SuperCruzin's Phantom F-150 Build
Thread Starter
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Senior Member
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 147
Likes: 0
From: Erie, PA
Truck has been running great. I have no complaints.
Just for giggles and grins, I refueled with 32 gallons of E85 today, then put a little over 100 miles on it driving home from Pittsburgh. The slight performance increase is noticeable (so is the MPG hit... seems as though I lost about 2 mpg, but that was expected)
I could be crazy, but the engine seems smoother? and perhaps a little quieter?
Placebo? perhaps. Either way, the truck seemed happy to run on it.
...that is all.
Just for giggles and grins, I refueled with 32 gallons of E85 today, then put a little over 100 miles on it driving home from Pittsburgh. The slight performance increase is noticeable (so is the MPG hit... seems as though I lost about 2 mpg, but that was expected)
I could be crazy, but the engine seems smoother? and perhaps a little quieter?
Placebo? perhaps. Either way, the truck seemed happy to run on it....that is all.
Thread Starter
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Senior Member
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 147
Likes: 0
From: Erie, PA
Thanks. Hopefully yours is treating you good too.
Thread Starter
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Senior Member
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 147
Likes: 0
From: Erie, PA
Small update...
The truck has been awesome, that is, Up until 34,000 miles. I had nothing bad to report in any way shape or form. Only once did it not start, and that was my fault for leaving something plugged into the cig lighter... Other than that, it's been a great truck.
Fast forward to last week...
(If you search, you will find several threads with similar issues)
I had the truck on cruise, running 50-55, start climbing a small hill and she starts missing. I thought it was strange, and maybe some bum gas... Took it to a station and filled it up. Next day, same thing. (No CEL yet) I shift it into the Manual mode and realize I can replicate it in the upper gears under low rpm high load situations. Feels like a miss, maybe trans problems, I'm unsure at this point. Next day, the problem is noticeably worse, I'm pretty sure it's a miss, but still no light... So I decide to flog it a bit, and with one WOT run 0-70 I get a CEL. I swing into Autozone and have the clerk scan the truck and it returns a multiple Cyl misfire... Same code 3x. The question is why? Just over 30k miles, 100k service interval, mostly highway miles, shouldn't be plugs, but just to do it, I price checked them before I left. $5.99ea IIRC for OE Motorcraft Iridium. Not in stock, but they can get them. Good to know.
I'll say now that we moved during this last summer, so service at the original dealer is not an option being it is now 1,200 miles away. What I do know is right around the corner from me is a pretty large Ford dealership and they have lots o' trucks... Good deal I think to my self. I call them up on Friday, tell the rep what it's doing, tell him what the codes are, he tells me I better hurry up and get it in because my warranty is about to expire. I schedule an appointment for Monday (this past Monday) and at 7am I'm there and happy to be there thinking the truck will get a once over before the warranty goes.
11:00 am that Monday I get a call from the service rep "hey man, good news, we found the issue, it's not problem, truck needs a tune up." ..."A tune up?" I ask. He says "yes, your spark plugs are toast and the truck needs new ones bad" I then ask why, he then tells me he does not know, it's very strange, and that some trucks eat spark plugs and he does not know why. "Um, ok" I reply... Somewhat confused. I tell him that since it's under warranty and the warranty is about to expire to go ahead and knock it out so I can be in my way. Then I hear it "Uhh aaactually, plugs are a maintenance item, and that means it is customer pay." Instantly I'm pissed. What do you mean? It's supposed to be a 100k tune-up interval and I at 34k... Faulty parts, you fix it. He says no, it's maintenance, and my problem... IE neglect, and then asks if my truck is a fleet use vehicle and does it idle for extended periods of time? Confused I tell him "umm, no not really, maybe for 10mins at a time now and then when I run into the store for a gallon of milk while the wife and kids wait in the truck, other than that, no." He says "oh, I was sure that was it". I say "ok, so that means it's faulty parts", he says "no, it's customer pay." Pissed, I tell him "ok, put it it in the lot and I'll come and get it" he acknowledges and abruptly hangs up the phone... No thank you good bye, no nothing.
10mins pass, I've cooled down a bit, I call him back and ask how much for a set of plugs? $299 he tells me, plus my diagnostic fee of $100 for finding the problem, plus tax, for a grand total of $424.xx. "WHAT? For plugs?! You must be joking. Plugs are $50" he then starts his song and dance again... "Well, actually these are special plugs, plus they are difficult to install, so labor to install them and stuff." I reply "um, no. OE Motorcraft plugs are $5.99 each retail from the parts store, and installing them on a coyote is easy, they are literally right there, what's my bill now?" "$99.95" he tells me... "For the diagnostic fee." I tell him "Ok, whatever, put it in the lot and I'll come and get it" he says "so no tune up?" I told him "no, even if I wanted to afford that, I couldn't afford that, especially not for something simple like plugs."
