Regardless of whether or not it is true, the general public will believe that the friendly face behind the counter at the local parts store is the knowledgable good guy who is trying their best to help out. And to be fair, many who are on that side of the counter do want to help and do care, even if it’s only because their paycheck depends on it. Simple things like replacing headlight bulbs and testing check engine lights are fine and good, but what do you do when a customer comes in with a real-deal problem? You aren’t going to wrench in the parking lot, but you can help the customer save some money and spare them some stress, and trust me, that goes twenty times further than just referring them to the local shop. They might end up there anyways, but some knowledge beforehand might help them from getting royally screwed over.
The Ford spark plug deal…let’s sit on that for a second. The Modular motor family is, if nothing else, a workhorse engine series for Ford. It’s been in cars, trucks, vans and whatever else Ford could get a contract to put it in. For the most part, the most problematic issue with the Mod motors involved timing chains for the overhead camshafts, but then came the issues with the Trit0n 5.4 and the three-valve 4.6 that involved spark plugs that broke off in the heads or worse, stripped out the threads from the head or allowed debris to drop into the engine, all of which equals a bad day. I’ve heard of everything from full engine removal to using a potato to extract the broken section of spark plug as a fix. I wish I was joking about the potato.
Like any other task, the first thing you need is the proper tool for the job, and the second thing you need is the knowledge on how to use it. Here, The Angry Mechanic (no relation) shows how to use a Lisle 65600 plug extraction tool as best as he can from the back end of a truck engine. It’s got plenty of steps you have to cover but this should extract the broken section of plug out of the head with no damage and nothing falling down into the engine to cause problems later.
The Triton V-8….”Ford had a bladder idea” 🙁 🙂
First time I had to change a rear plug in my ’02 Expedition, I decided that it was time to start considering something different to buy.
Where’s Georgie now?
My wife’s 4.6 Crown Victoria is broken again. That’s one per week for 5 weeks. This time it’s just a serpentine tensioner. But it’s needed an oil filter adapter gasket, an intake manifold (2nd time for that), a coil pack (4 down, 4 to go), and an alternator (2nd time).
Ford sure has a better idea.
She’s driving my 10 year old daughter’s small block 1980 Z28 today.
Did the potato trick actually work? If so, that’s got to be one of the most awesome hack mechanic tricks I’ve heard of recently.
I’ve done many of the pre 2008 Triton 3 valve engines and have a couple tips for everybody. First, contrary to recommended procedures, forget breaking the plug loose and using penetrating oil or solvent, they don’t work even leaving them overnight. I have found warming the engine just enough to where you can comfortably hold hold your hand against the cylinder head is when you want to remove the plugs. If you are not sure about removing the plug without breaking you might try the OTC remover tool which clamps to the tower of the plug and helps turn the porcelain as well as the hex. If the plug does break I have had good luck with the Lisle removal tool. Also remember these plugs have a 9/16 and not a 5/8 hex so use the proper spark plug socket and use anti-seize as directed on the new plugs. Motorcraft now makes an updated plug SP546 to reduce the likelihood of breakage if like me you prefer OEM parts. Even the ones where I have to move the ECM out of the way to get to the rear passenger side plugs I can do this job in less than an hour if no plugs break. Removing broken ones takes about 15 minutes each.
are the newer motors any better for the plugs? We bought a ‘14 and I have to say this has been my only worry.