Ford F-150 3.5L ecoboost misfire fix!

Drilling hole in Ford F150 3.5L intercooler

[@devinthomas4866]

Great info as always, here is my long drawn out story: I have 2012 F150 Eco boost 4x4 Lariat, 135k, K&N FIlter* Truck has been "hesitating, shudder, misfire" for at least 2 years now 2 different Ford dealers, independent shop, 4 trips to Ford service (dropped off for 3 days on 1 trip)...multiple codes thrown, all different verdicts from dealer, no fix. New battery, reset codes, new plugs, boots , coil wires, etc....No luck decided to go to the experts, You Tube and Im glad I did. first I cleaned throttle body extremely well just because I was there and only took 5 minutes Not much help with my symptoms but I knew it was clean. Bought can of CRC MAF cleaner and started with first sensor on the right, it was not dirty at all. Next went to 2nd sensor behind radiator and glad to see it was pretty dirty, I was beginning to feel better about the plan, cleaned it very well, about 6-8 spray sessions, let it dry. Then the 3rd sensor under the engine cover, holy crap it was beyond filthy. (Some posts claim the K&N type filters can cause this.) Looked like it was dipped in oil and rolled in the dirt then baked to a crisp. Now I was feeling pretty good about my diagnosis. Sprayed the 3rd sensor with the remains of the can, maybe 20 times until very clean all around, let it dry then crossed my fingers. Removed battery for 10 minutes, reconnected and started it up. let it idle for 10 minutes and took a test spin. Hell yeah!!!!, Better than new!!! mileage up 3 MPG's shifting crisp like new, runs great Got on the gas on highway and it performed the way it was designed, strong with a lil growl I have read numerous posts about this problem and saw a great suggestion last week, clean those things with every oil change and avoid the problem in the future. Thanks to everyone on KZbin for the great info

[@autiger0612]

Devin Thomas what sensor are you talking about? Sorry if I missed it

[@IIIwke]

Devin Thomas did you all drill a hole or did you just do the cleaning?

[@autiger0612]

IIIwke I drilled the hole in mine the day I made the above comment and have not had a single issue. I was getting all sorts of problems coming from my cylinders misfiring. So I had a “fuck it” moment and drilled the hole. No more misfires, better MPG, and a very noticeable increase in kick when I hit the gas.

[@TRP93]

Devin Thomas what sensors did you clean ?

[@eugeneasomani8866]

Devin Thomas ok

[@LoveTheCapo]

I had an error reading of cylinder 3 misfire. I replaced the plug and coil. Problem got worse. Drill this hole and hit the highway and it fix the issue 100%!! No misfire. No hesitation. No more flashing check engine light. Thanks man. Saved me a nasty bill at Ford. I’ll leave the hole for a day or two then I’ll plug it up.

[@paulnaylor2152]

I changed all plugs tonight and thought ,NO DIFFERENCE, I found your video and several others and yours was the only one I could find that showed where to drill hole, I did it and let me say "this truck is ALIVE" once again, thanks man !!! IT WORKS !!!

[@markyb6995]

Hay man do I leave the hole open or plug it up?

[@christianvaldez6119]

@@markyb6995 I would say leave it open. If not you would have the same issue and will find yourself back inn the same place later.

[@teehud313]

​@@markyb6995 excellent question

[@markyb6995]

@@teehud313 I put a screw in the hole with a rubber gasket periodically drained it. Since then I have added in Oil catch can. I’ve not gotten any oil in the cooler since then

[@teehud313]

@@markyb6995 thanks. I installed a JLT catch can also but haven't tapped into the intercooler yet.

[@chrisprytko2640]

Just an FYI, I had the same problem. I almost drilled it, but my friend suggested Sea Foam. I did 2oz per gallon in the tank. After it ran through, I didn’t have the issue anymore!!! I also ran another 2oz per gallon in the next fill up. That was around 3OOO miles ago! I have my power back!! And it seems to have fixed the problem!!

[@williamblack5798]

Always make sure you use a swivel socket when you change plugs. The middle ones are really easy to crack the ceramic on

[@dmarkcooper]

This is one of the better videos on a fix'in this shudder issue. I appreciate your authenticity. However my favorite part of the video is at "4:01" ...your plate...He Rocks!

