2004 Ford F-150 4.6L Engine Torque Specs| Ford Specs (2024)

2004 f150 4.6L Complete Torque Specs List

Click the area you are looking for!

f150 4.6L Engine Repair Information

Here you can find information regarding the assembly of the Ford 4.6L Modular engine. In this guide we willstart from the inside of the engine including thecrankshaft, connecting rods, and piston ring installation and then move outwards all the way to the pulley beltsystem. Along the way correct procedures and torque specswill be given to aid in the assembly of the engine. Feel free to start from the beggining and work your wayoutwards or skip ahead to your current position in the engine for what you may need.

Crankshaft Main Caps Installation

The 4.6L modular engine block has 2 different methods of main cap fasteners. One of which is the Romeo styledthat uses jackscrews that screw into the caps from the side of the engine. The otheris a Windsor style that uses tapered dowel pins to fasten the main caps. It is important to know which ones yourengine has before assembly as there are differences between the two. The most significantone being the thrust bearing washers.

Romeo Styled Main Caps

To install the Romeo main caps you must first install the caps and start by torquing them to 30 ft-lbs and thenan additional 90 degrees. Afterwards you can torque the jackscrews to 7 ft-lbs, thenthe cross bolts to 15 ft-lbs starting from the center bolt and moving outwards.

f150 Romeo Main Cap Torque Specs : 30 ft-lbs + 90°

f150 Romeo Jackscrew Torque Specs : 7 ft-lbs

f150 Romeo Cross Bolts Torque Specs : 15 ft-lbs

Windsor Styled Main Caps

To install the Windsor main caps you must first torque the main caps the same as the Romeo's being 30 ft-lbs andthen an additional 90 degrees. Afterwards you can hammer in the dowel pins into placeand then install the side cross bolts and torque to 24 ft-lbs and then an additional 90 degrees. All boltsshould be lubricated with oil before installing.

f150 Windsor Main Cap Torque Specs : 30 ft-lbs + 90°

f150 Windsor Cross Bolt Torque Specs : 24 ft-lbs + 90°

Piston and Connecting Rod Installation

To install the pistons and connecting rods you must first install the piston rings into each piston. Be carefulnot to stretch the rings or break them during installation. Make sure to put the correct rings in the correctpositions, this can be determined by looking atthe instructions given with the new rings. Each ring manufacturer is different so be sure to check for yourspecific rings. Once the rings have been installed you can now fit the connecting rod bearings into the end capsand lube them up with oil or lithium grease. The piston can now be lowered into the cylinder, make sure the dotor mark is facing the front of the engine and that you don't scratch the cylinder.Once installed you can match the connecting rod caps with the correct rods and start to torque the connectingrod bolts to 25 ft-lbs and then an additional 90 degrees. After all are done rotate the crankto ensure all pistons move smoothly in and out of their cylinders.

f150 Connecting Rod Torque Specs : 25 ft-lbs + 90°

Oil Pump Installation

When installing the oil pump be sure to use the proper sealant around the pump base to ensure that oil pressuredoesn't drop due to leakage. After preparing the contact surfaces carefullyinstall the oil pump onton the crankshaft by aligning the crankshaft flat points with the pumps own points. Onceinstalled install the bolts and torque them to 8 ft-lbs. After torqueing the bolts besure to prime the pump with the proper engine oil, this ensures that when the engine is initially started thatoil is already present in the pump and that the engine doesn't start without any oil flowinginside of it.

f150 Oil Pump Torque Specs : 8 ft-lbs

Cylinder Head Installation

The first thing you must do when installing cylinder heads is to ensure both the block and head surfaces arecompletely clean from dust, oil, and any debris. The next thing you must to isto set the camshafts to their correct positions to prevent any valves from hitting pistons during installationand torquing of the head bolts. Much the same you have to set the pistons to their correctlocations, typically this means putting the #1 piston to TDC or Top Dead Center. Once everything is ready youcan install the head gasket onto the engine block by aligning the alignment dowels.Something I usually do is spray down the head gasket with some engine copper spray from permatex which you canfind here, this ensures that any gaps that could be present between the 2 surfaces gets filled with thespray. Italso helps to transfer heat between the 2 metals. With the gasket in place you can set the cylinder head ontothe gasket and block, if needed have someone assist with this process as the head can be heavyand you don't want to scratch anything or drop it! Once the head has been placed you will want to startinstalling the head bolts to make sure it doesn't move. Be sure to buy new head bolts as many manufacturersuse TTY or Torque to Yield head bolts meaning they stretch during torqueing and cannot be used twice. Also makesure to lubricate the bolts in clean engine oil before installing them into the head.Once all the head bolts have been installed and finger tightened you can start the torqueing process, almost allhead bolts have a multi-step process for torqueing. The 4.6L starts off with 30 ft-lbs andthen an additional 90 degrees then requires you to back them off a full turn. Then you must again torque them to30 ft-lbs and add 90 degrees then an additional 90 degrees for a total of 180 degrees after the30 ft-lbs but by going through each bolt with each step. After torquing the heads are completely installed andyou can now move to intalling the timing.

