...to replace the spark plugs in my '07 Expy 
With just over 103,000 miles I anticipate there will be a fair amount of carbon build-up in the combustion chambers.
To prepare I have been adding cleaning/de-carbonizing products at every fill-up for the past month. I have used several different brand products including Seafoam, GumOut, Lucas & Risoleen (sp?) For the final treatment I'm ordering Yamalube **Ringfree. Normally I would not have used any other product except Yamalube Ringfree. However, I didn't have any on hand & due to a condition known as "Chronic-Procrastination" I failed to order any in time to begin "treatment".
My hope is that carbon build-up on the end of the spark plugs will have been reduced if not all together removed so as to prevent the all to common issue of the spark plugs breaking off while still inside the cylinder heads.
I will use the recommended method of cracking the plugs a 1/4 turn then spraying a decarbonizing/cleaning agent around the base of the spark plugs & allow them to soak. I will let them soak a full 24 hours or more before I attempt removal.
I plan to install Motorcraft Sparkplugs. I know Champion makes a one-piece plug that would be great but I am no fan of Champion plugs except in chain saws, outboard motors & similar applications. Autolite has a plug manufactured specifically for the 5.4L engine.
Who has used what brand spark plugs & any comments/suggestions, etc?
________________________________________________________________
**YAMALUBE RINGFREE: MY TESTIMONIAL
I first became aware of Yamalube Ringfree in 2006 when I bought a brand spanking new Yamaha F115 outboard. I followed all the manufacturers recommendations regarding care & maintenance. Adding RF to the fuel was highly recommended to keep the fuel system & combustion chamber, rings, valves, etc., clean & free of carbon build up.
I wasn't sure if it was doing any real good but figured it wouldn't hurt. Every summer I would haul my boat far north to Maine where I would spend the summers fishing. One year I had nearly 30 gallons of fuel still in the boat's 48 gallon tank. That's a lot of weight to trailer over 1,200 miles so I siphoned it into a 1998 Dodge Ram I used to have. It was my knock-around/work truck I had purchased used several years earlier.
It had a terrible spark-knock. It was a higher mileage vehicle & I was the second owner. The original owner did a lot of low-speed driving coupled with excessive idling. The result was above "normal" carbon build-up.
I went so far as to have the dealer service it. They "flashed" the computer to reset the timing & performed their expensive fuel system service/cleaning. Nothing helped. My only recourse was to run 93 octane fuel. Anything less & it would spark knock terribly. Especially during the warmer months.
So one late May day I filled my truck with 89 octane fuel from my boat which had been treated with the Yamalube Ringfree at "maintenance dose". There is a "shock" treatment dose for engines to clean carbon build-up, injectors, etc. I returned in late August & didn't drive my truck again until mid September.
I will never forget what happened next. For the first 10 to 15 miles the engine was spark knocking terribly on acceleration due to the lower octane fuel from the boat. As I drove around town running errands, etc., I suddenly realized something was missing. Spark Knock was missing. It was GONE! I mean gone as in 100%. Not only had the engine totally stopped spark-knocking but it had noticeably more power/pick-up. It didn't even sound the same.
I drove the tank to near empty over the next week then filled up with plain old regular 87 octane fuel. The engine remained quiet. The spark knock was gone. I was able to run regular fuel without any consequences. I was a believer from that day on in the power of Yamalube RingFree.
I began using RF in all my power equipment with excellent results. In my 1988 twenty horsepower two-stroke Johnson outboard which had been perfectly maintained. I performed the shock treatment first on the flush muffs. It smoked like a steam engine. The through-prop exhaust had black "sludge" coming out which was the dissolved carbon from the rings & combustion chamber as the RF did its job. I replaced the spark plugs which is usually required in two-strokes after a shock treatment.
The engine had noticeably more power at top-end. It idled a lot smoother which I hadn't thought possible as prior to shock treatment it had already idled very well. The outboard had a whole different sound at top-end. It had sort of a..."harmonic" hum is the best I can describe. The difference was tremendous.
I used to restore small outboards as a side hobby. I recall one in particular. A 1975 Evinrude 9.9 HP I had rebuilt the carburetor, replaced the fuel pump & hose, installed new points, condensers, ignition coils & spark plugs. Still, I couldn't get it to idle to my satisfaction. I had a full size test tank set up so could run the outboards at any throttle setting.
I added the shock dose of RF to the fuel & set the throttle at about half. Over the next twenty to thirty minutes the motor began to change "pitch", running smoother and stronger with each passing minute. The slight "tremble" it had went away completely. It now idled like a factory new outboard.
One more Ringfree "success" story:
I had a Craftsman lawn tractor I had bought from a friend second hand & took very good care of it. I had loaned it to to another friend. When I finally got it back over two years later it was in horrible condition. The oil was low & black, fuel tank cracked, seat torn to shreds, tires all flat & it had been out in the weather for quite some time.
The engine was running rough and had a sticking valve as it was steadily popping back through the carb at idle. I changed the oil, repaired the tank & added the shock dose of Ringfree. Ten minutes later the valve was no longer sticking. The engine smoothed out & was once again running as well as it did before I loaned it out more than two years prior.
I have more stories of my own first hand experience using Yamalube Ringfree. However, I believe anyone who has read my testimonial has enough information to form an opinion of their own at this point. These days so many products on the market claim to do this and that but often fall far short of those claims. I thought it to be somewhat important to pass on my own personal experiences with Yamalube Ringfree simply because it not only does what the manufacturer claims but literally exceeds those claims in many cases IMHO.