[@joshblack4541]

Amen brother!

[@jamespitts10]

Amen.

[@ncwarrior62]

I love the bumper sticker also!! Amen and Happy Birthday Jesus today!!!!

[@windsor64ful]

Did this a few months ago. Plus changed the plugs after driving about 500 miles with hole drilled. Haven’t had a single issue since. Even feels like there’s more power.

[@conceptdesigns4100]

3:10 "I crunk it up" 🤣 oh my man, thanks for the post buddy. And I got a nice little laugh out of it

[@kennyray9252]

The ford techs know exactly what your talking about they’ve just been instructed to be silent on the matter. Every service writer I’ve talked to about it has the same lame answer, that they haven’t heard anything about it.

[@1beaverfrank]

I have a few older f150 ecoboost trucks and I drilled a hole in everyone of them and I have 370000km on one of them and the hole fixs the shutter problem.

[@shaneholbert5613]

Will drilling the hole cause any other problems? My eco boost f150 has 146000 and is doing it just haven’t drilled a hole yet.

[@gonzalolinares5654]

How did you plug the hole?

[@keithbowen3415]

@@gonzalolinares5654 you don't plug the hole. Its small enough to not give a big enough vac leak to cause problems but will seep fluid out when some is in there. This is not recommended for people that drive through mud holes

[@MOstix13]

Thanks for the video! The truck was missing on hard acceleration like merging into traffic, etc. Lots of gunk came out of the bottom of the inter cooler when I drilled it. Went ahead and changed the plugs and coils as well. The truck is running great again!

[@alecmejia3555]

Hello! I see that you wrote this comment one year ago, do you have any update ??? It is still working properly???

[@gregboevin3312]

Did my 3 years ago, no issues at all, this works well

[@codyscott108]

Do you just leave the hole in it? Or do you put a pitcock in it or plug it

[@gregboevin3312]

@@codyscott108 the hole is so small, causes no issues, gets rid of the oil build up, works great. Some foreign cars have a way to drain coolers , I always thought thats the real way to fix it. I'm sure if you brought it to a real radiator repair shop , it could be installed

[@joshblack4541]

It still has a little hickup every now and then but runs MUCH smoother than it did before.

[@shaneholbert5613]

Josh Black mine has been stuttering as well any idea as to why we may have to do this?

[@Gultiere]

She still holding up? Drilled my 15 Expedition intercooler this morning and she’s stumbling, but not as bad.

[@joshblack4541]

@@Gultiere I hope so, I sold it a few years ago.

[@chadfox4097]

Now that you are getting the gunk out of the CAC. Add catch cans on both sides and clean out your map sensors. There are 3 of them and they get contaminated. One by the air filter. One just before your throttle body and one on top of your intake manifold.

[@withku]

there’s only one map sensor, on your intake manifold. air scoop has IAT and throttle body is just boost pressure.

[@chadfox4097]

@@withku boost sensor and map sensor work the same. But yes, there’s only two not three typo.

[@austinzeppenfeldt3030]

Go ahead a drill a small hole. U can easily patch it with high temp silicone. I threw a 300 305 306 miss fire. Car would shutter when on the throttle. I replaced plugs and coils from the codes. Still didn’t work. As soon as we drilled the hole it was working. Do it u got nothing to loose!

[@nohypeneededfunctionalfitn7767]

Had the same exact issues on a 2010 MKS with the 3.5L EcoBoost. Loss of power/shuddering at any attempt to accelerate through highway cruising speeds. Kept throwing P0300 misfire codes as well as O2 sensor codes. Replaced the front O2 sensor, spark plugs and coil packs, still had the issue. Fuel system check/purge....same issue. Finally went and got 1/16 hole drilled into the bottom (passenger side) of the intercooler and TONS of crap came out and check engine light disappeared in 2 minutes. WTF Ford? 😤

[@briceholmes8534]

this needs to be addressed by ford i dont want oil dripping on my driveway

[@angelicamcdonald4519]

Did this on my 2012 yesterday, it helped a little but still missing. Hooked,up obd reader and was getting misfire hits in #1 and #6. Replaced coils in those and a new set of plugs all around. Runs tip top again. Hopefully get better mileage towing tomorrow! Thanks for the the video, a lot of shit blew out of my inter Cooler!