f150 Cylinder Head Torque Specs : 30 ft-lbs + 90° + 90°

Timing Chains and Guides Installation

To start with the timing chain installation you must first locate and install the timing gears in their correctlocations. In total you should have 5 gears included with the timing set. We willstart with the smaller 2 of the 5, the crankshaft timing gears. These gears slide onto the crankshaft startingwith the larger of the 2 with the shoulder side of the gears facing away from the engine ortowards the timing cover as shown in the picture. The next gears to install are the camshaft timing gears if youhaven't already when installing the cylinder head. The cam timing gears have a key slot cutinto them to ensure they are installed in the correct location. They are also marked L and R for left and rightand can be installed accrodingly onto the camshafts with the L one on the left hand side andthe R on the right hand side. Once placed you can install the retaining bolts into the camshafts and torque themto 85 ft-lbs if they are M12 or 30 ft-lbs and then 90 degrees if they are M10's while alsoholding onto the camshaft with a large wrench or crescent wrench to avoid it from moving. With the gearsinstalled you can now place the timing chains onto the gears starting with the further back one.Be sure to align the painted marks on the chain to the dotted marks on the gears. Once you have both of thechains installed correctly you can now install the timing chain guides in their correctpositions with the adjustable one on the tensioner side as shown in the picture. The chain guides torque specsare 18 ft-lbs, with all the guides installed you can now preload the tensioner and install itonto the engine block. The tensioners torque specs are the same as the guides being 18 ft-lbs. With them torquedinto place you can now release the preloaded spring and allow it to tension the chains.Now you can install the 5th gear or the reluctor wheel onto the crankshaft. This is an important step of theprocess as it tells the sensors which position the crank is currently in.

f150 Cylinder Camshaft Bolt Specs (M12): 85 ft-lbs

f150 Cylinder Camshaft Bolt Specs (M10): 30 ft-lbs + 90°

f150 Chain Guide Torque Specs : 18 ft-lbs

f150 Chain Tensioner Torque Specs : 18 ft-lbs

Timing Cover Installation

The timing cover on the 4.6L is rather large and is a very important component that keeps the oil insdie theengine rather than leaking out onto the ground. For this reason I recommend using a newgasket along with some silicone sealant to ensure the cover does it's job. Another important thing about thetiming cover is that it holds the crankshaft seal into place. Be sure to check out your sealfor any defects and or cracks. If your seal looks to be in good condition then you can reuse it without aproblem as long as you coat it with some clean engine oil before installing the cover. To preparethe cover for installation you should clean both the cover's surface as well as the engine blocks surface. Nextyou can install the new gasket onto the cover and follow it up with some silicone sealant.I always use permatex's ultra black silicone sealant as it has an advance formula to resist engine oil. Once thegasket and silicone has been placed onto the cover you can carefully place it onto the blockand start to install the cover bolts. If you used sealant be sure to follow the instructions included with theproduct for the best results! There are two types of cover bolts, the ones that screw into theengine block and the ones that screw into the cylinder head. The ones that go into the block torque to 20 ft-lbswhile the ones that go into the cylinder head torque to 35 ft-lbs.

f150 Timing Cover to Block Torque Specs : 20 ft-lbs

f150 Timing Cover to Head Torque Specs : 35 ft-lbs

Oil Pan Installation

Much like the timing cover on the 4.6L the oil pan plays an important role in keeping the engine oil inside theengine. For this reason I recommend using a new gasket as well as some silicone sealantduring installation. Using the same technique as before with the cover you clean the surfaces of both the oilpan and the engine block and then install the new gasket onto the block and then followit up with some silicone sealant. Be sure to follow your sealants instructions to ensure you get the best sealfrom your application. The oil pan bolts torque to 15 ft-lbs and then an additional 60 degrees in a crosspatterns design.Along with the pan is the oil pan drain plug, this gets removed and reinstalled quite frequently and can betorqued down to 10 ft-lbs.

