Spark plug change... my wallet hurts

[AcesOverEights]

I realize platinum is an expensive metal, but $16 a plug????
I have $130 into just plugs. Another $100 in the broken plug tool, the state gets their cut of course, and this is a $250 spark plug change.
I thought it was expensive to do a plug change in my 300C with 16 plugs.

Atleast I can recoup some of the cost by selling the plug extractor after...


My wallet is sad..

 

[bedrck46]

What brand did you buy

 

[AcesOverEights]

Motorcraft SP515

 

[bedrck46]

$10.57 EA on e-bay brand new was the lowest price I found

 

[Am3gross]

Hope she runs better.....

 

[mbilak]

Vote for which way to remove plugs

Haven't posted fro a long time but I need to change the plugs in my 05.
I have seen Fords TSB method, and also what some of the garages and a few people on youtube are doing... run engine up to temp and remove with Impact wrench.
I'm open to suggestions and advice or anything else to change plugs.
(Other that $800.00 at the dealer) Who has had success with what methods?

thanks

 

[ExpeditionAndy]

My local dealership said they have had a lot of success using an impact gun to remove the spark plugs.

 

[Stoned06]

I bit the bullet and bought the broken plug removal tool off of amazon for about $60 last year when I did my plugs. Glad I did as 6 of the 8 broke. The plugs at the dealer were $12 each as they price matched what autozone or Advance Auto was selling them for. I can see the impact wrench working well as it may actually break up the carbon deposits on the tip, but I can also see it causing more problems if the plugs are prone to breaking anyway. I would hate to get pieces of the porceline in the cylinder if a plug were to shatter under the impact.

 

[Berg]

Why does the 300C have so dam many ?????????

 

[AcesOverEights]

For the emissions crap. The second plug fires on the exhaust stroke to try to burn any leftover fuel.
Ford 2.3 4 cylinders had the same type of system for a while.

I havent started the task yet, but im going to when I get home from work today. I am going to try to get the plugs out with a warm engine and a 3/8" impact. If i break some, thats what the tool is for, if I dont, I can return the tool. Lets hope it works that way.

 

[Berg]

you should take pics im at 98k should i be doing this soon?

 

[Silverbullet75]

Spark Plug Kit...

Hi all,
I apologize for not putting this in the proper section of the forum, but for some reason I'm not able to post in the classified section. Probably due to inactivity. We just sold our '05 Limited yesterday, and I have a spark plug replacement kit to get rid of now... never used/installed:

- 1 set of 8 Champion 7989 Double Platinum plugs
- Lisle (LIS65600) Broken Spark Plug Remover for Ford Triton 3 Valve Engines
- Permatex 77134 Nickel Anti-Seize Lubricant, .5 oz Tube
- OTC 6900 Ford F-150 Spark Plug Socket
- Kano Aerokroil Penetrating Oil, 10 oz. aerosol (Ford recommended)

All purchased from Amazon.com (a few months ago). Total paid was $205.
I'll sell the whole kit for $180, shipped.
Please PM me if interested.
Hope this will help someone out.
Thank you!
JIM
AGAIN, SORRY FOR POSTING IN THE WRONG AREA.

 

[mbilak]

i will take picts when i change the plugs. I'm curious. was that the ford dealership that was using impact wrench to remove plugs? Hmmm not following there TSB???

 

[ExpeditionAndy]

I talked to the local Ford dealership here in town and they said that some of the mechanics preferred to use an impact gun to remove the spark plugs because it helped removed the carbon from the end of the plugs and spins them out fast enough not to jamb them.

 

[AcesOverEights]

Just finished up with changing mine. Runs SOOOOOOO much better. The old plugs were really really worn out. the gap on them was ridiculous.
I didnt even break one!
It really wasnt hard. There isnt really any need for pics, its pretty straight forward. The only tip I would have is to remove the ecu and ecu tray before starting on the drivers side. it gives you way more room for the rear 2 plugs. The drivers side came out slowly, but they came out. I used an impact and they still were tough to budge. The passenger side was even more stubborn and needed a breaker bar to break them free, then spun them out with the impact.
Make good use of your socket extensions and swivels, with the right combo you can reach every bolt and plug with ease.
I also did this with the engine warm. I dont know that this helped or hurt anything, but it made it much warmer in the garage, which made me happy.

So i get to return the broken plug tool. I really expected to need it, but glad I did not.

 

[AcesOverEights]

As for the official Ford spark plug socket, I just used a standard deep well 9/16 socket. It didnt have the rubber spark plug insert in the socket, so i just used a telescoping magnet to stick down the hole and bring it out. Worked like a charm. Also worked swell on the COP bolts. Its tough to get your fingers down there in some places. I also didnt use any penetrating lube. Looking back, I could have pulled all the COP's and sprayed all the plugs down, it might have helped.

 

[stamp11127]

Be thankful you don't have a Navistar 7.3 diesel under the hood.
$250 for each injector - 8x
$34 for each injector harness - 2x
$169 for valve cover gaskets - 1x
$12 for glow plugs -8x
$3 for rail end seals - 2x

$2339 for a "tune up", labor not included.

$250 for a plug change doesn't look that bad now does it...

 

[AcesOverEights]

Thats not exactly comparing apples to apples either. Diesels are another breed. People who want diesels go into it knowing the massive cost of maintenance.
Thats what kept me from looking for a diesel Excursion. I didnt want to have to fork out the big bucks for upkeep and repairs the previous owner put off.

An average gas burner has $3 spark plugs. The Expy doesnt. Its just sticker shock. It costs what it costs, and the end game is to get it running better, which it has done. In the end I'm happy. Its just money, can always go make more..

 

[Berg]

I wanna try it so bad but im afraid of one breaking and having to deal with a broken plug im at 98k and after fixing the melted pvc elbow its running smooth.i winder can it get smoother ........

 

[1997SCEBFEX]

adverstised plug life i.e. 100K, is just that advertised.
they all break down over time irrespective, it's physics.
you'll be pleasantly surprised by replacing them IMHO.

PanHandler.