THE GREAT SN-197 4.6L SPARK PLUG TOPIC! HOUTEX WRITE UP!
6/19/13, 07:47 AM
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THE GREAT SN-197 4.6L SPARK PLUG TOPIC! HOUTEX WRITE UP!
My 06 gt had just hit 70k. So I wanna replace my spark plugs.. any tips on how to install and which certain type or brand of spark plugs are vest?
Last edited by 05stangkc; 10/17/22 at 01:49 PM.
6/19/13, 08:49 PM
#2
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Get the regular stock Motorcraft plugs. Unless you're doing something odd, there's no real need to change from those. There's nothing wrong with them except the two piece design and Ford's ignorance about how they might break apart in the head when you go to extract them.
First things first. Get the Lisle extractor tool kit. It's worth it to have it around. Whether it's a buddies, a rental or you actually buy it. Don't care Lisle part number 65600. DO NOT assume you are that good at this... you will be lucky if you don't break at least one.
Tools needed: THIN WALL 9/16 spark plug socket, 3/8" rachet wrench and extensions, 1/2" to 3/8" adaptor, 1/2" torque wrench, and a breaker bar, whether that's a 1/2" or a 3/8" that'd be your choice... or need. Small flat head screwdriver for the connectors. And a set of long needle nose pliers. An 8mm, I think, socket and appropriate rachet thereto, plus an extension. There is likely a couple of other tools I'm not remembering as I type this, but those are the major ones.
Dielectric grease to put in the coils when you put them on, *professional* carb cleaner like B12, PB Blaster (Edit, 8 years later!: Liquid Wrench Penetrant. Pro if you can get it. You will thank me.), a can of air or an air compressor with an air nozzle for spraying away debris, and maybe some simple green or such to clean up things in general. And a couple of long tie wraps or such will come in handy, along with diagonal cutters or something.
And probably the most important thing to note: NICKEL anti-seize. 2400 degree stuff. Anything less will fail to do the job required. 8 oz tub is 25 dollars and can be ordered. You can get the same stuff from Ford.
You can read what happened on my 95K+ mileage spark plug swap out here if you want:
https://themustangsource.com/forums/...ry-man-521391/
Read the TSB on how to do this:
Googlin' the 08-07-06 TSB, wheee!
If that link doesn't work, google for TSB 08-7-6 or TSB Spark Plug Ford Mustang, or similar such phrase. Follow it to THE LETTER (well, mostly the letter... I have a slight mod on it, below) on the removal and replacement.
If you break off a spark plug, DO NOT PANIC. Use the Lisle tool, it will come right on out.
---
Removal:
1) Park the car overnight. COLD ENGINE IS REQUIRED.
2) Remove negative battery terminal. This is because the new spark plugs will cause the engine to run different, so you want the computer to forget what it's learned about the old plugs. Remove coil wiring and coil packs. KEEP THEM IN ORDER. Front ones in front, left ones on left, all that. DO NOT mix them up. (Note: while you are here, cleaning the throttle body is recommended, that's covered elsewhere and is really easy. BE SURE to use throttle body cleaner, NOT carb-only cleaner.)
3) CLEAN THE SPARK PLUG HOLES AND AREAS UP ON BOTH SIDES. You do not want any debris to fall in. This means moving wiring out of the way and securing it with the tie wraps if needed, degreasing the holes, cleaning the liquids out, and blowing all debris away. I would blow it from the back to the front of the engine.
4) Now the fun part. You will break loose all the spark plugs. Turn each spark plug ONLY 1/8 turn AND STOP. NO MORE than 1/8 turn!!! Do all of them in this manner. You will need the breaker bar, and it WILL be difficult. This is where they may or may not break. Ther is little you can do about that possible, this step must be done.
5) Spray carburetor cleaner into the spark plug wells. ONLY enough to get the bottom of the hex head to be level with liquid.
6) Walk. Away. And stay away for 30 minutes.
