Actually proper torque is essential for all aluminum heads. The Ford problem does appear to be especially common, but it is not unique. One thing I don't understand is that no one heard of this problem before 1997. Ford modular engines have been in production since the early 90's. The plug design was the same from the early 90's until 2003. Why don't we hear about significant numbers of plugs blowing out of older Town Cars, Mustangs, or Crown Victorias (all which used the modular V-8s). My personal theory is that although the 5.4L engines uses the same heads as the 4.6L engines, the 5.4L engines stress the heads to a greater degree, making proper torquing of the plugs excessively critical. I consider this a design defect but one that can be avoided if you are very careful. In my family we have owned a total of 5 Fords with the modular V-8:
1992 Mercury Grand marquis - 4.6L no problems in 8 years, 90k miles
1997 Ford Expedition - 5.4L - no problems in 5 years 150k miles
2000 Mercury Grand Marquis - no problems in 6 years 80k miles
2001 Ford Mustang - 4.6L - no problems in 4 years, 50k miles
2003 Ford Expedition - 5.4L - no problems in 4 years, 100k miles
The plugs were changed in the two Expeditions (100k miles for the '97, 80k miles for the '03).
Oh I have seen it, also Ford would not have changed spark plug and head design in spark plug if there was not a problem there even if they hate to admit it in a massive recall. (just like quietly changing explorer) BTW, Ford is not alone on coverups as GM has been doing it for years with piston slap issue on modualr V8's due to poor production tolerance control during building to minimize waste and limit costs they ship them out the door and then say it is now normal. And then there is the Ford 6.0 PS issue of acceptable fuel level in oil. The industry standard is 2% or less but after constant issues with injector leakage problems on some 6.0',s that even caused many suffer from crank bearing failure, Ford upped its standard to 8% for
6.0! (that is a lot of fuel dilution) The sad part is that they took a solid proven engine, the 7.3, and replaced it with a troublesome one at best. Hopefully the new 6.4 will do better. Dodge has had its "problems" too that they do not talk about.
You most certainly are. First you said there was a recall. Then you claimed there was a "recall/TSB" (whatever that is). IOWs, you got your facts wrong and now you're back pedaling.
What would be the grounds for the recall?
There is no safety problem, and like it or not, the mere fact that the repair costs the vehicle owner money once the trucks are out of warranty, is not cause to issue a recall.
Quietly? Were they supposed to call you and announce something?
You really should brush up on topics before you use them to make your misinformed points, you are wrong on the spark plug issue, the explorer issue, and the 6.0 liter diesel issue... Three Strikes you are out SnowBlower.
Get your misinformed shit straight SnowBlower! The 7.3 was INCAPABLE of meeting emission standards!!! Once again, the Ford 7.3 diesel engine was INCAPABLE of meeting emission standards, it was gone with or without the 6.0 Liter. Could you sound any more ignorant if you tried? Perhaps you are trying?
You latch onto little things and make an ass out of yourself trying to make them bigger issues than they are. Take you ignorant parroting of the Firestone tire Ford Explorer media misinformation. Maybe its time to take a break and go put some lower gears in your Chivy.
BTW: My 2005 6.0 is just shy of 45,000 absolutely trouble free miles, almost broken in.
When was the last time you actually bought and drove a new Ford truck again SnowBlower? Oh yeah, that's right, you never have. Now STFU and leave the grownups alone.
You've expressed my sentiment on this issue better than I could have type it out (combining your last few posts into one reply here). I particularly feel you are right on about the engines not being made durably enough to withstand normal, real world service procedures and precautions. Obviously something about this series of engines is designed more poorly than the vast majority of the competition, otherwise these spark plug failures wouldn't be happening at all. This isn't an endorsement nor would I attempt it, but I bet you I could take any other engine and either hand tighten the plugs with only an extension and socket -or- blast them with an impact without fear of ejection (for many years/miles down the road). Why this design is so finicky, I haven't the faintest.
I trust you've seen or heard about the bizarre new head design and plugs that Ford implimented with the revised 3 valve engine design; if not, here's a link to a jpeg:
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Do those look failure prone or what? BTW, they are narrower than standard 5/8" hex plugs (9/16"). There are already technicians' accounts of the extended tip getting stuck in its bore and snapping off. Ford seems to be jumping out of the frying pan and right into the fire on this issue, to steal an idiom.
