To all 5.4L guys. a warning from my mechanic

[ICrushedAPrius]

I've heard a few people tell me this happened to them, and now my mechanic basically promised me it is an inevitable problem.
supposedly after about 150k miles, Ford's 5.4L engines,from 1997-2001 will blow spark plugs out of the head. He said my best bet is to get the best plugs I can find, get some thread sealant, and lock them in there now before it's a problem. They will be near impossible to get out, but at least I wont have to worry for another 80k miles.
Anyone know any other good ways to avoid this? I know a few of u have posted about it in the past...any info would help.
thanks

 

[expy09]

I had this issue with my 03 4.6 liter...thought my engine was getting ready to blow up.

 

[Stoned06]

I would advise against locking them in. All you have to do is occasionally re-torque them to spec and all is good. I would say every 10K miles would be adequate. I believe it is something like 12 lb ft is the spec for plugs.

 

[Eric]

That's a sure way to ruin the heads for good, I would simply install helicoils if they blow out. Seems to me that if they have not blown out by now they are not going to. I think the issue was the short thred length.

 

[bionichicken]

Sparkplugs

Has anyone had problems with plug breakage when they are removed. Dealer told me that the longer you run mileage up the better chance of breakage.
My 02 5.4 has near 90K and I am worried. Anyone have suggestions on what to do as I approach plug change?

 

[Stoned06]

Has anyone had problems with plug breakage when they are removed. Dealer told me that the longer you run mileage up the better chance of breakage.
My 02 5.4 has near 90K and I am worried. Anyone have suggestions on what to do as I approach plug change?

The plug breakage is for the 3 valve heads..so 2005 on up. Your 2002 will have the 4 thread heads (# threads for plugs) which have a tendancy to blow a plug, but the plugs will unthread much easier (and sometimes by themselves). There are updated 8 thread heads that came out in 2003 that fixed this issue.

 

[ELVATO]

According to this site, they reccomend 28 ft/lbs of torque on the spark plugs (I think #51.)
http://www.blownoutsparkplug.com/faqs

 

[Steps]

I would advise against locking them in. All you have to do is occasionally re-torque them to spec and all is good. I would say every 10K miles would be adequate. I believe it is something like 12 lb ft is the spec for plugs.

I completely agree. That type of advice is why I am my own mechanic. I would walk away from whoever it was that told you that. Sounds like he wants to get you for a new pair of heads and the install.

The plug breakage is for the 3 valve heads..so 2005 on up. Your 2002 will have the 4 thread heads (# threads for plugs) which have a tendancy to blow a plug, but the plugs will unthread much easier (and sometimes by themselves). There are updated 8 thread heads that came out in 2003 that fixed this issue.

Exactly.

Like he said...remove them and re-torque them to spech. I plan to do this every oil change. I follow the same steps on my 06 GT Mustang with the 3v heads and breaking issue. I have yet to have one break or cause me any issues at all.

 

[97ExpGuy]

You could re-check the torque every 10k. It's a good safety precaution if you have the time and patience to do it - but I think its a bit overboard in my opinion. When I first bought my vehicle, it had 107k on it. First thing I did was a tune up. Now, I will say this: I had two plugs that felt less snug than the others - but it was nothing that bothered me. After changing the plugs, I torqued them all to 12 ft lbs of torque. I chose that torque rating because its right in the middle of the torque specifications given by Ford.

Fast forward 7k miles. I had a COP problem because of the thermostat housing leaking on the #5 plug well. I didn't know it was due to a coolant leak at the time, but I decided to change all my COPs because I didn't know their exact age and I wanted to recheck my plugs - mainly out of paranoia. All of them were spot on. Nothing "loosened up". I talked to one person on another forum who owned a 97 and said he did three changes - every 50k miles and never had one issue with a blow out. I plan on doing them same.

My conclusion is that wrongful installation is the cause for a blow out - too much torque. I read that same FAQ on torquing plugs to 30 ft lbs and decided against it. Even if you do a max of 15 ft lbs, I think you will find that feels good in your hands.

Don't fret over the issue and don't use Loctite - use plenty of anti-seize on the plug threads and you'll be fine.