7) This is where I differ a little from the TSB, but for a good reason. When you come back, you will notice the carburetor cleaner is magically gone. Of course it is. It either wicked into the spark plug or it evaporated. Now what you do is to spray a somewhat smaller amount of PB blaster in the hole, just a little bit, about 1/2 of what you did for the carb cleaner. The reasoning is this. In some cases, one application of the carb cleaner doesn't do the trick, so they recommend you do it again. The problem with this is that you can induce a hydrolock situation in the cylinders if too much carb cleaner gets in the cylinder. So they only recommend two hits of carb cleaner, then you stop and take your chances. BUT, as two hits of the carb cleaner as instructed is ok... I decided to use the first hit to get the carbon eaten up, and then use the second hit right off for PB blaster, which is not only a loosening agent, but is itself a lubricating agent, unlike the carb cleaner. If it doesn't come out clean with this method, it ain't happening, and there's no chance of hydrolock this way, I figure.
8) Anyway, do that, then: Walk. Away. 30 more minutes. Let the PB do it's job.
9) Now you extract the spark plugs. You will want the rachet for this. You will loosen, then tighten, the spark plug at 1/4 turns, NO MORE at a time. Back and forth. Back and forth. Over and over. Until it's obvious the spark plug is finally loose and just comes on out. You will hear the shriek of really tight things being complaining about moving. It is normal and ok. When the plug is removed, be sure to put a solid piece of something in the hole to prevent cylinder contamination. Or, in my case, I just left the old plug in there until I was ready to actually swap it out.
10) If you get them all out, congrats, everything went well! Skip to the next section for install.
11) If you do not, you are now at the point of extraction. This is fun. Take your needle nose pliers and tug and tug at the spark plug remnants. You need to be quite forceful to do this. The top part will come out with the center electrode, leaving the bottom shell and ceramic in the head.
12) Spray a *teeny* amount of PB blaster into the hole. This is to lubricate the ceramic in the shell.
13) Use the Lisle tool to push in the ceramic. Slowly. But firmly. You will feel it bottom out in the shell when it does. It will make soft crunchy noises, but it's ok. It will make slightly more disconcerting crunching noises and feel bottomed out when it does get there. It's about 4 or 5 turns I think, and moves in about 1/3 of an inch maybe.
14) Use the other half of the Lisle tool and extract the shell as instructed. The PB lubrication is still on the shell so it should fairly easily come out, it's just that the top half cracked off is why it didn't come out in the first place.
15) There. Repeat as needed for all remaining stuck shells. Extraction of plugs complete. It is hoped that no ceramic or other debris got in the cylinder. IF IT DOES, YOU STOP. YOU STOP NOW. Have your car towed to a shop to have the heads removed and get the debris out. Or, if you can do it yourself, take the heads off and get it out. This is no 302, you are in effect going to take the entire top half and front of the engine apart to do this. So do NOT let stuff get in there.
---
Installation:
1) Take a new plug out of the box. You DO NOT need to gap it if it's the stock Autolite. You can check it, but it'll be in tolerance. Gapping a strap ground is really odd to do anyway. Just plug 'em in, it'll be ok.
2) Apply the nickel antisieze on the grounding shell from just below the threads to just above the grounding strap hole. DO NOT get any of this on the strap or electrode. If you do, you need to clean it with carb cleaner or something to get it off and try again. Contamination with the antisieze will ensure misfires.
3) install spark plug as normal, with proper torque as specified.
4) Repeat on all spark plugs. Clean up area, put coil packs back on in the order they were taken off. Attach wiring, ensure all cables, connections, and coils are secure as needed. Attach negative battery terminal, and you finished cleaning the throttle body and put it back on, right?
5) Ready yourself for a 10 mile trip to nowhere. When ready, get in, start the car, go drive it normal like for 10 miles or so. Job's done, go get a beer or whatever celebratory thing you'd like to do.
---
It's a daunting task at first what with the carbon/split plug issue on these motors, but after this, they shouldn't ever need to be extracted or worried about with the antiseize on 'em. If I can do it, you can.
Good luck!
First things first. Get the Lisle extractor tool kit. It's worth it to have it around. Whether it's a buddies, a rental or you actually buy it. Don't care Lisle part number 65600. DO NOT assume you are that good at this... you will be lucky if you don't break at least one.