My personal feeling is, the guy that designed that head should be fired. Ford has already issued a long service bulletin that explains how to take out those monsters. And for cases where the lower shield separates from the main plug, they tell you how to thread the inside of the shield and pull it out.......EEEEKKKKKK! If I had a 3 valve Modular V-8 I would either replace the plugs yearly - or never! My experience with the older Ford V-8s was that the plugs actually don't need to be changed in at least 150k miles, so before I started messing with those things, I'd just keep on driving until I had a failure. Otherwise it is a very strong engine. A friend just got a F350 with one and he is delighted with the performance pulling his cattle trailer. He claims it pulls it better than his older F250 with the PowerStroke Diesel. I just hope he never needs to replace the plugs. Keeping up with regular maintenance is not one of his strong suits.
Ford changed the head to get more power. The so called PI heads. The spark plugs were changed at this times, but I've seen people claim these blow as well. When they changed to the three valve heads, the plugs were radically changed. I have not seen anyone claim that they blow - just that you can't get them out easily.
There are Recalls (usually safety related), Customer Satisfaction Programs (to fix common Consumer Complaints), Technical Service Bulletins (to describe common problems and solutions), and OASIS messages (to describe less common problems and solution on a faster turn around). Safety recalls are always done at the companies expense no matter what the warranty status. Customer Satisfaction Programs may cover the complete cost of a repair, or a portion, and usually have an expiration date. TSBs and Oasis messages don't imply that the company will pay for a repair, although they may cover the repair under the standard warranty.
As far as I know there are no recalls or Customer Satisfaction Programs related to the "spark plug blowing" concern. Ford did recently issue a TSB (07-21-2) authorizing a particular type of thread repair system for non-warranty repairs for certain Modular V-8 . In the past, Ford only authorized head replacement as a fix for a blown spark plug. Head replacement is still the only authorized fix for a vehicle under warranty. For vehicles out of warranty, the Lock-n-Stitch.
Here (again) is the text of the TSB:
TSB 07-21-2
4.6L 2V, 5.4L 2V, OR 6.8L 2V - SPARK PLUG THREAD REPAIR PROCEDURE - NOT COVERED UNDER NEW VEHICLE LIMITED WARRANTY
Publication Date: October 17, 2007
FORD:
1997 Thunderbird
1997-2004 Mustang
1997-2008 Crown Victoria
1997-1999 F-250 Light Duty
1997-2004 Expedition
1997-2008 E-Series, F-150
1998-2004 F-53 Motorhome Chassis, F-Super Duty
2001-2005 Excursion
2002-2006 Explorer LINCOLN:
1997-2007 Town Car 1998-1999 Navigator MERCURY:
1997 Cougar
1997-2008 Grand Marquis
2002-2006 Mountaineer
This article supersedes TSB 07-15-2 to update the vehicle model years.
ISSUE:
Some 1997-2008 vehicles equipped with a 4.6L 2V, 5.4L 2V, or 6.8L 2V engine and aluminum cylinder heads may experience a spark plug port with stripped or missing threads.
ACTION:
Follow the Service Procedure steps to correct the condition for non warrantable repairs.
SERVICE PROCEDURE
Ford Motor Company now authorizes LOCK-N-STITCH aluminum insert and tool kit as a proper repair procedure.
Follow the procedure included in the tool kit for using the tools and inserts. Tool kits and inserts can be ordered from Rotunda by calling
1-800-Rotunda (768-8632). Choose option two (2), part number
302-00001.
NOTE:FORD MOTOR COMPANY HAS DETERMINED THAT REPAIRS MADE WITH THESE ALUMINUM INSERTS AND LOCK-N-STITCH TOOLS DO NOT AFFECT THE HEAT TRANSFER FUNCTION BETWEEN THE SPARK PLUG AND THE CYLINDER HEAD. [note from Ed W -
formatting link
] NOTE:THIS PROCEDURE IS NOT AUTHORIZED AS A FORD WARRANTY REPAIR. FOR VEHICLES WITHIN WARRANTY, REPLACEMENT OF THE CYLINDER HEAD IS RECOMMENDED.
NOTE: THIS IS THE ONLY FORD AUTHORIZED PROCEDURE FOR SPARK PLUG THREAD REPAIRS.
NOTE: THIS PROCEDURE IS AUTHORIZED FOR ESP REPAIRS AND RETAIL REPAIRS.
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