Ford F-150 2017–2018 — technical service bulletin
Bulletin TSB 20-2191 · NHTSA communication 10176838 · issued Jun 5, 2020
Technical service bulletin
communication type
Engine and Engine Cooling
component
2017–2018
model years
2
vehicle entries
Official summary
Some 2017-2018 F-150 vehicles built on or before 10-Jul-2018 and equipped with a 3.5L EcoBoost engine may exhibit a ticking/tapping or rattle type noise from the top front cover area of the engine on initial start-up after a cold soak of 6 hours or more that may last for 2-5 seconds. This may be due to a worn variable cam timing (VCT) unit. To correct the condition, follow the Service Procedure steps to replace the VCT units and update the powertrain control module (PCM) calibration with revised VCT parameters.
Vehicles covered
What a TSB means. Technical service bulletins are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls, and repairs are not automatically free (warranty extensions are an exception worth checking). The full document is available via NHTSA’s vehicle lookup.