Tools needed: THIN WALL 9/16 spark plug socket, 3/8" rachet wrench and extensions, 1/2" to 3/8" adaptor, 1/2" torque wrench, and a breaker bar, whether that's a 1/2" or a 3/8" that'd be your choice... or need. Small flat head screwdriver for the connectors. And a set of long needle nose pliers. An 8mm, I think, socket and appropriate rachet thereto, plus an extension. There is likely a couple of other tools I'm not remembering as I type this, but those are the major ones.
Dielectric grease to put in the coils when you put them on, *professional* carb cleaner like B12, PB Blaster (Edit, 8 years later!: Liquid Wrench Penetrant. Pro if you can get it. You will thank me.), a can of air or an air compressor with an air nozzle for spraying away debris, and maybe some simple green or such to clean up things in general. And a couple of long tie wraps or such will come in handy, along with diagonal cutters or something.
And probably the most important thing to note: NICKEL anti-seize. 2400 degree stuff. Anything less will fail to do the job required. 8 oz tub is 25 dollars and can be ordered. You can get the same stuff from Ford.
You can read what happened on my 95K+ mileage spark plug swap out here if you want:
https://themustangsource.com/forums/...ry-man-521391/
Read the TSB on how to do this:
Googlin' the 08-07-06 TSB, wheee!
If that link doesn't work, google for TSB 08-7-6 or TSB Spark Plug Ford Mustang, or similar such phrase. Follow it to THE LETTER (well, mostly the letter... I have a slight mod on it, below) on the removal and replacement.
If you break off a spark plug, DO NOT PANIC. Use the Lisle tool, it will come right on out.
---
Removal:
1) Park the car overnight. COLD ENGINE IS REQUIRED.
2) Remove negative battery terminal. This is because the new spark plugs will cause the engine to run different, so you want the computer to forget what it's learned about the old plugs. Remove coil wiring and coil packs. KEEP THEM IN ORDER. Front ones in front, left ones on left, all that. DO NOT mix them up. (Note: while you are here, cleaning the throttle body is recommended, that's covered elsewhere and is really easy. BE SURE to use throttle body cleaner, NOT carb-only cleaner.)
3) CLEAN THE SPARK PLUG HOLES AND AREAS UP ON BOTH SIDES. You do not want any debris to fall in. This means moving wiring out of the way and securing it with the tie wraps if needed, degreasing the holes, cleaning the liquids out, and blowing all debris away. I would blow it from the back to the front of the engine.
4) Now the fun part. You will break loose all the spark plugs. Turn each spark plug ONLY 1/8 turn AND STOP. NO MORE than 1/8 turn!!! Do all of them in this manner. You will need the breaker bar, and it WILL be difficult. This is where they may or may not break. Ther is little you can do about that possible, this step must be done.
5) Spray carburetor cleaner into the spark plug wells. ONLY enough to get the bottom of the hex head to be level with liquid.
6) Walk. Away. And stay away for 30 minutes.
7) This is where I differ a little from the TSB, but for a good reason. When you come back, you will notice the carburetor cleaner is magically gone. Of course it is. It either wicked into the spark plug or it evaporated. Now what you do is to spray a somewhat smaller amount of PB blaster in the hole, just a little bit, about 1/2 of what you did for the carb cleaner. The reasoning is this. In some cases, one application of the carb cleaner doesn't do the trick, so they recommend you do it again. The problem with this is that you can induce a hydrolock situation in the cylinders if too much carb cleaner gets in the cylinder. So they only recommend two hits of carb cleaner, then you stop and take your chances. BUT, as two hits of the carb cleaner as instructed is ok... I decided to use the first hit to get the carbon eaten up, and then use the second hit right off for PB blaster, which is not only a loosening agent, but is itself a lubricating agent, unlike the carb cleaner. If it doesn't come out clean with this method, it ain't happening, and there's no chance of hydrolock this way, I figure.
8) Anyway, do that, then: Walk. Away. 30 more minutes. Let the PB do it's job.
9) Now you extract the spark plugs. You will want the rachet for this. You will loosen, then tighten, the spark plug at 1/4 turns, NO MORE at a time. Back and forth. Back and forth. Over and over. Until it's obvious the spark plug is finally loose and just comes on out. You will hear the shriek of really tight things being complaining about moving. It is normal and ok. When the plug is removed, be sure to put a solid piece of something in the hole to prevent cylinder contamination. Or, in my case, I just left the old plug in there until I was ready to actually swap it out.
