06L.L.Pony

alright guys, im coming to you cause im all out of ideas. about a month ago i noticed a weird squeaky noise when i started my car. at fiirst it was very seldom, maybe once every 2 or 3 days, but now its become almost every time it starts when the engine is cold. immediately i thought dry start, so i changed my oil and filter, which i use mobil 1 factory recommended 5w-30 oil and mobil 1 filter, but to no avail. i then checked all points on my pypes dual exhaust and noticed a loose bolt, which happened to be bent and stretched to the point that the nut folded down the threads. anyway, replaced that so there is no leak, but the noise continues. could it be still a dry start? ive never used a thin oil before this car, and i know that these motors fit so snuggly together that a thicker oil could cause problems but should i use a 10w-30? if its not a dry start, what in the world could it be?

Nuke

By squeaky noise, I'm thinking belts or a bearing in an accessory is begining to go. It would help to have the hood up and your head in there while a friend starts the car so you can try to pinpoint the source. I truly doubt it's internal to the engine so I wouldn't change oil (regardless). Besides, the 5W would lubricate better on a cold start than a 10W would.

There was also a TSB for a "whistling" noise on cold start if I recall but I'm not sure if that was applicable to the V6 or the GT or both.

06L.L.Pony

your absolutely right about the 5w being better for a cold start, but i thought that a thicker oil would hold better to the internals in the case of a dry start. i could be wrong though. anyway, that makes me feel a lot better now that you said you dont think its internal. if it was a bearing though, wouldnt it make that noise all the time and not just when its cold and during startup?

Nuke

I stated it could be a bearing in an accessory beginning to go. Some components can degrade only to the point of an occasional noise and do so slowly as opposed to a catastrophic failure. That's why it's important to figure out the source of these little unusual sounds before they become BIG problems and leave you stranded. It's good that you're paying attention. How many times have we heard the husband ask the wife how long her car was making that noise before it "blew up" and she'd reply "Oh, about 2 months or more. Why? Is that important?"

If you can narrow down a more specific location where the noise is coming from, that would be a big help. If it's from the front of the engine, I'd start troubleshooting by trying a belt dressing on the belt. If the noise doesn't go away the next cold start, then you can feel pretty sure to say it's not the belt and go from there.

06L.L.Pony

so i just went outside and got my gf to start the car and there is a clicking whining kind of sound in the far back driver side of the motor, but thats the only place that theres a sound. it only does it on a cold start, like if it sits overnight. again, could it be a dry start? could it be my clutch? could it even be a bad plug?

06L.L.Pony

yeah thats funny, my girl is like that lol. its definitely coming from the back. ive had to work on a dry starting engine before but it was all over the place, not central to one spot. im stumped.

06L.L.Pony

ok, so i just got done checking that spark plug. turns out it was .067 while ford specifies .055. i lowered the gap so im hoping that fixed it. is it possible that to big of a gap dosent allow all the fuel to burn causing fuel to leak down the cylinder and cut the oil? i dont know, it sounds crazy but rational.

Nuke

If it's a clicking, it could be a noisey injector which is somewhat common on these engines. There's a TSB on that, too, and again I'm not sure if it's applicable to both the V6 and GT.

06L.L.Pony

hmmm, i still dont understand why it would only be on a cold startup and not all the time. how do i troubleshoot that, just take it off and see if its dirty or what?