Hey guys,

here is a link to someone changing his plugs (not me!) .. good pictures:

changing plugs on 5.4L

 

Hi Sync

Good link w/pics...interesting..especially if your a DIY'er.

I checked out links you made..V10 blowing plugs. Tks.

I'm beginning to wonder how many engines out there blowing plugs we never hear about. I've only heard about it on this and other sites. Have asked a few on the road..but they hadn't heard about it. Still, alot of triton engines out there

I read specs. on new 04 5.4L engine..but couldnt find anything on the V10. This issue i think has a good chance of being resolved with the new 5.4L...but what about the V10's hmmmmmmm?

Good luck...OT

 

Old timer,
I don't know if you are right about the new 3V for the F series, I think Ford is using the F series buyers as a test ground to see how the new engine works. I think as far as the spark plug problem.. they might be going the wrong way... It's gonna be 10MM in diameter, the old one was 14MM. Since the torque spec is a function of diameter and they are going smaller, the spec will probably go from 7-14 lb/ft to 5 - 10 lb/ft . I guess if the new plug is fully threaded it will help.
Does anyone know if toyota's 3 valve/cyl use's a smaller diameter plug ?

 

hey guys,
I found some info on a new head but not the 3V .
The word is that new 2003 5.4l heads (more threads) are going in 2003 but only after they use up all the old 6 thread heads.
If your older ford goes in for a blown plug you still might not get the new head.
so some time in 2003 you might get the better head if you buy a new truck. They started making them in Nov. 2002 .
Here is a link to watch:
https://www.f150online.com/forums/sh...003+spark+plug

 

I found some info on installing spark plugs, It's interesting to see the differance between washer type and taper seat:
spark plug installation guide






Here is an interesting write up on plugs in general ...I thought this was interesting:
"Most threads on spark plugs designed for aluminum head applications are precoated to reduce the risk of thread damage. Even so, some technicians apply a drop of antiseize compound to the plug threads before they go in for added insurance. General Motors, however, does not recommend this practice because antiseize acts like a lubricant and may allow the plugs to be overtightened - which can damage the threads. GM’s advice is to reduce the tightening torque on the plugs 40 percent if antiseize is used on the threads."

you can read the whole story here:
read the whole story

 

Did anyone think that the coil being directly mounted on top of the 5.4 spark plug could have a harmonic vibration causing the spark plug to walk out ????

I did see a new titanium body , double platinum electrodes spark plugs offered by Autolite .These are designed to be very easy on aluminum heads .

I own a 99' 4.6 orginal plugs with 38k miles (out of warranty)
that is running great. I retorqued all the spark plugs . All was - OK.

 

Did anyone think that the coil being directly mounted on top of the 5.4 spark plug could have a harmonic vibration causing the spark plug to walk out ????

Yes, I think that coil doesn't help as far as vibration. I don't think there is one reason causing this problem. When you have a poor to marginal design like this spark plug/head problem, lots of factors could play a part in loosening the plugs, like city driving vs. highway driving, the engine vibration would be very different doing 0-30 vs. doing a constant 70mph.
When finding out informaton on the steel insert "big-sert" mentioned above, I talk to a tech that designs the inserts. He was very familiar with this problem... I asked him if ford had more than 6 threads in the head would that solve this problem ? He said there was a similar problem in a motor years ago where they doubled the amount of thread, and it still vibrated loose... this older motor also used the taper seat on the plugs.... he said the taper seat plug is a poor choice.

 

Getting ready to order the Bigsert kit for the 5.4 due to blown #2 plug at 47k. Has anyone out here used this kit lately and have any other advice other than what has already been said? Hopefully i can accomplish this on #2 without removing the head.

 

I read this information a while back: The chamfer was changed on the spark plug hole on the head to make the plugs go in easier; the new heads hit the line November 12, 2002; the theory was that either when the plugs were installed at the factory or upon replacement they were not put in correctly.

I found my casting date of 02/27/2003, stamped in blue/purple paint of some type on the side of head looking from the fender well once you pick up the rubber shield. But, information on the following thread does not say anything about longer threads, just the chamfer change.

This was on a forum thread:

We refused delivery on a new 03 150, 5.4 with a build date of Oct 02, of course it was the sparkplug thread design issue. Thanks to the good folks on this site I found out that 03's built after Nov 12,02 had a increasing chance of having the new, spark plug hole thread design. I now know I'm looking for the casting date of Nov 12 02 on the head itself - not the date the truck was built. My question is: are trucks with build dates of Jan or Feb this year going to have the new head design for sure? The dealer is going to try and find one with a later build date for me. Any one out there with a Jan or Feb build date with the OLD heads? If I order a new one now will it have the new heads for sure or is it still a crap shoot? I hate to pass on this truck we really like the thing. If you have an 03 with the new I head design I sure would like to know your truck build date.
Thanks in advance for any help.

Mark
You are okay, relax. I spoke with the sales manager today at the dealership that has the fresh 150 on order. He talked to Ford about the head issue and was told ( I know this is he said - he said stuff, but that's all we get isn't it); the chamfer on the first thread was changed to avoid cross threading which happened at assembly in the factory or at the time of plug change after. Asked about the presence of more threads he did not have a clear answer but indicated that would also make sense. My sales manager was very interested in knowing if this truck he ordered for me would have the new head - he knew I would not accept the same old same old. He indicated the Oakville (Canada) plant only has about 2-3 days of heads in stock and rely on "just in time delivery" so within a few days of the casting changes ( 11-12-02) the new design should be in production and trucks built since have the new design. Sounds good. We'll see- been left at the alter before!