10) If you get them all out, congrats, everything went well! Skip to the next section for install.
11) If you do not, you are now at the point of extraction. This is fun. Take your needle nose pliers and tug and tug at the spark plug remnants. You need to be quite forceful to do this. The top part will come out with the center electrode, leaving the bottom shell and ceramic in the head.
12) Spray a *teeny* amount of PB blaster into the hole. This is to lubricate the ceramic in the shell.
13) Use the Lisle tool to push in the ceramic. Slowly. But firmly. You will feel it bottom out in the shell when it does. It will make soft crunchy noises, but it's ok. It will make slightly more disconcerting crunching noises and feel bottomed out when it does get there. It's about 4 or 5 turns I think, and moves in about 1/3 of an inch maybe.
14) Use the other half of the Lisle tool and extract the shell as instructed. The PB lubrication is still on the shell so it should fairly easily come out, it's just that the top half cracked off is why it didn't come out in the first place.
15) There. Repeat as needed for all remaining stuck shells. Extraction of plugs complete. It is hoped that no ceramic or other debris got in the cylinder. IF IT DOES, YOU STOP. YOU STOP NOW. Have your car towed to a shop to have the heads removed and get the debris out. Or, if you can do it yourself, take the heads off and get it out. This is no 302, you are in effect going to take the entire top half and front of the engine apart to do this. So do NOT let stuff get in there.
---
Installation:
1) Take a new plug out of the box. You DO NOT need to gap it if it's the stock Autolite. You can check it, but it'll be in tolerance. Gapping a strap ground is really odd to do anyway. Just plug 'em in, it'll be ok.
2) Apply the nickel antisieze on the grounding shell from just below the threads to just above the grounding strap hole. DO NOT get any of this on the strap or electrode. If you do, you need to clean it with carb cleaner or something to get it off and try again. Contamination with the antisieze will ensure misfires.
3) install spark plug as normal, with proper torque as specified.
4) Repeat on all spark plugs. Clean up area, put coil packs back on in the order they were taken off. Attach wiring, ensure all cables, connections, and coils are secure as needed. Attach negative battery terminal, and you finished cleaning the throttle body and put it back on, right?
5) Ready yourself for a 10 mile trip to nowhere. When ready, get in, start the car, go drive it normal like for 10 miles or so. Job's done, go get a beer or whatever celebratory thing you'd like to do.
---
It's a daunting task at first what with the carbon/split plug issue on these motors, but after this, they shouldn't ever need to be extracted or worried about with the antiseize on 'em. If I can do it, you can.
Good luck!
Last edited by houtex; 9/30/23 at 04:32 PM.
6/21/13, 08:25 PM
#3
Legacy TMS Member
Wow... a very detailed and thorough write up Houtex! Nice job...
When I did mine, I used the blow gun to blow away the debris on the heads, hit eac cylinder with PB Blaster, let sit over night. Soaked them all again the next morning, let sit for an hour or so, and they came out with no issues... Only in there for 5 years/25K, so I am sure that helped as well.
When I did mine, I used the blow gun to blow away the debris on the heads, hit eac cylinder with PB Blaster, let sit over night. Soaked them all again the next morning, let sit for an hour or so, and they came out with no issues... Only in there for 5 years/25K, so I am sure that helped as well.
6/21/13, 08:39 PM
#4
If all Houtex said fails simply have the plug extractor tool to remove the broken ones.. I did mine at 60 and I got only one out with no problem. All it does is take more time. Tools is easy to use and only scary on the first plug you break.
I did NOT use Nickle AS... Mine have been in for 5000 now... Time to check them....
I did NOT use Nickle AS... Mine have been in for 5000 now... Time to check them....
6/21/13, 09:05 PM
#5
Legacy TMS Member
You know, I wondered about that... 1600 vs 2400 degrees F inside the cylinder... Which typically doesn't get more than 600 degrees, or so I'm readin'...
It must be that the pressure plus the temperature might not allow the copper based 1600 stuff to survive, so the 2400 nickel stuff is required?
Anyway, yeah, I would be taking them out, cleaning, puttin' them back in and removing again, cleaning, until the other stuff is gone, and puttin' the nickel on it.
