I got ripped by our mechanic at work for bringing my truck in for service with the engine all dusty (I work on construction sites...very dusty). I told him I had heard horror stories about cleaning the 5.4 and was not about to do it. He said they do it all the time (misting w/ pressure washer) and have no problems. We have approx 75 5.4's in the fleet. There's still no way I'm going to do it, and it's not even my truck!

 

Here are some things for you to consider;

1. The spark plug boots must be in good soft condition with no hard and split areas and with good gel seals at the plug tips.
2. The boots must be sealed at the top valve cover area.
3. Use Simple Green from a hand applicator and flush after a few minutes with very little more than a good stream of water, then don't push your luck.
4. The coil paks must not have the top potting cracked open at any point or water will get into them and there goners much of the time.
5. Over time these things will creep up with age so bewhere before doing any cleaning.
6. Once the spark has a place to jump other than the spark plug path it can punch holes in the boot and lead you on a merry chase by secondary effects.
This system leaves little room for much deterioration before getting into these kinds of problems.
7. Watch using a lot of the engine cleaners because they attack rubber like the hoses and serpintine belt etc over time.
Often it's an all or nothing situation.
If someones boss want's the engines to be cleaned every day, then ask him to stay around for the results so you don't get blamed for the problems until he learns the lessons.

 

Well, the roof on your house doesn't leak during a rainstorm, but if you put the pressure washer to it, it'll probably blow the shingles off.

 

Well, a little more searching you might have found these lol

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/NEW-F...temZ8072277000

The 5.4 modular is a freakin picky motor !! But I love it now lol it's been running beter than new at 180k , ad that because of these forums , info and greatdeals once in a while . Anyway it's a trap !! don't just replcace COP's 7& 8 or 3,4,5 - trust me your problems wil be back soon . You have to do them all at once - it's and itegtrety thing with this motor - no joke!! I back these kit and bought two so far - with the plugs!! If u buy a set send the company a letter or call -steve (owner) use MOTORCRAFT 22's plugs only. but send the numbers or you'll recive plug su don't need

hope it helps

 

I recently sprayed down my motor (2000 Lariat 5.4L) and the same thing occurred. I blew the #7 coil pack. I have learned my lesson, no more washing of the motor for me. It just looks so bad...

 

Yea, as much as I hate to admit it, the engine bay of my ’05 is – and no longer will be – up to the high standards I keep the rest of the truck up to. The best I do under the hood (other than routine maintenance) is wiping things off with a damp rag. Although I’ve lost count, I think this is about my 15th vehicle and it’s the first one where you can’t pop the hood and be just as wowoie zowed by the engine as the rest of the truck. I justify this by knowing just how much it will cost me in time, parts and aggravation as soon as I get it wet. Sad.

Does anybody but me remember the commercial – when electronic ignition systems were first coming out – where they took a fire hose and blasted a running engine just to prove how much better EI was that the “conventional” ignition systems of the time? Man, how we’ve progressed!

 

I used to be very picky about a nice clean engine compartment. After a couple of times replacing the COP (back one on passenger side) after washing, I just let it gety dirty. I keep some of the easily wipeable areas clean, but thats it in the engine compartment. The truck has 215K on the odometer now, and still runs smooth as silk.......engine compartment is dirty though.

 

That auction has ended, but here is another listing from their ebay store. I haven't checked my VIN # yet, but I'm assuming they are listing both engine codes in 1999. I have the 5.4 DOHC, that I believe makes it an A engine code, but I will need to check first. This listing sells all 8 coils for the price I would pay for 2 at the parts store. For that price, I guess I will have to replace all of them and be done with it. I don't want to have to go through this again anytime soon.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...MakeTrack=true

 

NO KIDDING BONEHEAD - That was proof of purchase with the stores link right next to it. These are not "Auctions" You go to the store , if you like, you buy - simple.
Everyone can figure that out once they hit the link I provided .. -So what are you after , a gold star?
What a frikin f%%$!%$!& ^^^%&%%%&*(()&^* head. Of course you replace them all at that price as I explained 5 posts before yours you fre%^&^^@&Y ole - Do you even read these things ? Bad enough some of these newbies don't know how to search. They still are tolerated and answered. With this thread in particular, they aren't even fricken listening , just keep carrying on saying the same thing over and over- duuhhhh..WHATS UP!


jbrew

 

I think you guys just saved me a lot of aggravation. I have a Mustang GT show car that has never seen rain and has the engine bay completely detailed. Since it never sees harsh conditions, it's easy to keep that way. My F-150 is another story. While the outside is in pristine shape, I let the engine bay get a bit dirty. I was supposed to take the Mustang to a car show today, but since it looks like rain, I was going to go out and give the truck a once over instead. After reading this thread, I think I'll stick with a damp rag and a bit of elbow grease.
Thanks!

 

Yeah, thanks for the heads up...mine is so dusty, you can barely see it...I think I'll just roll up my sleeves and wipe it down with a damp rag...

 

jbrew,

Thanks for explaining to me how an ebay store works. That useless info should come in handy in case I ever forget how to run my ebay store. I was posting to see if anyone off hand knew what the engine code was for the DOHC engine. I was at work and the useless Lincoln was still sitting broken in the driveway because the top of the motor got a little wet. I didn't want to come onto a ford forum and bash fords, but from what I've read on here, this 5.4 motor has some of the worst designs I've come across in a while. A four wheel drive truck that you need to avoid puddles when you drive it for fear of getting your engine wet and destroying your coils?

 

It's usually not that bad... I've run through tons of stuff with my truck, and I wash my radiator out occasionally, and I never have problems with my engine, but I don't flood the engine with a pressure washer, and I think that's where most people start having problems.....