Thank you for reading.
With just over 103,000 miles I anticipate there will be a fair amount of carbon build-up in the combustion chambers.
To prepare I have been adding cleaning/de-carbonizing products at every fill-up for the past month. I have used several different brand products including Seafoam, GumOut, Lucas & Risoleen (sp?) For the final treatment I'm ordering Yamalube **Ringfree. Normally I would not have used any other product except Yamalube Ringfree. However, I didn't have any on hand & due to a condition known as "Chronic-Procrastination" I failed to order any in time to begin "treatment".
My hope is that carbon build-up on the end of the spark plugs will have been reduced if not all together removed so as to prevent the all to common issue of the spark plugs breaking off while still inside the cylinder heads.
I will use the recommended method of cracking the plugs a 1/4 turn then spraying a decarbonizing/cleaning agent around the base of the spark plugs & allow them to soak. I will let them soak a full 24 hours or more before I attempt removal.
I plan to install Motorcraft Sparkplugs. I know Champion makes a one-piece plug that would be great but I am no fan of Champion plugs except in chain saws, outboard motors & similar applications. Autolite has a plug manufactured specifically for the 5.4L engine.
Who has used what brand spark plugs & any comments/suggestions, etc?
________________________________________________________________
**YAMALUBE RINGFREE: MY TESTIMONIAL
I first became aware of Yamalube Ringfree in 2006 when I bought a brand spanking new Yamaha F115 outboard. I followed all the manufacturers recommendations regarding care & maintenance. Adding RF to the fuel was highly recommended to keep the fuel system & combustion chamber, rings, valves, etc., clean & free of carbon build up.
I wasn't sure if it was doing any real good but figured it wouldn't hurt. Every summer I would haul my boat far north to Maine where I would spend the summers fishing. One year I had nearly 30 gallons of fuel still in the boat's 48 gallon tank. That's a lot of weight to trailer over 1,200 miles so I siphoned it into a 1998 Dodge Ram I used to have. It was my knock-around/work truck I had purchased used several years earlier.
It had a terrible spark-knock. It was a higher mileage vehicle & I was the second owner. The original owner did a lot of low-speed driving coupled with excessive idling. The result was above "normal" carbon build-up.
I went so far as to have the dealer service it. They "flashed" the computer to reset the timing & performed their expensive fuel system service/cleaning. Nothing helped. My only recourse was to run 93 octane fuel. Anything less & it would spark knock terribly. Especially during the warmer months.
So one late May day I filled my truck with 89 octane fuel from my boat which had been treated with the Yamalube Ringfree at "maintenance dose". There is a "shock" treatment dose for engines to clean carbon build-up, injectors, etc. I returned in late August & didn't drive my truck again until mid September.
I will never forget what happened next. For the first 10 to 15 miles the engine was spark knocking terribly on acceleration due to the lower octane fuel from the boat. As I drove around town running errands, etc., I suddenly realized something was missing. Spark Knock was missing. It was GONE! I mean gone as in 100%. Not only had the engine totally stopped spark-knocking but it had noticeably more power/pick-up. It didn't even sound the same.
I drove the tank to near empty over the next week then filled up with plain old regular 87 octane fuel. The engine remained quiet. The spark knock was gone. I was able to run regular fuel without any consequences. I was a believer from that day on in the power of Yamalube RingFree.
I began using RF in all my power equipment with excellent results. In my 1988 twenty horsepower two-stroke Johnson outboard which had been perfectly maintained. I performed the shock treatment first on the flush muffs. It smoked like a steam engine. The through-prop exhaust had black "sludge" coming out which was the dissolved carbon from the rings & combustion chamber as the RF did its job. I replaced the spark plugs which is usually required in two-strokes after a shock treatment.
The engine had noticeably more power at top-end. It idled a lot smoother which I hadn't thought possible as prior to shock treatment it had already idled very well. The outboard had a whole different sound at top-end. It had sort of a..."harmonic" hum is the best I can describe. The difference was tremendous.
I used to restore small outboards as a side hobby. I recall one in particular. A 1975 Evinrude 9.9 HP I had rebuilt the carburetor, replaced the fuel pump & hose, installed new points, condensers, ignition coils & spark plugs. Still, I couldn't get it to idle to my satisfaction. I had a full size test tank set up so could run the outboards at any throttle setting.
I added the shock dose of RF to the fuel & set the throttle at about half. Over the next twenty to thirty minutes the motor began to change "pitch", running smoother and stronger with each passing minute. The slight "tremble" it had went away completely. It now idled like a factory new outboard.
One more Ringfree "success" story:
I had a Craftsman lawn tractor I had bought from a friend second hand & took very good care of it. I had loaned it to to another friend. When I finally got it back over two years later it was in horrible condition. The oil was low & black, fuel tank cracked, seat torn to shreds, tires all flat & it had been out in the weather for quite some time.
The engine was running rough and had a sticking valve as it was steadily popping back through the carb at idle. I changed the oil, repaired the tank & added the shock dose of Ringfree. Ten minutes later the valve was no longer sticking. The engine smoothed out & was once again running as well as it did before I loaned it out more than two years prior.
I have more stories of my own first hand experience using Yamalube Ringfree. However, I believe anyone who has read my testimonial has enough information to form an opinion of their own at this point. These days so many products on the market claim to do this and that but often fall far short of those claims. I thought it to be somewhat important to pass on my own personal experiences with Yamalube Ringfree simply because it not only does what the manufacturer claims but literally exceeds those claims in many cases IMHO.
Thank you for reading.
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