Good luck on it!
---
I thought about the PB Blaster only approach too... but it doesn't say anything about carbon. More a rust killer/lubrication thing. So I figured the dual approach would be ok, and except for the 8th one where I guess I got a lil' gorilla, they all came out fine as described. Even at 95.5K. Heh.
And regarding the cleaning of the holes... my dirt didn't blow away. It was grime, I guess. o.0 Whatever it was, that wasn't gonna stick around so I could find out if it'd be ok inside the cylinders.
Well, that, and the frackin' wire looms kept falling apart as I moved them around. >.<
It must be that the pressure plus the temperature might not allow the copper based 1600 stuff to survive, so the 2400 nickel stuff is required?
Anyway, yeah, I would be taking them out, cleaning, puttin' them back in and removing again, cleaning, until the other stuff is gone, and puttin' the nickel on it.
Good luck on it!
---
I thought about the PB Blaster only approach too... but it doesn't say anything about carbon. More a rust killer/lubrication thing. So I figured the dual approach would be ok, and except for the 8th one where I guess I got a lil' gorilla, they all came out fine as described. Even at 95.5K. Heh.
And regarding the cleaning of the holes... my dirt didn't blow away. It was grime, I guess. o.0 Whatever it was, that wasn't gonna stick around so I could find out if it'd be ok inside the cylinders.
Well, that, and the frackin' wire looms kept falling apart as I moved them around. >.<
Last edited by houtex; 6/21/13 at 09:20 PM.
6/28/13, 12:13 AM
#6
Houtex, great write up!! I ordered the Lisle tool and am getting ready to swap mine out. I have 114,000 miles on the stock plugs... I am expecting to break most if not all of them. Wish me luck!!!!! (I'm gonna need it...)
6/28/13, 09:37 AM
#7
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Thanks a lot for the info! Time to change my spark plugs then! I might have to check my repair manual and search some YouTube videos. would you say its better for someone else to do it for me? If so, what's the estimate cost for that?
would you say its better for someone else to do it for me? If so, what's the estimate cost for that?
6/28/13, 07:34 PM
#8
I need to get off my **** and do the same. I'm at 106K so I'm overdue as well. Please update us after you do it. I'm particularly interested in how much difficulty someone experiences that's over 100k miles.
6/28/13, 11:02 PM
#9
Legacy TMS Member
Aw shucks folks. Just happened to have done it right when this was asked, so it was *real* fresh in mah brain.
Luken, I would say that it's not worth payin' someone else to do it... with the sole exception of if you simply do not want to, or are terrified of doing it. I wasn't extremely thrilled with the prospect of doing it, I'd put it off as long as possible, but Awesome simply wasn't happy with the old plugs anymore and they hadda be done.
I figured that the worst case was that if I screwed it up, I'd be paying either way, because the shop NEVER does a free head removal for an unfortunate spark plug change gone awry. Ever. There will be wallet dentage. So the only real thing I had to lose was the tow cost if I needed it, and I'd gain several hundred, if not a couple thousand, dollars for the spark plug swap and potential head removal.
At which point I said... "Screw it. I'm doin' this, hold my beer."
I won. Yay.
If I can do it, you can. Just need to be all boy scout about it is all, have a few hours to not do anything else but these things, and it'll all be golden. Go fer it!
Luken, I would say that it's not worth payin' someone else to do it... with the sole exception of if you simply do not want to, or are terrified of doing it. I wasn't extremely thrilled with the prospect of doing it, I'd put it off as long as possible, but Awesome simply wasn't happy with the old plugs anymore and they hadda be done.
I figured that the worst case was that if I screwed it up, I'd be paying either way, because the shop NEVER does a free head removal for an unfortunate spark plug change gone awry. Ever. There will be wallet dentage. So the only real thing I had to lose was the tow cost if I needed it, and I'd gain several hundred, if not a couple thousand, dollars for the spark plug swap and potential head removal.
At which point I said... "Screw it. I'm doin' this, hold my beer."
I won. Yay.
If I can do it, you can. Just need to be all boy scout about it is all, have a few hours to not do anything else but these things, and it'll all be golden. Go fer it!