 

Well so here I sit with no truck.Plug blew out(3rd from front on driver's side) on June 14th.
Took to my Ford dealer to confirm head was toast.Also told Ford will cover 70-75% of the cost.
Then the bad news,Ford did not have a single head in all of Canada!!
Has to come right from the US.
Head was shipped on 16th and still is not here!

It was supposed to be an emergency delivery but it sure does'nt seem to be the way they shipped it.You could get it here with a horse faster.
I was upset that a truck with 70,000km's had this problem to begin with when it's a known problem at Ford.
I'm even more upset that they don't seem to really care how long a person waits around for there vehicle to be repaired.
All in all I may have to look at alternative brands,I've driven Ford's all my life but the last 2 F150's both had major issues and maybe it's time for a change.


:

 

delete

 

Hi all,

Thanks for posting the info. on Time-Serts. It seems like the only good solution.

FWIW, I called the local Ford repair shop service manager today, just asking if there's been any change in the official policy from Ford on this issue, or at least acknowledgement of a problem. They're saying to replace the head, no heli-coils. The service manager seemed unaware of any changes in the design of the cylinder head in 2003 models, and had no answer when I asked him, "then what's to prevent a recurrence down the road?".

#####

I was one of the people that started raising concern over the blown plug issue, after my 1998 F-150 5.4L blew plug #3 (3rd one back, on the passenger side) @ 81k miles (6k miles after my extended warranty expired) last August.

I paid $2,000 for a repair shop to pull the cylinder head off, and insert a heli-coil. Unfortunately, I had NO direction or aid from Ford at the time as far as how best to repair a blown plug, so didn't know any better about heli-coils vs. other options. My truck was out of commission for 3 weeks, and paid for a rental car.

My F-150 recently hit 100,000 miles, and I thought I was in the clear. No such luck.

Driving home from work yesterday at highway speed, my truck started running roughly, as if running on 7 cylinders. The temperature had been in the 100's that day, so I had the A/C on at lunch, and on the way home. The "check engine" light came on, flashing on and off for awhile after stopping and re-starting (no obvious sound of an exhaust or compression leak, like after blowing the plug). I babied it home.

Took it to a shop today, where they ran the codes and diagnosed that coil pack #4 (the one all the way in the back of the passenger side) had shorted. The repairmen mentioned that the hose clamp seemed loose, like he thought it was the source of the problem for the coil pack: he found a tiny drop of coolant underneath the hose.

Of course, this is known problem, as a search for "coil pack" will show 100's of hits. I think there's a TSB related to this, but I couldn't find it.

https://www.f150online.com/forums/sh...ater+hose+coil

I'm wondering if the two conditions can be related, i.e. #3 and #4 spark plugs blow due to moisture and subsequent corrosion, the same thing that causes the coil pack #4 to go bad? Seems the heater hose coolant leak tends to effect coil pack #4 most commonly, although there's reports of #3 being effected. And isn't there an A/C line running over plug #3 that can be a source of condensation?

I'm wondering if there's a good way to wrap those hoses such that any fluid that makes it's way to the area is directed elsewhere, besides the plugs and coils. Any ideas?

Also, I called a local shop that specializes in cylinder heads. Turns out they have the Time-Serts kit, and said they'd put in Big-Serts for $75 each. I'm tempted to have them do plugs #3 and #4, since I don't trust the heli-coil in #3, and I don't want to wait for #4 to strand me (since the coil pack going bad leaves the plug head suspect), knowing that coolant has been leaking for an unknown period of time in that vicinity.

But I dunno: any opinions? $150 seems like cheap insurance to help make sure this doesn't recur....

Chris

 

Synchmaster,

Oh, about this:

I made the mistake of paying a ford dealer $1700.00 to remove one head and install one insert... because I wasn't informed.

When I asked the Ford service manager today if there were any TSB's related to the blown plug issue or any recent developments, he said the one released pertained to helicoils not being an approved fix, according to Ford.

I explained to that I had paid an independent repair shop $2k to remove the head and insert a heli-coil, since there was no direction offered from Ford on the issue at the time.

When I asked about my current problems that might be related to the blown plug issue, he said that perhaps the repair shop should stand behind their work, since they used an unapproved repair method; perhaps I should seek redress with them (not Ford, who designed the mess).

In other words, it sounds to me like he's saying you have a good legal case against the Ford repair shop who put your heli-coils in. I'd be demanding a new head if I were you.

Chris

 

Right from the start my Service Rep said Heli-coils were not recommended.
Also since he told me Ford was going to cover 3/4 of the bill, putting a new head on was a no brainer!!!
I still am p...d at Ford for not doing anything about this problem.
A service bulletin or something would have been nice.
I just recieved a message from my Service Rep saying the head is at the border and should be here by Wednesday,a full 16 days after it was ordered.How can it take that long to get a part???
I've ordered bike parts from the states and got them within a week easy.
So much for Ford's emergency - rush delivery!!!
At least theres an end in sight(till it happens again)

 

Here is a email I received , I thought I would post it here for others to read.

Syncmaster,

I just installed a bigsert in my 98' F150 5.4L XLT Supercab.
Passenger side, second plug from the front. Has 66,150
miles and I just changed the plugs within six months
when it must have backed it's way out, must have
clipped off the starter thread because I was able to
get it back in after it sat for 2 hours to cool then
drove it home, but when I tried a second time to
replace the spark plug with a new one, cross thread
city!@#$! When the plug backed out it broke the Coil
Over Plug (COP) brackette.

Wish Ford would machine these bigserts at the factory, it
would save us the labor/pain and suffering.

This was a time eater, but it beat paying Ford or a
mechanic $2,000-$3,000 to replace the head. Of course
most people don't work on cars, this is an example of
why I work on mine-to save money $$$.

http://www.timesert.com/bigsert-repair.html

J T