Hi, I have a 1995 V6 that has what I think may be a rod knock. Or possibly it is a dead lifter. Basically the symptom is that if I start the car when cold I'll hear a clack for second or two until oil pressure builds. Part of the problem is the crap Fram oil filter I was using letting oil drain out of the top end of the engine, but even now after I've switched to a better one, I'll still hear hints of the noise at higher RPMs, or sometimes as the engine is coming back down if I rev it. It is barely perceptable at idle or under 2500rpm. I've never had an engine with rod knock before, so I can't tell if it is a rod issue or a valve/lifter issue.
fram is a fine filter and has nothing to do with oil drainback into the pan from the heads. if you have rod knock just rebuild the engine. 95 were known for head gaskets leaks. are you sure you don't have a leaky gasket causing a light hydrolock? you may have both problems now. leaky head gasket that cause a rod knock. my opinion just get a 97 or 98 engine and replace you original with it. you can find them at www.stangparts.com or a performance built 3.8 at www.rpm-mustangs.com do a compression test on all 6 cyl's use a scope to hear if the rods are knocking in the bottom or just valvetrain noise which the 3.8 is known for