Last edited by houtex; 6/28/13 at 11:04 PM.
6/29/13, 07:14 AM
#10
Legacy TMS Member
I agree with what is posted above except screw those 2 piece plugs get some one piece plugs. WWW.sparkplugs.com had some good prices
6/29/13, 09:10 AM
#11
Legacy TMS Member
Yeah, I thought about it for a few minutes... but it just looked like most of what I've read about anything other than stock on a stock motor/tune/setup, for whatever reason, cause misfires, bad running, etc. Perhaps it's the squeaky wheel syndrome on that.
In any case, made my decision, and I'm ok with it. I am unscared of my two pieces, and since I'm not tuning or such, they're fine for me. I know I can get 'em out (unless it's freakin' *disastrous*), and with the nickel antiseize, it's likely not to require any effort the next time in 6 years/100000 miles (ish.)
I'll let y'all know then.
Glenn does bring up a point that I think one should think about, and research, and see if it's right for you.
In any case, made my decision, and I'm ok with it. I am unscared of my two pieces, and since I'm not tuning or such, they're fine for me. I know I can get 'em out (unless it's freakin' *disastrous*), and with the nickel antiseize, it's likely not to require any effort the next time in 6 years/100000 miles (ish.)
I'll let y'all know then.
Glenn does bring up a point that I think one should think about, and research, and see if it's right for you.
Last edited by houtex; 6/29/13 at 09:11 AM.
6/29/13, 01:48 PM
#12
GT Member
You know, I wondered about that... 1600 vs 2400 degrees F inside the cylinder... Which typically doesn't get more than 600 degrees, or so I'm readin'...
It must be that the pressure plus the temperature might not allow the copper based 1600 stuff to survive, so the 2400 nickel stuff is required?
It must be that the pressure plus the temperature might not allow the copper based 1600 stuff to survive, so the 2400 nickel stuff is required?
Copper and aluminum don't get along that is why you should use nickel.
Last edited by 2k7gtcs; 6/29/13 at 03:01 PM.
6/29/13, 04:51 PM
#14
Legacy TMS Member
AH. Learnt something, and yep, that'd be hella important to not use it for this.
/I prolly shoulda did more research on it, but I was goin' with the temps, not the metallurgical aspects. SCIENCE!
/I prolly shoulda did more research on it, but I was goin' with the temps, not the metallurgical aspects. SCIENCE!
7/27/13, 01:01 PM
#15
Houtex, you are a genius!! My thanks to you!
I have completed the spark plug replacement. Houtex, you absolutely nailed the directions! I have to give you enormous props!
I had 114,633 miles on the original plugs. After reading all of the horror stories of broken plugs and the drama involved in taking the heads off the car to get the pieces out, I was not eager to attempt the plug replacement earlier. I figured with the amount of carbon that must be built up around the plugs, I'd break all eight of them and be in for a disaster. The dealer quoted me $850 to do them! He also seemed very eager to do the work (I wonder why?!?)
Houtex inspired me to do this myself - so I got the Lisle tool from Amazon ($80 shipped), the Motorcraft SP515 spark plugs ($69 shipped from American Muscle), the nickel anti seize and dielectric grease (Amazon, $14 shipped), and a 9/16" spark plug socket from O'Reilly's ($3.99).
I started with blowing all of the dirt out from around the COP boots with my air compressor and shop vac. I am not one that ever went to car shows so this is the first time I have ever cleaned the (admittedly very dirty) engine. Pulled the COPs, loaded the plugs with PB blaster/carb cleaner, following Houtex's instructions to the letter!
Like Houtex says, if they are going to break, it is what it is and you can't change it. The way you can tell is that all of a sudden, as you are turning the plug with your 3/8" breaker bar the groaning and cracking noises stop and the plug seems to start spinning freely. "Awesome!" you think. "I got this plug out!" That turns out to be a lie! You have just broken the plug.
The Lisle tool was a heaven-sent gift from God! Make sure you grease up the extractor bolt with axle grease or something so that the threads don't get dull. Also, remember it's RIGHT HAND THREAD! I forgot, and had a brief moment of panic when I kept turning the extractor bolt and it wouldn't seem to bite into the spark plug shell. Visions of pulling the head came to mind and other stomach turning thoughts. Once I remembered that "lefty loosey righty tightey" didn't work here, everything was fine.
