NEVER buy a Ford -- engines are subpar

Sorry to hear about your problems...but it seems that a new head was overkill in this case. I would think that a heli-coil would have replaced the missing threads just fine. As for customer service....They are people just like the rest of us...and if you piss them off by yelling and being nasty, they will be SURE to put your problem at the bottom of the stack. In any case, one bad experience out of millions of satisfied customers is hardly a reason to boycott the company's product. I assume that you have sold the Ford for pennies on the dollar and are diving a Chevy now? Regards Dave Mundt

P.S...it is tough to get the truck parked under your bridge? dcm

I don't see this problem "posted all over the place." Could you be more specific about "pops a sparkplug"? Did it blow out on its own or did you just strip the threads removing one plug. There is certainly much more behind this rant than posted. Perhaps you had a shop work on the truck and they are covering for their poor workmanship. There is nothing in your post that suggests a Ford problem without more clarification, which I doubt will be forthcoming.

Actually I have heard of the "blown spark plug" issue on the Triton engines, esp the earlier v10s. I don't think it has happened to "countless" owners, unless you figure that Jason didn't bother to count them, so he considers it a "countless" number. :-)

Well, my '99 V10 with 90K miles is still going strong with no problems. And, my '92 Bronco with 190K miles is still going strong with the same engine. So, I agree that you did have a problem and are upset. However, the 'countless' Ford owners does seem like an exaggeration.

Now, I have heard of this happening before and it is a very random problem. The fix is just an insert in the plug threads. Maybe $100.

FYI, in the past my '95 Dodge also blew a plug. That was fixed with an insert. No big deal. I didn't think of calling Dodge and complaining to the world. I just got it fixed.

I've read about this on this newsgroup too. AFAIK it only affected early revisions of the new-in-2004 design and then Ford added more threads and it hasn't been a problem since. From what I remember reading it tended to affect a certain two cylinders (one on each side).

:-)

-D

A '92 Bronco with a V10???

Granted, blowing spark plugs with the Triton engines does happen. And yes, Ford's answer is to replace the head. Check the aftermarket though and you will find this issue has been addressed and there is a more affordable fix. (You can save the head. If the coil pack is destroyed, which I hear usually happens, there is no cheap fix for that.....)

Matt

First i've heard of such a problem. Sounds like you cheaped out, changed them yourself and left one loose.

Do a google search and you will find that this has happened more than once. It is a design flaw in the heads - there ain't enough threads.

I've got a 300 cu.in. I-6 with ~250,000 miles on it over 16 years that's never used a drop of oil. Customer service gave me a free paint job with the original started delaminating. And they called me, I didn't have to call them.

Look at the fordtrucks.com forum also. This happened on early 5.4L V8 and the V10. I don't know when it was fixed on the V10, but the V8 was fixed in the 2002 time frame when they went to the higher performance heads. They added more threads. I haven't heard of any of the 2004 models having this problem. As far as I can tell, my 2003 model has the newer heads.

It seems most likely to occur after a spark plug changed. I wonder if the original posted had changed his plugs?

Charles Perry P.E.

the damned bean-counters did it, trying to save a few threads................

well mine is a 1998 E350 extended, with the V10. Mechanic charged $640 to replace the helicoil... he thinks it will last the life of the engine. I hope so. It just leaves this really bitter taste in my mouth. I don't care if Ford has fixed it in newer vehicles, that didn't help me. I won't be burned by Ford again for a long time, I just really don't even like the name 'Ford'much after this.

can we assume that you won't be bothering the group anymore?

Hmmmm...potentially 9 to go........ H

If that is the only fairly major repair work you have had done on a 6 or 7 year old vehicle, you should consider that you have a really good vehicle.