so im scared to change my plugs on my 97 150 with a 4.6 and 206k miles... ahould i be i think im gunna wait till spring that way if i have proiblems i can ride my bike while the truck is broke.. what do you think?? should i be scared? im just not sure if its my tuner or my plugs that make my trucks power surge on heavy accel for instance like getting on the freeway...

 

Could be your feul system also when was the last time you did your filter?

 

And why do you have to wait until spring to ride your bike?? As long as their no snow or ice on the ground...what's the problem? ...that's what I think!

Oh...you meant what do we think about the spark plug causing the surge!

 

no im actually worried that i might break a plug off or strip some threads or somethin cuz its got a buncha miles on it and i dont know when or if they have been done before.... and if that happens it'll be down for a while, hence me riding my motorcycle.

 

ummm....that problem is for 5.4Ls....

you should be fine

 

oh... i thought it was a modular thing.... my bad thanks any way..

 

it's all modular motors


the breaking off is pretty much limited to the early 3 valve motors, your 4 thread 2 valve heads must have the heads cold when the plugs are torqued or else they may be prone to spitting the plugs

 

Replacing plugs on the 2v engines is relatively easy & straightforward; not like the precautions needed on the 3v's anyway. If the plugs are really tight, spray some seafoam down the plug wells if you feel they need some help. Otherwise, they come out pretty easy. In order to help prevent cross-threading when putting in new plugs, use a piece of 3/8" air hose on the end of the plugs to get them threaded correctly. Torque them to 28-ft-lbs and don't use any anti-seize. There are tons of threads on here regarding how to do this work. Here is a good post: https://www.f150online.com/forums/v8...ugs-4-6-a.html

In regards to your truck surging, does the check engine light come on?

 

Ummm ...that's a tad too high for a 4-thread head, with a tapered 14mm plug.

http://www.densoiridium.com/installationguide.php

Also - you'll find a lot of proponents advising the use of a little anti-seize on pre-3V plugs. Good arguments on both sides of the fence - (dissimilar metals versus the 'plug-spitting' concern, etc)


On 3V plugs, the hi-temp nickel goop goes only on the electrode shield, not the threads, most agree. Again - some folks still insist on lubing there too (I did).

 

The outfit that specializes in repairing heads that are damaged due to a plug blowing out actually recommends torquing them to 27-28 and dry. They do not use antisieze. Many of the members have been following that advice in an attempt to keep them from blowing out.

 

Yikes. Sounds just like what the factory robots did to the early modulars!

I'll stick to the recommendations of the larger body of experts (including MT & the plug manufacturers themselves for starters).

If you are not real careful and can't get a torque wrench on properly to be sure, then if it were me, I'd just as soon not push the TQ out that far. Distort the treads just once, and you are done. Plus, pulling out the 'ole Timcert kit is not a great way to spend the day.

Thanks anyway.

 

I'm just glad I don't have that problem and have to make that decision! Here is the company that I was referring to:
http://www.blownoutsparkplug.com/

And here is there answer as to why. Question/answer #50.

Q: Why do you prefer 28-32 foot lbs torque instead of the factory specification?
A: Over the past few years we have heard from many of our customers that they tightened their plugs to the correct torque but they still came loose. We worked with over 10 Ford Certified Master Mechanics and concluded that 30 foot lbs of torque would be satisfactory. We have been using 28-32 foot lbs of torque for many years and have never had one come loose or strip out. To verify that we would not damage the original threads we used a test cylinder head with good factory threads we applied over 100 foot lbs of torque to the spark plug without any failure.

 

And that's the point at which you lost me

We are talking pre-2003 (full-tread-count) heads, correct?

If so, that's astonishing.

Thanks for the info, Jim.

 

Well, it's over 10 more than I have ever worked with! We are talking heads with the 4 threads that have a tendancy to blow out plugs after they back out a round or two.

 

man you guys are scarin me.. i dont even wanna do it now...