I had another bad moment when despite my best efforts with my shop vac and a reducer to keep the workspace clean and avoid having junk fall into the cylinder, I found that I had tightened the extractor bolt too much to get a good grip and I had shattered the ceramic and broken the ground strap (see the picture). The ceramic shards and metal fragments had fallen in to the cylinder. Houtex's instructions said that I was screwed if junk fell in to the cylinder.
My solution? Straws! A year ago when I was in Las Vegas I had ordered a drink from a place called "Fat Tuesday's". The drink comes in a plastic container and has two straws that are approximately 2 feet long. Using ductape, I taped both of those straws to my shop vac reducer and got a good amount of vacuum out of the end of them. I shoved those straws through the spark plug holes and vacuumed the shards and debris out. I know it worked because a lot of the junk was sticking to the ductape on the reducer. Worked like a charm, and actually better than the surgical tubing I tried the first time!
My last bad moment came when I finished all eight plugs and it was time to turn the key. Fired the engine up, and it chugged, stumbled, blew raw fuel odor all over the garage, and would barely idle. As my heart sank and I wondered what I had missed (engine running the whole time) the idle began to improve and the rough running smoothed out. I then decided to go for a test run, and after the first block the engine was running like new! Maybe I got a little too happy with the nickel anti seize or something. I then took the Pony on a shakedown ride out to Cabazon and she performed flawlessly.
Overall, the project was a resounding success! Thanks to Houtex for giving me the courage to do this with your excellent instructions!!! No thanks to Ford for designing this garbage spark plug. In my '65 Chevy I could have changed all eight plugs in 15 minutes without a care in the world. Hell, even my '89 5.0 liter wasn't this bad (with the exception of the passenger side rear plug, THAT was hell!).
Final score: 3 broken plugs. 2 that I thought were broken but turned out to be weirdly easy to unthread and came out intact. 3 plugs that fought me, squeaking and groaning to the last, but emerged unscathed.
Thanks again Houtex!!!
I had 114,633 miles on the original plugs. After reading all of the horror stories of broken plugs and the drama involved in taking the heads off the car to get the pieces out, I was not eager to attempt the plug replacement earlier. I figured with the amount of carbon that must be built up around the plugs, I'd break all eight of them and be in for a disaster. The dealer quoted me $850 to do them! He also seemed very eager to do the work (I wonder why?!?)
Houtex inspired me to do this myself - so I got the Lisle tool from Amazon ($80 shipped), the Motorcraft SP515 spark plugs ($69 shipped from American Muscle), the nickel anti seize and dielectric grease (Amazon, $14 shipped), and a 9/16" spark plug socket from O'Reilly's ($3.99).
I started with blowing all of the dirt out from around the COP boots with my air compressor and shop vac. I am not one that ever went to car shows so this is the first time I have ever cleaned the (admittedly very dirty) engine. Pulled the COPs, loaded the plugs with PB blaster/carb cleaner, following Houtex's instructions to the letter!
Like Houtex says, if they are going to break, it is what it is and you can't change it. The way you can tell is that all of a sudden, as you are turning the plug with your 3/8" breaker bar the groaning and cracking noises stop and the plug seems to start spinning freely. "Awesome!" you think. "I got this plug out!" That turns out to be a lie! You have just broken the plug.
The Lisle tool was a heaven-sent gift from God! Make sure you grease up the extractor bolt with axle grease or something so that the threads don't get dull. Also, remember it's RIGHT HAND THREAD! I forgot, and had a brief moment of panic when I kept turning the extractor bolt and it wouldn't seem to bite into the spark plug shell. Visions of pulling the head came to mind and other stomach turning thoughts. Once I remembered that "lefty loosey righty tightey" didn't work here, everything was fine.
I had another bad moment when despite my best efforts with my shop vac and a reducer to keep the workspace clean and avoid having junk fall into the cylinder, I found that I had tightened the extractor bolt too much to get a good grip and I had shattered the ceramic and broken the ground strap (see the picture). The ceramic shards and metal fragments had fallen in to the cylinder. Houtex's instructions said that I was screwed if junk fell in to the cylinder.