I go to pick up my truck, it's there, he's there, everything is as it should be. I speak to him at his desk, we go over everything again, everything is set in stone, his hands are tired, there's nothing he can do to help me out... Other than give me a 10% off voucher for plugs. Oh Kay... I pay my $100 and leave.
I go home, pull my plugs, all of them look virtually new, with fresh edges on the electrode, and minimal wear on the ground strap. I don't need new plugs after all... I decide to squish the gap down to .045 (they ranged from about .058 to .062) lube the threads and reinstall... Taking time to use a torque wrench and everything. From the time I popped the hood, to the time I started it for a test drive was just over an hour. I was not working fast, i took my time and was being OCD about what I was doing... knowing plugs were $50 retail I then wondered why the dealer was trying to hit me for 2.5hrs labor.
On my invoice, I see a "if you are unhappy at all in any way with your visit, please call me at" and there's a number to the supervisor/manager guy. That statement has haunted me all week, was I mad enough? wasn't I mad enough? Today I decided I was, but I was going to wait till Monday to give them a call cause I didn't want to be not listened to and pawned off on a Friday.
Not 30mins later, my phone dings letting me know I have an email, the title begins with the dealership name ("those bastards" I thinking) then I see it's a survey telling me to take a moment and let Ford know how their dealership did, why yes, I think I'll do just that... And I did, honestly and briefly (due to a char. Limit - maybe that's why I'm venting here and now lol)
Less than an hour after submitting my survey, the dealership calls, tells me there was a mistake, suddenly my issue WAS covered, I could have a tune up under warranty, and they owed me my diagnostic fee back, as well as a few other fluffers. Huh, fancy that, all this came to light with in an hour of an honest survey reply. Looks like tomorrow, I'll swing by and get my money, but they will not be touching my truck again tomorrow, or any other day. It's doubtful the truck will ever see another dealership so long as I own it.
There you go, a fun story, with a happy ending.
I guess there were quite a few trucks that came off the line with improperly gapped plugs... Or plugs that were not gapped before install... And all it takes is minimal wear and they begin to have issues... From the brief googling I have done, it appears to span across all motors. So, no matter what motor you have, it does not hurt to check and see where yours are. (Minimum spec or slightly less would likely be a good spot to put them - I've read a thread or 2 where some of the EB guys are going as small as .028-.030)
I know on the Coyote motors, Ford did some monkeying around with gaps, I think the 11 trucks were .041 to .047, then Ford revised the gaps for the 12 trucks, and again for the 13 trucks, going larger each time (as high as .056 so my work order says)... Do your self a favor, check your plugs, for you coyote guys, close the gaps down to about .045, and enjoy a better running truck. FWIW: Use a wire gauge or a feeler gauge... NOT a ramp gauge as those are horribly inconsistent... They do make a cute keychain though
The truck has been awesome, that is, Up until 34,000 miles. I had nothing bad to report in any way shape or form. Only once did it not start, and that was my fault for leaving something plugged into the cig lighter... Other than that, it's been a great truck.
Fast forward to last week...
(If you search, you will find several threads with similar issues)
I had the truck on cruise, running 50-55, start climbing a small hill and she starts missing. I thought it was strange, and maybe some bum gas... Took it to a station and filled it up. Next day, same thing. (No CEL yet) I shift it into the Manual mode and realize I can replicate it in the upper gears under low rpm high load situations. Feels like a miss, maybe trans problems, I'm unsure at this point. Next day, the problem is noticeably worse, I'm pretty sure it's a miss, but still no light... So I decide to flog it a bit, and with one WOT run 0-70 I get a CEL. I swing into Autozone and have the clerk scan the truck and it returns a multiple Cyl misfire... Same code 3x. The question is why? Just over 30k miles, 100k service interval, mostly highway miles, shouldn't be plugs, but just to do it, I price checked them before I left. $5.99ea IIRC for OE Motorcraft Iridium. Not in stock, but they can get them. Good to know.
I'll say now that we moved during this last summer, so service at the original dealer is not an option being it is now 1,200 miles away. What I do know is right around the corner from me is a pretty large Ford dealership and they have lots o' trucks... Good deal I think to my self. I call them up on Friday, tell the rep what it's doing, tell him what the codes are, he tells me I better hurry up and get it in because my warranty is about to expire. I schedule an appointment for Monday (this past Monday) and at 7am I'm there and happy to be there thinking the truck will get a once over before the warranty goes.
