[jack black]

Hi everyone!

i bought my son a manual 2014 Focus SE a month ago. during a test drive my son noticed engine more noisy compared with a DCT one his friend drives. He thought it was due to manual tranny and/or sport package. i had no basis for comparison and thought the car was fine and in good condition, despite 120,000 miles (all hwy).

now, that i spent more time in the car, i noticed engine noise (kind of drone or buzz) very noticeable in the cabin, even with low speed city driving, especially the rear seats, and front seats not as bad.

i also noticed that from outside, the engine idling sounds a bit like a small diesel rather than a gasser.

is this normal for the 2.0 NA GDI duratec?

BTW, this weekend we replaced air and cabin filter, coolant, spark plugs, and tranny oil. the tranny is actually quieter in neutral/idle after the change (slightly overfilled 5W40). not so much engine. we through away dirty K&N filter and put paper filter in, but it was not the problem. exhaust looks stock.

i noticed no engine cover, and I understand it can be ordered for $55. is this worth for engine noise reduction?

is there anything else we need to do or check?

Thanks!

BTW, we are aware of the gas tank recall and waiting for an appointment. i told son to keep it half full all the time.

Edit: sorry for the cryptic title, but the forum did not let me post this thread with a longer title. WTF?

 

[IrishBrewer]

Hi everyone!

i bought my son a manual 2014 Focus SE a month ago. during a test drive my son noticed engine more noisy compared with a DCT one his friend drives. He thought it was due to manual tranny and/or sport package. i had no basis for comparison and thought the car was fine and in good condition, despite 120,000 miles (all hwy).

now, that i spent more time in the car, i noticed engine noise (kind of drone or buzz) very noticeable in the cabin, even with low speed city driving, especially the rear seats, and front seats not as bad.

i also noticed that from outside, the engine idling sounds a bit like a small diesel rather than a gasser.

is this normal for the 2.0 NA GDI duratec?

BTW, this weekend we replaced air and cabin filter, coolant, spark plugs, and tranny oil. the tranny is actually quieter in neutral/idle after the change (slightly overfilled 5W40). not so much engine. we through away dirty K&N filter and put paper filter in, but it was not the problem. exhaust looks stock.

i noticed no engine cover, and I understand it can be ordered for $55. is this worth for engine noise reduction?

is there anything else we need to do or check?

Thanks!

BTW, we are aware of the gas tank recall and waiting for an appointment. i told son to keep it half full all the time.

Edit: sorry for the cryptic title, but the forum did not let me post this thread with a longer title. WTF?

Good that the tranny is running better now but you might want to change it out for the recommended fluid. I believe it is Ford's synthetic DCT fluid in the MTs.

The vibration issue sounds a lot like motor mounts. You could have a collapsed one that is transmitting engine vibrations through the frame to the cabin. Check those out and replace as needed. If that's it, it will feel like a whole new car with this sorted out.

 

[felixthecat]

Good that the tranny is running better now but you might want to change it out for the recommended fluid. I believe it is Ford's synthetic DCT fluid in the MTs.

The vibration issue sounds a lot like motor mounts. You could have a collapsed one that is transmitting engine vibrations through the frame to the cabin. Check those out and replace as needed. If that's it, it will feel like a whole new car with this sorted out.

This^^^ A good possibility you need a psm (passenger side mount)....you'll for sure want to use a Ford oem one vs the cheap aftermarket ones. Threw away a K&N filter? I would of cleaned it & reused it.

 

[jack black]

IrishBrewer,

thanks for the answer. i did some reading before using 5W40 in the tranny and a number of people had very good results with that in focus and I happened to have plenty of Delvac1 sitting in my garage.

i need to check on that engine mount thing. i noticed that front/bottom of the engine was a bit wet from oil, but i thought the oil change place spilled some, as oil was changed just before the sale. would leaking mount make engine covered in oil?

 

[jack black]

Threw away a K&N filter? I would of cleaned it & reused it.

it's a common knowledge oiled "performance" air filters let more dust in and increase engine wear. i thought maybe it was a source of noise, but it wasn't.

 

[skiboarder119]

Yes, replace the motor motor mount (on passenger side)!

