to even find the hole, very little air was coming out. He said he got it to around 10 psi
You could drill and tap it for a 10/32 bolt and just plug it afterwards. Granted you will have to drain it occasionally... I would think if you did your oil change open it up.
@@mohammedkhan778 - just use a short screw, and screw it into the hole....but, most guys just always leave it open, as it will continue to clean itself!