[@clave13alvarez48]

tell me is work

[@wenleo5150]

Drilled the hole today. See if it works. Thanks.

[@maxs3624]

Did this fix your issue? I did not see another update video on it?

[@williegillie5712]

Doesn’t exactly make me wanna put my trust in anything ford sells anymore. Vehicle fix- drill hole in intercooler. Then again putting a water pump on the timing chain where it can drain into the oil pan and destroy the engine doesn’t help much either.

[@teehud313]

Yup. Happened to me. They replaced but it'll happen again.

[@seanadams5440]

Does this cause you to lose boost? How about plugging it with a small screw and draining every so often. I just bought a 2016 with the 3.5 with 55k miles and it runs great although has a slight stutter at idle. I did order a catch can though.

[@BushmanCanuck]

No, you can put a screw in it if you want. Which side did you drill. I did passenger side and it was dry as a bone. 🤔

[@SmashingPunkFan]

There is a better fix for this. A catch can. Research them. They do the exact same thing, and you can keep your boost.

[@squankey]

@@SmashingPunkFan catch can will catch oil from the pcv but it will not take the condensation out of the intake. It will help keep sensors and valves clean, but it will not clear the issue they are referring to.

[@SmashingPunkFan]

@@squankey I have catch can on my '12 3.5 and its catching 85% condensation. Works wonders. Lookup UPR Mega catch can for the f-150 Ecoboost. 👍👍👍

[@bigbill6545]

Does the liquid keep leaking on the driveway for ever?

[@21joe22]

Just did mine thank you but my drill tip broke and i think some inside 😬

[@jamespitts10]

Lmao

[@jamespitts10]

I’m so sorry

[@michaellifefacts7869]

Mine did too I just pulled it out. I think I got the whole thing 🤔

[@jayg9732]

Did u ever try cleaning the sensors ?

[@tonithompson9086]

Thanks for the clip!..OK, I'm going to drill mine. Its a 2014 ecoboost truck. So the basics are find the lowest part of the I/C and drill a 1/16" hole and leave it permanently unplugged so water/oil can always drain while driving? Right?

[@joshblack4541]

Desert Mountain Preppers that is basically what I did. I am not a mechanic though but it greatly helped mine run better.

[@tonithompson9086]

Thanks, did mine this morning. Couldn't believe the crap that came out then took it out on the highway and floored it to build some boost. I think its clean now :)

[@RickStuff]

This is not condensation. This is none burned fuel, oil vapor and humidity from the crank case that get trapped in there because instead of a pcv valve the turbo is sucking all that crap from your crank case through the valve cover and "it is supposed" to push it into the intake / engine to burn that crap for "ecologically purpose" but it get trapped into the inter cooler and when there is enough of that crap in the inter cooler your engine is drowning with it when your throttle is wide open. Instead of air going into the engine it is none burned fuel/oil vapor/water going into it. I heard Ford is finally admitting that there is a problem and they are working on a solution on they're future eco boost model for the next generation of vehicles so they don't want to admit that they fucked up so they are trying all kind of useless things to fix that problem when you go at the garage but they are already know what is the problem but they won't install a catch can in your truck when you are reporting that problem because they can/wont modify they're own vehicles and install a catch can because it wont meet the emission regulation and they can,t trust the customers to empty the catch can periodically. And a recall of that size, for all the eco boost sold for the past 10 years would mean bankruptcy for them. If you want to drill a hole you'd better install a plug so you can empty it sometime. Driving with a hole in your inter cooler is not dangerous as is but you will loose some boost as the turbo is blowing into the inter cooler. I had the same problem on my 2013 F150 (bought second hand in 2019) . I've installed a catch can and I've remove and wash the inter cooler and installed it back. It fixed the problem for good. it is more expensive than just drilling a hole but I don't have miss fire anymore and I am not loosing any boost cause of a hole in the inter cooler. I just have to empty the catch can once a month and that all. I don,t mean to trash your video Josh but this is how I install my setup kzbin.info/www/bejne/an65daykrcx3eqM. You can remove my comment if you don't like me sharing a link in here and i will totally understand you. I just want to help. Good luck guysd

[@gobolts2109]

I’ve got an ‘18 2.7 with a catch can and I’ve been battling misfires for 3 years. Multiple sets of plugs and OEM could swapped. Does this apply to the 2nd gen 2.7? I was under the impression that lord of kinks worked out

[@joshblack4541]

Not sure, I haven’t had this truck for several years.

