My wifes 97 4.6L has 65,000 miles. It has developed a slight shudder when accellerating under light load (uphill). I'm assuming changing plugs might help. I'm an experienced mechanic, but... My problem is I can't even get the first plug wire to come off. Whats the secret? If there a special tool, tell me where to buy it.

 

I had the same problem, bought several plug removal tools, nothing worked. Then I came across a pair of hose pliers, bought them and gave them a try. They worked great! After that they were easy, 1/2 hour job after that. I changed to bosch +4 plugs, work great. However my truck too has developed a shudder so I have ordered MSD 8.5mm plug wires from Summit.

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97 F-150 S/C 4x4 ORP XLT 4.6 tow package
K&N , Flowmaster cat-back w/3" chrome tips. Bosch+4 plugs, Superchip.
Patriot fiberglass toneau cover, Westin chrome step bars.
Future mods: underdrive pulleys,4" lift, 16.5 wheels with 33's,ram air hood,and someday a supercharger.

 

wolvrin704, you gonna love those MSD wires. Just make sure you got the truck version and not the Mustang version because 2 wires on the Mustang version are kinda short for the F-150. And DO NOT PUT TOO MUCH DIELECTRIC GREASE on the wires or it will pop off while you're driving which will cause the check engine light to come on.
PatJenkins, the first time changing the plugs will be hard. Main thing is make sure you have plenty of time and yank each one off while gripping the boots only. The only problems you'll encounter is the 4 and 8 cylinders wires which is hard to get at. I had fabricated a tool from a regular wire hanger just to get to these two wires. And you'll need a u-joint to these to these two plugs also. Good luck! steve

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1997 XLT Supercab emerald green,4.6 auto superchip, rear dual exhaust, Atlas wheels w HP 275/60/17 tires, P/F Z pads, Lund steps and quarter window shades, Outland grille guard w KC daylighters (for sale cheap), piaa 1000 in bumpers openings, Trenz billet grille, edlebrock ISA shocks, Powerslider, stainless steel fender trim, fluidyne cooler, Airaid kit, Gentex electronic compass dimming mirror,Downey SST tonneau cover(for sale cheap),A.R.E. lid, Steeda sway bar.

 

Start off with a cold engine. I used a 2x3 with a loop of string slipped over the top of the plug cap to pull off the caps. The trick is to pull enough to loosen and not rip the plug wires. next collect together all the 3/8" extensions you have + a universal joint. Get the right plug socket by checking with the replacement plugs. Do one plug at a time. Rear left plug is a pig to do!! ( that was the failed plug on my engine) Feed the new plug in by hand and make sure its started right and tighten carefully ( alloy heads)

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97, 4.6, 3.55LS, Dk red 265/75/16, Leer cap, Rhino bed, rose wood dash, CD player,

 

And be sure to not over-tighten the plugs. You'll strip the threads out of the aluminum heads faster than you can say sparkplug.

Neal

 

Before you remove any plugs, do yourself a favor and blow the area around the plugs out very well with compressed air. Don't want any little nasties making a break for your cumbustion chambers!

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98 F-150 XLT 4X4 ORP Super Cab Short Bed, 4.6, Auto. Superchip, Gibson sing. cat-back, Airaid, 80/100w German head lamps. Needs one more door and a lot more power. I think I need to talk to Mr. Whipple.

 

You think your plug wires are a problem now wait till you add the supercharger. Holy crimeny. I put Ford motorsport 9mm wires in this past weekend and it took about three hours just to change the plug wires. By the way they don't come with wire separators you must buy them separate as the stock 7mm holders will not work. good luck.

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97' F150 XLT, 4 X 4, Auto,4.6L, Vortech Supercharger, jet-chip, Gibson Cat-back Duals, rear Posi, 4.10's, jet shift improver, Tonneau cover, Rancho RS5000's, 33's on American racing rims, Rhino brushgards and pushbumper, Stull Billet grill, Dual Fosgate 800's w/Alpine head,
and musty smelling A/C system. Lookin for Chevy's to eat!!

 

One thing that is very common in these Ford modular engines is that the spark plug wires are generally ready for replacment by 60,000 miles, and even earlier. As many of you already know, the spark plugs are recessed into the cylinder head, almost like an old Mopar Hemi. These spark plug wells collect garbage and moisture, and are prone to frying the spark plug boot prematurely. This is why it's not a good idea to use a high-pressure hose to clean the engine, unless you make sure to block off those areas, which isn't always easy. Someone else mentioned that it's a good idea to blow out these spark plug wells before you remove the spark plug, so you don't send any debris down into the combustion chamber, and that's an excellent suggestion.

It's not unusual to have the engine run fine, and then one day you have a miss, and a very noticeable miss or misfire at that, and it's usually one or more plug wires that's the culprit, it happened to me too.

The best plug wires for these modular engines seem to be the Magnecor wires, although Accel makes a much cheaper wire that will probably work just fine for those who don't want to spend the $$$ that Magnecor wires cost. When you are shopping for aftermarket plug wires, check with the manufacturer to see what the resistance is in ohms per foot. The best wires will have less than 50 ohms resistance, and we've seen Ford Motorsport plug wires that have over 1000 ohms resistance, as do most other aftermarket plug wires, so do yourself a favor and check out that spec. The lower that resistance number, the better, and that can be had without giving up the use of your radio, as a quality wire will still have proper EMI suppression, even with a resistance as low as 50 ohms.

Just my .02,

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Mike Troyer
Performance Products, Inc.
National Distributor of Superchips
(540) 862-9515
Email: mtroyer@compuserve.com