New to this forum

Has anyone had problems with their spark plugs?

My unit has spent 21 days in the shop and only has 15,000kms

New rear end, new catalytic converters, two new sets of spark plugs, one new coil on number 3 cylinder, 2 reflashes, exhaust leaks, road force balance tires, no power, poor fuel economy, body trim interferance problem on passengers door, and she's going in again.

Now I am a ford man (I've had seven new ford trucks in my life and I'm only 30) but enough is enough.

The spark plug problem is common, two co-workers with similar trucks both have had similar problems. The same holds true for the power and fuel consumption. My 1995 ranger didn't pull better suspension wise, but it faired better in the hills power wise. These new 2004 F150s have poor mid range power.

Anyway I don't know what to do I like every thing about the truck, but I want out of it because of power and reliability concerns.

 

Sounds like you have had a lot of problems with that perticular truck, I think you should be able to lemon law it and have Ford buy it back.
My STX Scab flairside is 3 months old and have 5K miles on it without a single problem


TonnyG

 

It also sounds like the dealer is a little short on keeping his shop personnel busy and needs the warranty kickback from FoMoCo. Forgive me for being the skeptic.

 

What a piece! Something has GOT to give here. What are they telling you? Sounds like a lot of busy work to me!

 

Main problem is parts availability, I also had an emergency brake problem. Even though it was drivable I had to wait 4 days for the parts. three days for spark plugs two days for cats ext. My dealer tells me that ford has narrowed the spark plug problem down to an additive in canadian fuel. Typically the plugs are lasting from 6to 12000kms, and you won't likely notice the problem unless you are under load. I am pulling nearly daily and the truck is going in for its third set of plugs. The problem is hard to notice it almost feels like a bump in the road until the point that the unburned fuel eventually plugs the cats then its limp to the dealer time. I think I need new cats again but it's not as bad as before.

Only questions I have is why doesn't Canadian fuel affect other manufacturers spark plugs?

 

I have been using canadian fuel since November 03 and have had none of the problems you are speaking of. **knock on wood** I dont know if there is a canadian equivalent to the Lemon Law. You might want to look into that and have Ford buy back your truck.

 

I have had my spark plug #5 fail at 3000 km, the dealership said it might have been splashed with gas during the first startup.?
It sure lets you know that the truck is running in a "safe" mode and wants to go to the truck hospital! She's all good now! Go's in for its first service today.

 

An update to my post from June

Truck has spent 4 months of 9 in the shop.

catalytic converters twice, one complete set of coils, numerous individual coils, plugs many times ext. ext.

Problem is engine miss under load, that starts out as barely noticeable and gets worse as you work the truck, towing a trailer accelerates the spark plug failure with kills the coils then unburned fuel kills the cats. I tow nearly every weekend.

Anyway ford replaced the truck with a new 05 Lariat, which is now starting the same problem. Luckily the paper work hadn't been completed on the new truck.

I have been reading the posts on the vibration issue and some people have described it as coming when the truck is either under load such as on an incline or pulling a trailer.

Ford says there are other trucks with the same problem. They don't know what the problem is.

The test is accelerate your truck to the speed at which it first shifts into overdrive and the torque converter locks (thats approximately 75 KMPH in Canada), then on a slight incline push the accelerator slightly but not enough for the transmission to shift out of overdrive. If you feel a surging or vibration at this point the vibration may actually be your engine missing. If you continue to duplicate this the problem will actually worsen.

The service manager at the dealership knows how to hit the sweet spot and was able to make two new trucks off the lot do it.

Curious to know how may others can duplicate the miss.

 

Don't ever wash your motor with water! If you open your hood and turn on the water hose, you might as well pull out your wallet and count out the dollars for new plugs (and the 3-6 hours to change them).

 

NEVER HAD TO WASH THE ENGINE NEITHER OF THE TWO HAVE EVER BEEN OFF ROAD. DID YOU HAVE TO REPLACE YOUR PLUGS AFTER WASHING THE ENGINE.

 

Why is Canadian gas different from the gas in the USA? What are the octane ratings up there?

 

I alredy wash the engine with a Prssure Washer some 4 times without any problem I don´t cover anything only don´t direct the water hard to sensible parts.

Let me know the problem of wash the engine, give me more details please

 

"THERE IS NO DIFFERENCE THATS WHAT THEY TRIED TO USE AS AN EXCUSE. READ THE REPLY I POSTED TODAY RE HOW TO SEE IF YOUR TRUCK MISSES. i THINK THAT SOME PEOPLE MAY HAVE A VIBRATION RELATED TO ENGINE MISS.

 

I read your post, I don’t have a miss nor do I have a vibe problem. Sounds to me like the gas is crap if it OD’s the plugs

 

as ford tech we have seen a few trucks for the miss fire issue but the newest flashes have fixed it to the best of my knowledge. i have a 04 FX4 and i carry my quad all the time, and have yet to pull the trailer yet but i have never noticed these problems, but i have to ask, if driving your truck at the sweet spot as you called it, causes problems why do it? just drive your truck normaly.

Mac.