I don't know ? I just don't want to pay more than $200 for a spark plug change.. I really think if they told me of this issue upon buying it I would of walked. Don'T get me wrong I love my Ford, I just feel kinda hosed by Ford not taking control over something i feel they developed wrong..and now we have to take the lottery chance for a snap job..
I use to really enjoy doing these thing to my vehicle but Im so worried i will snap a plug i guess i will try to sell my truck before 100k and get a new one without this problem.. I just think this is a real chitty DEAL....

 

Is there any problem like this on the '97 5.4? Just bought my '97 Lariat Offroad w/192K on it; runs like a top, but I'd like to see about changing the plugs BUT NOT if the same problem exists on the '97 5.4.

Thanks!

 

Nope no seizing problem with your year- they have the spitting problem. With yours the engine spit them out, with the '04 up 5.4 3V they break off. I'd sure clean house at Ford in the spark plug design engineers dept. They're battin 0! No fear though, they had a problem but it is actually a small percentage of the '97-'02's. Just read up on it (it'll keep you reading for days) and you'll be an informed owner and you probably won't ever have any problem. I have read recently that one place that has a great deal of experience with them says to torque them to around 28 ft. lbs. instead of the about 14 ft. lbs. that Ford recommends. Do the reading to be an informed owner and you'll sleep well at night. Good luck with you F-150 and enjoy a really great truck!

 

Thanks so much for the response/info. I've been doing a lot of on-line research here at F150-Online regarding oil changes. I'm a maintenance fanatice, and luckily the previous owner of my truck was also. I'm interested in putting in the best oil I can, but not sure with 192K if it's worth the risk of the synthetic oils, as I've heard/read that older vehicles that previously didn't use synthetic oils tend to develop wear patterns throughout the engine and synthetic oils (due to their molecular structure) could be detrimental to the engine. Any suggestions/ideas?

Thanks!

 

Try to find out what oil the previous owner used. I do not like to change if I can help it and apparently, whatever he was using is working just fine, with that many miles.

 

Thanks for the advice; I'll do so!