f150 Oil Pan Torque Specs : 15 ft-lbs + 60°

f150 Oil Drain Plug to Head Torque Specs : 10 ft-lbs

Valve Covers Installation

The valve cover installation is rather simple, there are rubber seals for each bolt hole and a silicone gasketthat prevents oil from leaking out of the engine. It is recommended to replace both the sealsand the gaskets although if they are in good condition you can reuse them. If you do choose to reuse them Iwould use some silicone sealant along with the silicon gasket to ensure it does not leak.The valve cover bolts torque down to 106 in-lbs or about 9 ft-lbs in a criss cross order. Be sure not to missany bolts to avoid having oil leak out onto the exhaust pipes and cause a lot of smoking.

f150 Valve Cover Torque Specs : 9 ft-lbs

Intake Manifold and Fuel Rail Installation

When installing the intake manifold you want to make sure you have all the surfaces as well as intake holescleaned out before placing the manifold into position. Once cleaned you can then placethe intake manifold gaskets onto the alignment pins. If you want you can also use a little bit of sealant on thegaskets to help ensure there are no leaks. With the gaskets in place you can now putthe manifold down onto the gaskets and begin to install the bolts. The intake manifold bolts torque to 18 ft-lbsand can be tightened starting from the inside and going outwards. The COPs or the coilsfor the spark plugs get torqued down to 60 in-lbs or about 5 ft-lbs and the spark plugs themselves can betorqued down to 15 ft-lbs, be careful not to overtorque these as they can snap and cause big problems.When installing the fuel rail make sure that all the fuel injectors are in good condition and that all theo-rings are in place andare in good condition. If everything is good you can place the fuel rail into position and push the injectorsinto their holes and start to torque the rail bolts to 90 in-lbs or about 8 ft-lbs.

f150 Intake Manifold Torque Specs : 18 ft-lbs

f150 Ignition Coil Torque Specs : 5 ft-lbs

f150 Spark Plug Torque Specs : 15 ft-lbs

f150 Fuel Rail Torque Specs : 8 ft-lbs

Exhaust Manifold Installation

The exhaust manifold can be installed by cleaning the surface areas on both the head an the manifold itself andthen by using the exhaust manifold gasket and putting it in place. Once the gasket is inlocation you can put the manifold onto the heads and begin to torque the bolts to 18 ft-lbs. I always use somecopper spray from permatex on the exhaust manifold gaskets to ensure I do not end up withany exhaust leaks once done. When you go to install the engine into the vehicle or if it is already in thevehicle the torque specs for the exhaust manifold to the exhaust pipes is 25 ft-lbs.

f150 Exhaust Manifold Torque Specs : 18 ft-lbs

f150 Exhaust Pipe Torque Specs : 25 ft-lbs

Water Pump and Thermostat Installation

The water pump can be installed by using a new gasket and if desired some silicone sealant to aid it. Onceprepared the pump can be moved into placed and the bolts should be torqued to 20 ft-lbs.The water pump pulley can be torqued to the water pump itself with 20 ft-lbs as well.

f150 Water Pump Torque Specs : 20 ft-lbs

f150 Water Pump Pulley Torque Specs : 20 ft-lbs

Front Dress and Pulley belt Installation

Most of what is left on the engine is just place and tighten objects such as the belt pulleys, belt tensioner,throttle body, oil filter neck, crankshaft pulley, and motor mounts. If the items have a gasket and hold eitheroil or coolant inside the engine then feel free to add some sealant along with the gasket. Always be sure toinspect your gaskets and replace them if there is any deteriation or flaws with them. Beforeinstalling the belt system you can install the oil filter neck that is used for installing new oil filters. Thispart should have a new gasket and can be torqued down to 20 ft-lbs. For thebelt system the crank shaft pulley gets torqued to 35 ft-lbs and then an additional 90 degrees. The belttensioner and idler pulley can both be torqued down to 20 ft-lbs. When installing be sure theyboth turn smoothly and if they do not then replace them with new ones as the bearings can go bad. The enginemotor mount can be installed onto the engine block if it hasn't been already, the torques forthe mount to the block is 30 ft-lbs and then when installing the mount to the vehicle it can be torqued anywherefrom 95-125 ft-lbs. Finally the throttle body can be installed on top of the intake manifoldwith a good gasket and some added sealant using 7 ft-lbs in a criss cross pattern. For installing the belt youcan use a tool to move the tensioner into its springed state and install the belt as shown in thepicture.

f150 Oil Neck Torque Specs : 20 ft-lbs

f150 Crankshaft Pulley Torque Specs : 35 ft-lbs + 90°

f150 Idler Pulley Torque Specs : 20 ft-lbs

f150 Belt Tensioner Torque Specs : 20 ft-lbs

f150 Engine Mount to Block Torque Specs : 30 ft-lbs

f150 Engine Mount to Frame Torque Specs : 120 ft-lbs