Simple Thermostat change turned into headache !!! help ?

[TheMightyThor]

what brand do you recommend? my mechanic is cool with me bringing him parts if it saves me money and the brand is good.. granted I can probably do some of them, its the ones in the back I will have a very hard time with

 

[BAD RONALD]

what brand do you recommend?

Read this:

http://www.expeditionforum.com/f42/ignition-coils-22501/

After fixing a misfire issue on my '01 I was advised to shut off the OD and go for a long highway drive. The idea is to work the engine hotter for a sustained time and burn off any residue left in the cats from the raw fuel dumped there during misfires. With the price of fuel these days this is not an inexpensive experiment, but then again neither is diminished engine efficiency.

You can learn a TON about your Expedition by using the search feature on this board. There are many common problems with these trucks and most have lengthy threads containing very useful information. A surprising number of repairs can be done with basic tools, time and patience.

 

[bedrck46]

even those that have changed plugs and cops in the past still have a hard time with the ones in the back. However the more you do them the better it gets or at least it should. I just changed plugs on the drivers side yesterday, along with pilling the throttle body and giving it a good cleaning. New plugs and boots. As I wasn't having any problems with any misfires, regardless I had to change boots as the old boots wouldn't come off very easy and had to be pulled out causing some to rip apart. At least if and when I need to replace coils the boots should come off easy due to using dialectic grease on them. I do recommend to others to replace plugs and COP's even though I didn't and if I was wrong then I have only myself to blame.

I do agree with stamp and suggest that you replace both plugs and COP's since the coils have to come off to get to the plugs and you will be paying to have the work done then put all new back in. That way you shouldn't have to have them changed and pay twice for labor.

 

[nonwoven29]

Coolant in the well can easily cause the spark to ground in the well rather then in he CC.

Dielectric grease on the tip on the plug and a little around the boot will help insulate. If the boots are warped or rubber soft replace them while your at it.

It also couldn't hurt to ohm the spring with the Resistor pellet. The spring in the boot. I've found this twice on 4.6/5.4 engines to cause rough ideal and intermittent drivability issues.

 

[TheMightyThor]

Just got it back from the shop. He changed 1 vaacuum hose. Connected it to a diagnostic machine , shows no misfires but I still have that pulsation and vibration.
I am not sure what to do. He suggested maybe bad gas ? Maybe a different shop ? All I know is before I changed the thermostat it was running perfect. Not sure what to do except change the plug in cylinder 5 if not all of them.

This vibration is bothering me to no end... there is no way the thermostat itself could cause this right?

 

[Mediamonkey11]

If you're planning on doing a tune-up then I'd go ahead with that and see if the vibration goes away. It's possible that when you got the boot and COP wet you gave the spark a path to ground long enough it damaged the COP or boot? I have the same slight rumble at idle, just haven't gotten around to doing COPs yet.

 

[98RedExp]

Make sure T-stat isn't upside down, also make sure you topped off the fluid you lost and the system is burped/bled properly.

In regards to the miss, you more than likely got the injector wet.