 

[jrmustang]

i have 5.4 with about 145k when a plug blow on me and i was about 50 miles away from home. i didn't have money to tow home so i had to drive it. But i guess i was lucky i was able to re-thread mine.this was the last one on the passenger side. while i had everything apart i checked my other plugs and the second one back on the driver side was loose.i pulled all them and applied lock tight. now i have 160k and i just check them again and they were just find.But i plan to do thing from time to time just to be safe

 

[06LimitedNJ]

I actually had this happen on my 02 F-150 5.4.

The truck had about 60K on it when it happened. The lobe of the coil where the screw hole is broke and vibrated like hell, and vibrated the plug free. Had to get the head fixed.

 

[nvycrmn]

wow, sounds like a run of bad luck from some of you. i never had any problems with my 98 and my 01 has 111K on it and no problems yet. i think you just win some or lose some. but i agree with most. i wouldnt recommend locktite or anything to "lock" in your plugs. just make sure to keep them gapped and torqued to specifications and you "shouldnt" have any problems but with any car, some will have more problems than others.

 

[panda24619]

I nvr had a problem with a thrown plug. ive lost 2 coil packs b4. that sux. try getting to school and back with no power going up hill and down both ways in the rain. not to fun. but ive nvr thrown a plug. my cousins bfs old 150 with i dont remember which engine has thrown 3 plugs in the same cylinder. so i guess its just luck. idk wht to say.

 

[seeker]

Thread sealant ? Never on a plug.

I have always used anti sieze on every plug for every car i have worked on
for 35 years. Never had a plug spit out. My 2002 5.4 got new plugs at 90k.
I now have put 20k on them. I have lost 3 cops since but even the plugs were inspected and re-installed.
No problems here.
Seems Thread sealant would cause more problems than it would solve.

 

[reg442]

they sell repair kits just for that as ford knew of the problem. it took me about 4 hours to replace a blown out plug on our ecololine with the 5.4 # 8 cylinder.. it was my first time. kit is expensive... basically a helocoil kit.. if it happens to you its not the end of the vehicle..

 

[Sic99expedition]

I have 140,000 and have had all my plugs replaced...14 hours and a long,long extension and a good swivel and socket(the passenger side back ones are soooo hard!)So far no issues but am driving literally diagnally across the states from Washington to Georgia...will let know if ANY issues like that!

 

[walnuts4x4]

yeah I've heard of these 2v motor's spitting plugs (knock on wood) not me... but ordered new COPs and got to go get some plugs and gonna have to change mine soon so I've been looking into tips on how to change them... now only problem is why the hell did I lift it 11" with 37s gonna be a pain in the @$$ to change my plugs... lol o well should be good for at least 50K after I get them done by then I'll either get rid of my expy or go big block..

 

[A3Middie]

My wife's cousin has worked at a Ford dealership for about ten years now. He says the problem does exist but is not as common as some say that it is. The most important thing to do to help prevent it from happening is to ONLY use motorcraft plugs and torque to spec for 5.4 or 4.6, I think the specs vary depending on the born on date. Apparently the alloy in the motorcraft plug is the only one recommended for use in the 5.4 family of engines. Don't know if all of this is true or not, just on what I have been told.

 

[gjhanson2]

Hey guys, I just had one of my plugs blow out of the cylinder. I have just over 130,000 on my 5.4 and the plugs were all replaced by my shop when my coils went bad a few thousand miles ago. At first I thought it was my valves rattling and I was dreading what it would cost me to get a valve job. Over the next few days the rattling got progressively worse. The rattling wasn't too bad (I couldn't hear it when my windows were up) but it was clearly heard while the engine was running. Then while I was driving it just popped out. So for all the guys with the first generation Tritons, just listen for what sounds like a rattling valve.

My shop says exactly what a lot of you are saying, it does happen, but not nearly as often as many make it seem. I'm kinda perturbed that the plugs my shop installed popped out in only a few thousand miles, but I just don't have the time to do every repair myself... plus the whole competency thing (or lack thereof), I'm no professional yet. Haha.

 

[rburch]

i have a 97 with almost 198,000, got it from my mom and she had it since new and never had a problem and i use only ngk plugs