I am in the process of changing my plug wires. When I pulled the boot to the #3 cyl, the boot had clear water all over it. I put my plug wrench down there to make certain the plug was tight, when I pulled it out, it had water all over it as well. Any ideas of what it may be, what to do about it, is it harmless? So far, this is the only one with water on it. Thanks....... R.K.

 

Maybe that is why you had a miss (from your previous thread)?

 

I'm guessing you may be right but what may have caused it and how do I prevent it?

 

Like I said in my last post, the plug wires are not sealing on the intake. Water is getting down in the hole (because thew plug wires are not sealed) causing the spark to run down the side of the plug instead of through the plug.

You will need to blow the hole out with compressed air, then remove the plug, replace it or at least clean it & then make sure the wire is sealed against the intake.

FYI, the water can also vaporize, blow the plug wire off allowing more water to enter causeing more problems with misfires.

Good luck

 

im a little lost on this post. How do you mean the plug isnt sealed on the intake? The plug wires never touch the intake (i believe you're reffering to air intake but maybe im wrong there. Can yo clarify?

if i was to take a guess i would say that moisture is dripping down there and that the wire isnt sealing against the plug hole properly or the plug isnt mounted correct so water is coming up from the cylinder (though im not sure this is possible, one of they byproducts of burning gas is water however ive never heard of it being enough to do what your talking about. I would replace the wire and the plug for sure. Theres something that you are supposed to put on the plugs to make the wires seal but i forgot what its called.

 

You obviously don't have a 4.6L. In the 4.6L V8 the sparkplugs go in through holes on the top of the engine...almost straight down. This is a major change from the traditional placement of plugs. If you take a look at many new vehicles you will notice that very few have spark plugs in the traditional location.

 

I changed the wires tonight, the miss is missing (gone.) I am not real confident that it will not return though. The hole with water had a lot of it. I pulled the plug, cleaned and dried it off, got a heavy paper towel into the hole attached to my plug wrench and dried the hole. The truck runs fine......... for now.

It jogged my memory, when I pulled the plugs on Saturday, one of them had like silicone around the taper. I knew it was the second or third back, passengers side. I can assume it was the #3, that had the water in it tonight. Original plugs, something known at the factory perhaps?

How could water have gotten in there? I understand that if the wires were worn, or mis-seated, water could leak down. However, in order for it to leak down, that means water would have to have been on top of the motor. There was none to my knowledge.

At any rate, for the time being, it runs good. Thanks to all who aimed me in the right direction. Thanks again.... R.K.

 

How could water have gotten in there?

rkm,

I havn't had this problem myself, but I recall many posts discussing water driipping into the "plug wells".

To the best of my recollection some 4.6's have a defective heater hose clamp which leaks water right into one of the "spark plug wells".

If my memory serves me, I also recall there were some 5.4's that had an A/C line that dripped condensate on one of the plugs.

Try a search on these topics.

Good Luck

Bill

 

That was the #4 plug on 5.4L's... it was a bad heater hose clamp. It'd be the first thing to check for, but you woudn't get a clear water down in the hole, it'd be green/orange depending on your antifreeze.

I'd agree on the A/C condensation, though. Check A/C lines.

-Flea

 

That would sound reasonable, except for the fact that it is 25 degrees here and I haven't run the A/C in months.

 

Do you run the defroster? If so, then the A/C pump will cycle to help with the defrosting process. It could be enough to cause the condensation as stated above.

 

I did not know that, I suppose that would make some sence, in a way, the way heat pumps work. I looked under the hood this morning after I was all warmed up, there are no A/C lines near the #3 cylinder. Two heater hoses do hang over it but neither leak. Plus, as I said, the water was clear, like it would have been condinsation. One of lifes mysteries. If it happens again, I will be more aggressive in tracking it down.

R.K.

 

The hoses won't be gushing, and in some cases won't be leaking until the engine is under higher operating speeds and the cooling system is pressurizied. Keep in mind, the system operates at between 10 and 15 psi. It's not much pressure, but it's enough to push some coolant out the connections by the heater core. Start your truck up, run it for a while, and check the connections while someone holds it at about 2-3K rpms and see if it's not leaking then. In many cases, the only tell-tale sign of leakage is the green residue that is usually left behind by antifreeze.

-Flea

 

Except that again, the water was clear and there are no A/C lines within 8" of and are below the #3 cylinder. It it was a heater hose that is directly above #3, I would have expected colored liquid, not clear. Also, the water was no where to be found on top ofthe boot, as if it had been dripped on, it was down on the lower half of the boot. When I pulled the plug to check it, the threads were wet and the metal part connected to the insulator was already showing rust. Keep in mind, as of yesterday, the plugs were only four days old.

The wire from #3, while it tested okay with the meter, the terminal that connects to the plug was corroded and crusty. This has apparently been an ongoing problem, at least by the condition of the wire terminal, I would suspect.

R.K.

 

The spak plug had rust on it after 4 days.I would be very concerned if I were you. You need to track down where the water is coming from.If you don't you have a good chance of getting rust growing on the sprnag plug hole threads.That would make you a prime candidate for a spark plug blowout and you really don't want that.......