That’s great ... almost miraculous thought process remembering the VW connection
this needs to be pinned

 

Thank you for the update.

 

Read thought this thread and thought It could relate being the motors are pretty much the same. I have an 03 Explorer with the 4.6 2v. I too am have ths same codes and have tried everything I could possibly think, find, or fathom. Its hard to also find a competent mechanic thats willing to take the time to look at a 20 year old vehicle. This has also been putting a damper on the marital affairs as this is my tow vehicle and I have less than a week to fix a problem I've been fighting for 9 months before we miss a camping trip. I've had it at a couple shops already and they state fuel pressure is good. I believe this because it's just dumping fuel, I'm getting like 9 mpg according to the display.

Lean condition for both banks. I smoke tested the intake manifold through vac lines and also the egr tube. No leaks at all at the moment after fixing a bunch, other than a small one from the throttle shaft linkage side, which I've been told is normal. My short and long trims combined are 25-35% both banks at idle and will stay that way while driving. Long term pegged at 25% will come down a little bit while driving but never really below 18%. I use forscan and have clear adaptations millions of times and after each attempted repair.



Things I've replaced
Oem plugs
oem coils
Ngk MAF sensor
Ngk Upstream o2 both
Ngk Tps
egr valve
Remanned oem injectors
Throttle body gasket
​​​​​​Felpro ​Intake manifold gasket
dorman intake manifold after thinking it could be cracked manifold
oem fuel filter
Aftermarket fuel damper
There may be more that I've missed but a lot of these were replaced to just try different things.

I'm at a loss of what to do, I need help please!!!

 

Have you checked to see what your fuel rail pressure is at "key on" "idle" , load and freeway?
There is always a chance the mechanical high pressure fuel regulator on the injector rail is faulty and bleeding off too much pressure.

Buy or borrow a pressure gauge and screw it onto the connector on your fuel rail that looks like a tire air fitting and drive around and see if it is in spec.

 

Thank you for the response, I have already replaced it and still the same issue. I guess it's something to consider though since it's an aftermarket piece. I have dropped it off at a new shop that has almost 4.9 stars and 357 google reviews. Hopefully they can figure it out.

 

Yes, I tried an aftermarket high pressure fuel regulator and found it to be a cheap unit from China that did not work or fit properly straight out of the box!

 

Mine fit properly but my vehicle doesn't have a traditional regulator, they call it a fuel damper. This is a return less system. The explorer v8s were a little different as well where they came with aluminum block instead of iron from what I've read.

 

So mechanic came back with 30psi fuel pressure at idle. To me makes sense as my car has always had a rougher idle. I had 3 people tell me that my pressure was good which is what was driving me crazy.