[@christopherracette3676]

Only works for awhile..my trucks back to misfire mode..back to the drawing board.

[@boomstorm1]

It worked for me, did it 6 months ago.

[@kennymaxwell5901]

Would a catch can work for this?

[@tzavitz]

Josh, I just encountered this and I have the same truck. Before I drill the hole, I wondered if you had an update for us. Did it work for you??

[@joshblack4541]

I sold the truck a couple of years ago so I can't speak of now but it ran much smoother after for many months before selling it.

[@tzavitz]

Josh Black thanks

[@time_on_target]

Now you’ve created a boost leak. Why not install a catch can? I put two catch cans on my F150 and I’ve never had to drill this whole. Just a thought.

[@joshblack4541]

Understandable, but you shouldn't have to do either and taking 4 minutes to drill a hole that you could close back with $1 or high temp silicone seem like a pretty easy fix.

[@joshblack4541]

At the time of this video the intercooler wasn't "supposed" to be collecting moisture. Hindsight is 20/20 for a reason. A lot of new information has been found since almost 3 years ago but this was a quick fix on a truck that I couldn't go down the road in without it putting itself in to "safe mode" and killing all power. 5 minutes with a wrench and a drill bit and it was fixed. I'll take it.

[@anthentheresmatt]

@@joshblack4541 What is the new fix? Im having missfires on 2 and 4, when replacing those and driving im seeing missfires on 1/3 - seems to be all over the place.I have not tried this yet, just curious to see what the perm fix for it is.

[@GALVIN4487]

Is this only for first gen ecoboost F150’s? What about a 2018. I changed the plugs, coil packs, and the MAP sensor and still having the same problem.

[@joshblack4541]

I can’t help you on that, I don’t know.

[@carpcommanderorta4709]

Wouldn’t a catch can , solve this problem?

[@javybavy]

I have passenger side catch can and it fixed it for a good year then it came back and cant figure what else it can be.

[@jrstanley8673]

@JOSH BLACK did u have any smoke from the muffler?

[@joshblack4541]

I haven't had the truck in a couple of years now but yes, a lot of time at start up it would seem to have a little smoke from time to time.

[@antonsone11]

Does this void any warranties from Ford?

[@joshblack4541]

I'm not sure. If the vehicle is around this year model, there isn't any warranty left anyway. You may want to call Ford and ask. This video is 6 years old and I haven't had the truck in several years.

[@randallcasey2788]

Do you just leave the hole or fill it with something

[@joshblack4541]

I just left it

[@jaredsview33]

Instead of drilling into your intercooler why wouldn't you purchase an oil catch can? Doesn't it solve the same problem?

[@hugostiglitz3738]

Catch can is for crankcase air that gets fed into intake manifold which is after the intercooler. I don't believe it would help in this scenario. If I'm wrong please correct me.

[@jaredsview33]

@@hugostiglitz3738 Thanks for that info, I will do some research - I have a 2012 fx4 ecoboost - is there another cleaner way to do this besides having gunk leaking out from the truck all the time?

[@hugostiglitz3738]

@@jaredsview33 I'd imagine there's gotta be a way to remove the intercooler and install a proper valve but I haven't seen it. I'm apprehensive about drizzling oil constantly too. My 2013 limited is recently out of warranty so I just installed a catch can and an edge tuner. Very glad I did both. I caught 2 liquid oz of oil gunk after only a 1000 miles. Wish I would've installed it a long long time ago. No its time to clean all sensors.

