Ok, here's the story:
My brother drives a 2001 F-150, 4.2 V6, 5 speed. He wakes me up in the morning while he is visiting and says that his truck is messing up. (he knows NOTHING about cars) I go outside and he starts it up, thick white smoke pouring out of the tail pipes with a severe knocking sound coming from the valve cover. It sounds like it is coming more from the passenger side but with it echoing around, you never know.

Oviously, I am going to change the head gaskets, but what is making that knocking sound? My last final is Friday, so I will look at it this weekend. I just your opinions.

Thank you,
Phil

 

F150 4.2's have a common issue with coolant leaking into cylinder #1. When the leak gets bad enough the cylinder can fill up overnight causing it to bend a rod when you crank it. Not sure if that is what happened with yours but it sounds like it.

 

^+1
Just had the same problem on the same motor. Luckily, we own a shop and could do it all ourselves, but it was a PITA. We rebuilt the motor and had to flush out the whole system since coolant got into the oil pan. He is def gonna need a mechanic to look at it.

 

Upon draining the oil, it's milkshaked. The intake is covered inside with milkshake.

Fix it or just replace it? Rather fix it.

Any help would be appreciated. Thank you.

 

its prob better to just replace it. . . .milkshakes in the engine suck!!!!

 

Ok, heads are off. The head gaskets have nothing wrong with them. The intake manifold gasket has a little rip, not seperated, between where the coolant flows and the intake port, where the knocking sound was coming from. I am taking the heads to a shop to get them checked out and cleaned up.

Would that little rip cause the whole problem?