Rant,rant,rant,rant,rant

[Squisher]

Just spent the last 4 hours trying to change the plugs on my 98 F150. What a pain in the ass. Why do they have the plugs so far inboard toward the intake? Why do they have the plugs down such deep wells? Why are the last two plugs on each side buried underneath the cowl on a full sized pickup?


Now for the bad news. I think the #4 plug is stripped. Not that you can see much of it, but when I got my socket on it, the socket just spun with finger pressure.

I'm going to call around, but I imagine they're going to have to pull the head and to do that they're probably going to have to pull the engine. Oh, well.

 

[redgtxdi]

Muuuuha ha ha ha ha ha ha hahaaaaaaaaaaaaaa (evil laugh) :evil:


I have a '98 F150 Scab w/ 4.6L and I recall a few years ago goin' thru the same thing...........BUT............before I even THOUGHT about doing it myself.........I read plenty on f150online and once I realized how ridiculously tough it was gonna be, I just waited for a coupon from the local Ford dealer & dropped it off & let THEM do battle!!!

My knuckles were safe & sound sippin' on gin & juice..........

EDIT: Oh damn!!! I skimmed over the "stripped" part. Sorry to hear it, man!

I'd probably suggest letting either a VERY reputable shop handle it from here..........*or*.........take it to your local Ford dealer & let them repair the thread so JUST IN CASE there are any troubles down the road it's *FORD'S* responsibility & not yours!!

 

[PricklyPete]

It took me 10 minutes to change the plugs on my wifes 4cyl Civic the other day....sometimes cheap simple cars do have their pluses. I remember changing the plugs on my old Mazda Millenia with the Supercharged Miller Cycle engine...it took like 5 hours...just ridiculous.

 

[Squisher]

Originally posted by: redgtxdi
Muuuuha ha ha ha ha ha ha hahaaaaaaaaaaaaaa (evil laugh) :evil:


I have a '98 F150 Scab w/ 4.6L and I recall a few years ago goin' thru the same thing...........BUT............before I even THOUGHT about doing it myself.........I read plenty on f150online and once I realized how ridiculously tough it was gonna be, I just waited for a coupon from the local Ford dealer & dropped it off & let THEM do battle!!!

My knuckles were safe & sound sippin' on gin & juice..........

EDIT: Oh damn!!! I skimmed over the "stripped" part. Sorry to hear it, man!

I'd probably suggest letting either a VERY reputable shop handle it from here..........*or*.........take it to your local Ford dealer & let them repair the thread so JUST IN CASE there are any troubles down the road it's *FORD'S* responsibility & not yours!!

I'm embarrassed, but when I opened the hood I had to follow the plug wires with my eyes to even find the plugs.

btw-I was hoping that someone would come in here and say that they have stripped spark plug sockets that'll probably be able to grab ahold of that plug.

 

[Sluggo]

Yeah, we had the plugs done on our Expedition (5.4) since I had read what a huge freekin hassle it would be. Found a guy to do it for $120.

What amazes me is how deep the valley is between the heads, I dropped a bolt in there last time I worked on it, I thought it had disappeared into some kind of glacial crevasse.

 

[LTC8K6]

Are you saying the threads are stripped and the plug is spinning?

Or are you saying the hex part of the spark plug is stripped and the socket can't grip it??

The former is a big deal, the latter much less so.

I have never heard of stripping the hex part of a spark plug, though.

 

[LTC8K6]

Are you using a 6 point socket? It will usually grip better than a 12 and is less likely to strip.

 

[LTC8K6]

You might also try a grip-tite socket.

 

[alfa147x]

4 bangers FTW!

 

[jagec]

Originally posted by: LTC8K6
Are you saying the threads are stripped and the plug is spinning?

Or are you saying the hex part of the spark plug is stripped and the socket can't grip it??

The former is a big deal, the latter much less so.

I have never heard of stripping the hex part of a spark plug, though.

Most people have aluminum heads these days, so the chances of stripping the spark plug itself are very low.

 

[HannibalX]

I have changed the plugs on my 4.6 V8s many times and never had a problem.

 

[Squisher]

Originally posted by: LTC8K6
Are you saying the threads are stripped and the plug is spinning?

Or are you saying the hex part of the spark plug is stripped and the socket can't grip it??

The former is a big deal, the latter much less so.

I have never heard of stripping the hex part of a spark plug, though.

That's a very good question, unfortunately at the base of a six inch deep well which is not much bigger around than the socket and this being at arms length away where you can barely get your finger tips on the socket and a small extension, it is impossible to tell.

I will say that after I got the socket on I was able to spin it with nothing more than finger pressure. This made me think the plug threads themselves might be stripped. However, if they were stripped that badly then I would think compression would be zilch and the plug wire which seals off the well would probably be blown off the plug after the truck was started.

So, my answer is I don't know.

btw-this was a six point socket

 

[Demon-Xanth]

Having had a car that lost threads on two cylinders (back cylinders on a transverse V6), I'll say this:

If you stripped the threads, you'd know by now. It'll sound like a harley underneath your hood.

 

[fbrdphreak]

DOHC FTL

OHV > DOHC
Pic proof:
http://www.flickr.com/photo_zo...157602474236379&size=o

 

[slag]

Originally posted by: Pale Rider
I have changed the plugs on my 4.6 V8s many times and never had a problem.

if by never having a problem, you mean you didnt have any issues having to move the fuel rail out of the way, having to move all the wires out of the way, having to pull the CoP off the plugs without having them try to come apart, having to use 3 different extensions with 2 different swivels just to be able to reach the rear most plugs on both sides, then sure, no problems


ROLL

I have a 97 f150 and yeah, its a real bitch to change them out. It should not be this hard to do some simple maintenance on a vehicle like this.

 

[LordMorpheus]

You could try hammering on a slightly smaller 12-point socket (maybe a metric size that's just a tiny bit smaller) to get the plug out.

the ford 4.6 as it's installed in my town car is easy to get at all the plugs. You just gotta be careful to use compressed air or something to blow all the crap out of the spark plug wells before you pull the plugs. Don't want that crap in the cylinders.

 

[Squisher]

Originally posted by: LordMorpheus
You could try hammering on a slightly smaller 12-point socket (maybe a metric size that's just a tiny bit smaller) to get the plug out.

the ford 4.6 as it's installed in my town car is easy to get at all the plugs. You just gotta be careful to use compressed air or something to blow all the crap out of the spark plug wells before you pull the plugs. Don't want that crap in the cylinders.

I actually used a shop-vac with a length of 5/8" clear hose that I duct taped to the vac hose.

Originally posted by: Demon-Xanth
Having had a car that lost threads on two cylinders (back cylinders on a transverse V6), I'll say this:

If you stripped the threads, you'd know by now. It'll sound like a harley underneath your hood.

That's what I would have thought, and I'm hoping for the best.

 

[compuwiz1]

I hope you guys with the 4.6's and the 5.4's realize that those came from the factory with plugs designed to run 100k miles. Point: Don't change em just to be changing them, if not needed.