11:00 am that Monday I get a call from the service rep "hey man, good news, we found the issue, it's not problem, truck needs a tune up." ..."A tune up?" I ask. He says "yes, your spark plugs are toast and the truck needs new ones bad" I then ask why, he then tells me he does not know, it's very strange, and that some trucks eat spark plugs and he does not know why. "Um, ok" I reply... Somewhat confused. I tell him that since it's under warranty and the warranty is about to expire to go ahead and knock it out so I can be in my way. Then I hear it "Uhh aaactually, plugs are a maintenance item, and that means it is customer pay." Instantly I'm pissed. What do you mean? It's supposed to be a 100k tune-up interval and I at 34k... Faulty parts, you fix it. He says no, it's maintenance, and my problem... IE neglect, and then asks if my truck is a fleet use vehicle and does it idle for extended periods of time? Confused I tell him "umm, no not really, maybe for 10mins at a time now and then when I run into the store for a gallon of milk while the wife and kids wait in the truck, other than that, no." He says "oh, I was sure that was it". I say "ok, so that means it's faulty parts", he says "no, it's customer pay." Pissed, I tell him "ok, put it it in the lot and I'll come and get it" he acknowledges and abruptly hangs up the phone... No thank you good bye, no nothing.
10mins pass, I've cooled down a bit, I call him back and ask how much for a set of plugs? $299 he tells me, plus my diagnostic fee of $100 for finding the problem, plus tax, for a grand total of $424.xx. "WHAT? For plugs?! You must be joking. Plugs are $50" he then starts his song and dance again... "Well, actually these are special plugs, plus they are difficult to install, so labor to install them and stuff." I reply "um, no. OE Motorcraft plugs are $5.99 each retail from the parts store, and installing them on a coyote is easy, they are literally right there, what's my bill now?" "$99.95" he tells me... "For the diagnostic fee." I tell him "Ok, whatever, put it in the lot and I'll come and get it" he says "so no tune up?" I told him "no, even if I wanted to afford that, I couldn't afford that, especially not for something simple like plugs."
I go to pick up my truck, it's there, he's there, everything is as it should be. I speak to him at his desk, we go over everything again, everything is set in stone, his hands are tired, there's nothing he can do to help me out... Other than give me a 10% off voucher for plugs. Oh Kay... I pay my $100 and leave.
I go home, pull my plugs, all of them look virtually new, with fresh edges on the electrode, and minimal wear on the ground strap. I don't need new plugs after all... I decide to squish the gap down to .045 (they ranged from about .058 to .062) lube the threads and reinstall... Taking time to use a torque wrench and everything. From the time I popped the hood, to the time I started it for a test drive was just over an hour. I was not working fast, i took my time and was being OCD about what I was doing... knowing plugs were $50 retail I then wondered why the dealer was trying to hit me for 2.5hrs labor.
On my invoice, I see a "if you are unhappy at all in any way with your visit, please call me at" and there's a number to the supervisor/manager guy. That statement has haunted me all week, was I mad enough? wasn't I mad enough? Today I decided I was, but I was going to wait till Monday to give them a call cause I didn't want to be not listened to and pawned off on a Friday.
Not 30mins later, my phone dings letting me know I have an email, the title begins with the dealership name ("those bastards" I thinking) then I see it's a survey telling me to take a moment and let Ford know how their dealership did, why yes, I think I'll do just that... And I did, honestly and briefly (due to a char. Limit - maybe that's why I'm venting here and now lol)
Less than an hour after submitting my survey, the dealership calls, tells me there was a mistake, suddenly my issue WAS covered, I could have a tune up under warranty, and they owed me my diagnostic fee back, as well as a few other fluffers. Huh, fancy that, all this came to light with in an hour of an honest survey reply. Looks like tomorrow, I'll swing by and get my money, but they will not be touching my truck again tomorrow, or any other day. It's doubtful the truck will ever see another dealership so long as I own it.
There you go, a fun story, with a happy ending.
I guess there were quite a few trucks that came off the line with improperly gapped plugs... Or plugs that were not gapped before install... And all it takes is minimal wear and they begin to have issues... From the brief googling I have done, it appears to span across all motors. So, no matter what motor you have, it does not hurt to check and see where yours are. (Minimum spec or slightly less would likely be a good spot to put them - I've read a thread or 2 where some of the EB guys are going as small as .028-.030)
I know on the Coyote motors, Ford did some monkeying around with gaps, I think the 11 trucks were .041 to .047, then Ford revised the gaps for the 12 trucks, and again for the 13 trucks, going larger each time (as high as .056 so my work order says)... Do your self a favor, check your plugs, for you coyote guys, close the gaps down to about .045, and enjoy a better running truck. FWIW: Use a wire gauge or a feeler gauge... NOT a ramp gauge as those are horribly inconsistent... They do make a cute keychain though
Last edited by SuperCruzin; May 3, 2014 at 01:05 AM.