I had the exact same issue on 2 foci with the manual transmission. They only last about 50-80k. I'm about ready for my third one, engine is slowly getting louder.

I installed the engine cover on my car, it showed no noticeable improvement in noise. I even occasionally leave it off for a few drives after I do maintenance just to confirm this.

 

[skiboarder119]

Ohh, i forgot to say to look up the torque specs on the valve cover and timing cover bolts and torque them properly. That is probably where the oil is leaking from (slowly). I have tightened mine twice now in 100k miles. The plastic engine valve cover especially likes to cause the bolts to loosen due to difference in materials and heating and cooling cycles.

 

[jack black]

thanks for all who responded with these helpful and insightful answers. this forum is great!
we'll replace it it when he comes back home for a spring break.

 

[jack black]

update: it was the mount alright. it looked good, but it didn't work good. i bought new OEM one for like $80 and it helped a lot with the noise. but now, 10 months and 10,000 miles later, the mount is leaking orange colored oil. WTF? why do they fail that often?

 

[IrishBrewer]

update: it was the mount alright. it looked good, but it didn't work good. i bought new OEM one for like $80 and it helped a lot with the noise. but now, 10 months and 10,000 miles later, the mount is leaking orange colored oil. WTF? why do they fail that often?

Is the part still under warranty? They should last longer than that, especially the OEM ones. I just replaced my two upper mounts with OEMs a couple months ago so I'm hoping they last longer that that or I'll just be going back to the cheap aftermarkets.

 

[jack black]

Thanks. i checked my records and it should be warrantied for 2 years. i just contacted the seller about it. too bad i didn't keep the old part, it would make the switch and return easier.

 

[IrishBrewer]

Thanks. i checked my records and it should be warrantied for 2 years. i just contacted the seller about it. too bad i didn't keep the old part, it would make the switch and return easier.

Yeah, I kept my old one in case I want to ever use an aftermarket one as they sell just the inserts. But you are right, it would help for exchanges also so your vehicle is not out of commission while you are waiting.

 

[jack black]

the seller (online Ford dealer) told me they warrant the part locally in any Ford dealership. but he also said there is no oil inside the mount. sounds like a total BS to me. since i have 2 years, i may want to wait a bit longer to make sure it's failed alright (i can see how the dealer will try to brainwash me it's not broken). i need to find that receipt too.

 

[IrishBrewer]

the seller (online Ford dealer) told me they warrant the part locally in any Ford dealership. but he also said there is no oil inside the mount. sounds like a total BS to me. since i have 2 years, i may want to wait a bit longer to make sure it's failed alright (i can see how the dealer will try to brainwash me it's not broken). i need to find that receipt too.

Of course there is oil inside the mount. They are called a hydraulic motor mount for that reason and the telltale sign of failure on these is oil leakage. Guy doesn't know what he's talking about.

 

[rambleon84]

the seller (online Ford dealer) told me they warrant the part locally in any Ford dealership. but he also said there is no oil inside the mount. sounds like a total BS to me. since i have 2 years, i may want to wait a bit longer to make sure it's failed alright (i can see how the dealer will try to brainwash me it's not broken). i need to find that receipt too.

Are you postive you are not leaking coolant on to it? The resevoir is pretty close by and I have heard of those cracking (our fluid is orange as well.)

Also, if you bought it online, just search your email, hopefully they sent you a receipt there!

 

[jack black]

Are you postive you are not leaking coolant on to it? The resevoir is pretty close by and I have heard of those cracking (our fluid is orange as well.)

you might be right. while the substance in question did feel thick like oil and very uncoolant-like, but it washed with water. furthermore, i noticed the coolant reservoir was a bit damp under.

 

[rambleon84]

does it smell sweet? compare to your coolant. When my passenger mount failed, it was thick and darker color

 

[IrishBrewer]

You can also push down on the rubber from the top of the mount with your finger. If it is ruptured, stuff will ooze out. As far as the seller who claimed they are not fluid filled, tell him to take a new one and shake it next to his ear. You can hear the fluid sloshing about.

 

[vegachicago]

For what it's worth, i changed mine for that same orange leak but didn't notice any reduction in vibration and noise. This tells me that you should leave it for now until the noise comes back. It will be fine since I left mine on after discovering the initial leak for about 2 years.