My solution? Straws! A year ago when I was in Las Vegas I had ordered a drink from a place called "Fat Tuesday's". The drink comes in a plastic container and has two straws that are approximately 2 feet long. Using ductape, I taped both of those straws to my shop vac reducer and got a good amount of vacuum out of the end of them. I shoved those straws through the spark plug holes and vacuumed the shards and debris out. I know it worked because a lot of the junk was sticking to the ductape on the reducer. Worked like a charm, and actually better than the surgical tubing I tried the first time!
My last bad moment came when I finished all eight plugs and it was time to turn the key. Fired the engine up, and it chugged, stumbled, blew raw fuel odor all over the garage, and would barely idle. As my heart sank and I wondered what I had missed (engine running the whole time) the idle began to improve and the rough running smoothed out. I then decided to go for a test run, and after the first block the engine was running like new! Maybe I got a little too happy with the nickel anti seize or something. I then took the Pony on a shakedown ride out to Cabazon and she performed flawlessly.
Overall, the project was a resounding success! Thanks to Houtex for giving me the courage to do this with your excellent instructions!!! No thanks to Ford for designing this garbage spark plug. In my '65 Chevy I could have changed all eight plugs in 15 minutes without a care in the world. Hell, even my '89 5.0 liter wasn't this bad (with the exception of the passenger side rear plug, THAT was hell!).
Final score: 3 broken plugs. 2 that I thought were broken but turned out to be weirdly easy to unthread and came out intact. 3 plugs that fought me, squeaking and groaning to the last, but emerged unscathed.
Thanks again Houtex!!!
7/27/13, 01:20 PM
#16
To do the job myself cost:
Lisle tool: $80
Plugs: $69
Dielectric grease and Nickel Anti Seize: $14
9/16 socket, PB Blaster, Carb cleaner: $17
Long needle nose (mine weren't, so I needed new long ones) $12 at Harbor Freight
Total cost: $192. And that's including all tax, shipping, etc. That's a savings of $658 over what the lowest price dealership wanted. I'll take the win.
Also keep in mind you can use the grease/anti seize/socket/pliers again in the future, so those costs are just one-time charges if you don't already have them.
Overall, I am with Houtex - don't pay someone to do this job. Take your time, print out his instructions (I didn't really need the Ford TSB, Houtex's instructions were perfect) and you'll be fine.
7/28/13, 11:36 AM
#17
Legacy TMS Member
I am humbled sir, as I am a mere human who can type fast and remembers too many dang things.
I am glad that I helped ya out, but even more glad you did the write up on your experiences with this! This one trick here:
That is simply *fantastic* and should help anyone else out in the future. I, for one, am definitely going to remember that trick.
So thank YOU, mrkabc, for that addition to the list of things to have for this journey. E'reyone print that out too, k? K.
And gratz to ya too!
I am glad that I helped ya out, but even more glad you did the write up on your experiences with this! This one trick here:
My solution? Straws! A year ago when I was in Las Vegas I had ordered a drink from a place called "Fat Tuesday's". The drink comes in a plastic container and has two straws that are approximately 2 feet long. Using ductape, I taped both of those straws to my shop vac reducer and got a good amount of vacuum out of the end of them. I shoved those straws through the spark plug holes and vacuumed the shards and debris out. I know it worked because a lot of the junk was sticking to the ductape on the reducer. Worked like a charm, and actually better than the surgical tubing I tried the first time!
So thank YOU, mrkabc, for that addition to the list of things to have for this journey.
E'reyone print that out too, k? K.And gratz to ya too!
7/28/13, 01:31 PM
#18
My 06 has only 38k miles on it, but I wanted to change the plugs for peace of mind. Bought new one piece Champions cheap on Ebay and my shop charged $75 labor to put them in. Wasn't ready to try it myself, but just changed the oil for the first time so I'm making progress lol.
7/29/13, 05:33 AM
#19
Shelby GT350 Member
It still boggles my mind, that Ford would have told us to wait till 100K to change them. I got S/C'd early on and only had about 18k on the OEM plugs when they got swapped out. That's been pretty much the interval since then, and I've never had any problems. I do have the tool though, just incase
