I have been reading some of these threads about coil packs and am starting to really get concerned. I just bought an 01 Lariat with a 5.4 a month and a half ago. It has been in the shop twice for coil pack replacement. This last time was two days after I ran it through a high pressure carwash with under body blast. That was Wednesday of last week. Friday it rained like crazy and on the way home from work about a mile from my house it started it's crap just like it did four days after I bought it. The dealership is telling me not to wash it in that manner. In other words nothing that will allow all that water in the engine compartment. I see these threads that say it's OK to wash the motor down like detailing it, and it makes me cringe. I want to do that to mine but seeing as how my Ford extra care warranty doesn't cover these coil packs I think I'll pass. It's bad enough that I have to worry about it just washing the truck. Is there any kind of documented proof that the computer might be the problem. The truck has 35k on it. I can hardly believe that Ford made this Off Road vehicle that you can't wash. I live in Upstate NY where if you don't wash it underneath you won't have much of a truck left afer a few years. I am trying to get the dealership to take some sort of action on getting to the bottom of this. So far all I've gotten is really pissed off! Is there any good news related to this problem? I love this truck but so far I have been more than sorry that I bought it because I fear that this is just the tip of the berg.

 

If you take a high pressure hose car wash hose on target any electrical, or flue system on any car/truck, your gonna develop problems.

your coill packs are on top off your engine and are safe for off road use, as long as you don't turn your f-150 into a boat.

 

The coil pack problems have been because the heater hose on the passenger side firewall leaks on the #4 coil pack and damages it somehow. I had two of mine replaced. They added an extra clamp on the heater hose and I have not had any problems since then. My 5.4L engine has spark plug holes and the coil packs are the only thing that helps to seal them. Water can get down in these spark plug holes if you get lots of water in the engine compartment. If I washed my engine compartment I would probably remove the coil packs and blow out the spark plug holes if I was really paranoid. The water might evaporate out of the spark plug holes over time but if it gets mixed with oil then the oil floats on top and prevents the evaporation of the water. Water in the spark plug hole can cause engine mis-fires.

http://www.magnecor.com/magnecor1/ga...-1-picture.htm

http://www.magnecor.com/magnecor1/ga...-2-picture.htm

Yes, it kind of sucks...

 

thanks for the quick reply. maybe I was unclear in my post. I know that you can't directly target electrical systems without running the risk of problems. I drove my truck through a car wash. It was the first time I had ever used this particular one. You drive in and it pulls you through this thing. It had to be 30 -40 ft. long with water everywhere. There was no direct water blast to the coils. The Dealership is telling me that moisture in the engine compartment is what is taking these things out. All I know is that it is not a warranty part on my particular vehicle. Which I was unaware of until it happened the first time. It was $270 to get one replaced and I really don't want to do it six more times. I have no idea why it happened the first time. The dealer (repairing) asked me if the original dealer where I bought it cleaned the engine. It was not detailed when I bought it. I figured that maybe the coil pack just failed due to normal circumstances. Several people including the repair shop are telling after the first time that it was a fluke. It's rare! Then three weeks later it's in the shop for #2. I welcome anymore replies on this matter as I am unable to get Ford to do so. If these things are that vulnerable to moisture then perhaps there is some other steps I can take. Not washing the salt off the bottom of this truck is not an option. I just got rid of one rust bucket. The difference is I paid $1700 for that one so it was a little less painful. Thanks again.

 

if you need to replace any more in the future, you can buy a coil pack for $45-$50 at any auto parts store. to replace you remove the 7mm hold down bolt, unplug the wire connector and pull out the coil and boot. then just push the new one in.
i had 2 go bad within a couple of weeks.
youll need to get the codes read to find the bad coil

 

Thank you! Do I have to depend upon a repair shop to get me the codes?
I know there are code readers out there but I have never used one and don't know if they will actually pinpoint a direct problem like a specific coil. I have always worked on my own vehicles since I was a teenager but I must admit that the newer ones for the most part are over my head. Thanks to all who have replied trying to offer assistance. Tuneman

 

if you have a "service engine soon" or a "check engine" light on auto zone will read the code for free. the code will tell you what coil it is, #1-#8. but i had a bad coil with no SES light, but it did have a stored code.

 

After a very hard rain last week, my 01 F150 5.4 started running poorly-ignition miss. Sounds like the same problem. Computer problem code indicated misfire cylinder #4. I pulled all four coil packs on the passenger side and cleaned out the holes and replaced the plugs (Motorcraft platinum). I also marked the coil packs and put the #4 coil pack back on cylinder #1 so it will be easier to replace if the coil pack is bad. My question concerns the coil resistant check. All four coils were right on when I checked the primary and secondary resistance. Is it normal for the coil resistance to check right but the coil pack still be bad? The engine is still misfiring so I am planning to drive it until I get the trouble light again and see if the misfire moved with the #4 coil pack which is now on cylinder 1. Just don't want to spend $42 on a coil pack if that is not really the problem.

 

If the resistance is good then its a very good indication that the coil pack is good but I never rule anything out.

The coil packs on my 1999 5.4L engine have connectors that disconnect rather quickly by squeezing the connector and pulling on it.

I pull my connectors one by one while the engine is idleing to see if it idles worse. If I pull a connector and the engine does not idle worse then I suspect problem with that coil pack (or water in that spark plug hole) etc. I have to wait till the engine cools down when trying to get to the rear coil packs if the engine is hot.

I was trouble shooting a problem the other day that I thought was a mis-fire but it ended up being a vacuum leak.

This same procedure can be used with the injector connectors if a fuel injector problem is suspected.

 

My truck ran great for the first 5 mins then began misfiring again. It almost felt like the truck was starving for fuel. Can a fuel problem produce the misfire trouble code. The check engine light has not come on but I assume it will after I drive a few more miles.

 

My truck ran OK for the first few minutes on the way home from work. Then it began to run rough again but not check engine light yet. Not sure what to think at this point.

 

It sounds like a problem starts to occur when the engine is warmed up. It could be that the boot on the COP is bad and spark is jumping to the spark plug wall instead of the spark plug.

If the engine runs rough when it is idleing then pull the COP connector for cylinder #1 (where you moved the suspected bad COP) and see if the engine runs rougher. If the engine does not run rougher then something is fishy with the #1 COP .

Do the same for the COP on cylinder #2 for comparison.

If the engine runs rough at higher rpms then you will have to jury rig the throttle cable so that you can test with the engine running rough at the higher rpms.


By the way, the correct term is not "coil packs" but "COPs/Coil on plug". Y'all keep using the term "coil packs" and get me doing it again!

Now cut that out!


This is what a "Coil Pack" is:

http://www.msdignition.com/coil_blaster_13.htm

 

The mystery continues. "Service Engine" light came on while running an errand. I checked the code and got a 171 - engine #1 bank too lean. That is the same side I was working on yesterday so perhaps I messed up one or more of the injectors. I am going to pull the injectors out tonight and clean them.

 

Did you pull the fuel rail the other day?

 

I did pull the fuel rail. I pulled the injectors out tonight and cleaned them. Hopefully that will fix the problem.