[@Moonerfirefighter]

I have 2014 fx4 I bought used. I now have a misfire in the number 2 cylinder , I replaced all plugs and the #2 coil pack. I still have the mis fire. I will try this......

[@52nathan]

Did it work???

[@bobbyvandiver3682]

Im in the same boat. Cylinder 2 misfire

[@FleetTech97]

Probably a bad injector

[@williamblack5798]

Check your plug. Very easy to crack the ceramic when installing. Use a swivel socket.

[@bobbybonds4865]

When you’re truck started misfiring did it flash the check engine light? Code says it was cylinder 6 misfiring...

[@joshblack4541]

It did not, it did put it in a "limp" state a few times but I could shut it off and crank it back up and it would clear the warning symbol.

[@autiger0612]

Did you ever fix this and figure what the problem was? I got a cylinder 6 misfire last month, took it to the shop and they replaced the spark plugs I believe. Now it’s doing it again. Another cylinder 6 misfire :/

[@luciferslettuce]

Reno it's the intercooler dill it. The code will always be cylinder 3&6

[@tterb0331]

Xx-M249_Guy-xX mine is ALWAYS cylinder 5, and it’s actually bad enough to ruin the coil. Like others have mentioned, the truck will go limp and then eventually go back to normal... mind would too, but maybe once or twice a year it would go into limp mode BAD, and not recover, even if I pulled over and restarted the truck. Replacing the spark plug didn’t help. Replacing the ignition coil did. I think I’m finally going to break down and drill a hole, but there’s got to be a better fix by now, these trucks are 8-9 years old now

[@jeffjones3246]

I live in Arizona, would this issue be relevant in a dry climate?

[@joshblack4541]

I am not sure. I am by no means a mechanic but it worked for mine.

[@williamblack5798]

Not as much. Does your shop air compressor have water in it when you open the drain?

[@e.b.6766]

Yeah… the only problem with drilling into the intercooler is that the stuff you get out of it today… will be back next week. You’ll have to drain it often, and a little inconveniently. Better to get a catch can, and either unscrew the container, or open the valve, to drain. I drilled the hole to see what I got out of it (quite a bit). Then I realized I didn’t want to keep removing the plug as it might eventually wallow itself out in the plastic. So, I got a Full Race catch can.

[@williamblack5798]

The catch can catches what comes from the pcv. The intercooler water is from compressing air that comes through the air filter. When you compress air, especially humid air, you get heat and vapor. That's why your sure compressor in your shop has a drain in the tank.

[@marsflee3815]

Where's the update? I need to see it. Did it take care of your problem?

[@joshblack4541]

When I traded it, it was still running smoothly but that was around 4 years ago.

[@joshuapoplin9210]

So do you have an update on this, anymore issues?

[@paulnaylor2152]

I did mine tonight and it worked perfect !

[@amggilly305]

So creating a small boost leak is the answer? Yeah, no

[@macsway2002]

No boost leak at all

[@williamblack5798]

Do you think your truck uses all the boost it produces? Otherwise you wouldn't need a bov. Do you think your turbo system is air tight? A 1/16th inch hole is less than you're losing from hose expansion.

[@brettbowers6514]

hows it running now?

[@joshblack4541]

I hope well for whoever has it, traded it for a newer model but was running much better when I last had it.

[@bee-adventurous]

Update video?

[@joshblack4541]

I sold the truck a couple of years ago but it was still running strong. It seems like this has worked for several other folks as well and I don't think there is a lot of negative out of drilling it. But, I am not a mechanic just someone that was tired of owning a truck that was not functioning properly and nobody could fix it. Thanks and good luck.

[@bee-adventurous]

Ah ok. Thank you. I drilled the hole this morning. 👍

[@user-ff3jb3qv6e]

I drilled mine and it still shudders. Replaced the engine and the transmission 3 times. $12,500 later and its still a PO shit!!!! Dont buy a ford f 150. Your welcome

[@originalcknut]

I have 2011fx2 Ecoboost, ford is trash my first and last, seems like this POS costing people tons on money

[@TH-lb6tu]

Man what do you expect when you stuff in lots of turbos and shit load of high tech crap under what is supposed to be a reliable truck??? Go back to the good old v8.