OK, truck (2008 Navigator, 2wd, Ultimate Limited Edition) took a dive last week and was barely running. I took it on faith that it was the coil packs malfunctioning, so I bit the bullet and ordered a full set of 8 Accel Super Coil Packs from Amazon for $218 plus $9 for overnight shipping.

Installation went perfectly for the first three, then on the 4th one the cap on the electrical connection to the fuel injector snapped and the little plastic retainer thing broke when I was taking it off. Ugh. I pushed it back on and it felt snug.

So, when I was doing the other four, I found that one on that side was was snapped too and they had put a zip tie on it to hold it snug, so I will end up doing that for all of them now. I bought it used and had two coil packs fixed on vacation last year, so not sure when the first one was broke. Oh well, don't want to have to replace the harness, but if I can those little caps I'll replace them.

Anyway, I replaced all of the rest of the coil packs and for the last 3 didn't even remove the connection to the fuel injector so as not to break any more of them.

When completed, I took it for a drive and it seems to drive better than ever. I am glad I paid a little more for the Accel ones and if I have any more problems, I will update here. Just thought I'd share my experience.

 

Did you replace the sparks?

 

I did not at this time, as I have heard the horror stories. May try it myself or take to the dealership in the relative near future, not sure.

 

Its not too bad if you let them soak. I only broke 2 but was able to get them out with the lisle tool.

 

Thanks. I sprayed some PB down in the plugs when I changed the coil packs as I may attempt the plugs myself in the near future. I would really rather not break any and then possibly strip out the head getting the broken one out, ugh.

Man, it sux that the design is like that, sheesh. My brother has an 08 Expedition with the same motor and he took his to the dealer for his and I think he said they broke 3, and he of course had to pay for the time of extraction and extra work. Ridiculous.

 

What is the build date of your Navi ? Ford changed the design I think in late November of 2007 so some early 08's have the old design and the later built ones have the newer design. You can also check to see if the coil boots are brown = newer style.



Matt

 

I ran the VIN and it came out as a 3V 5.4L, and when I removed the coil packs they were black. I just yanked them all and put on the Accel ones, but kept the two they replaced last year when I was on vacation though, just in case.

 

Look at the sticker on the door jamb and it should have the approximate build month. If you have a dealer run the VIN through OASIS it will tell you the exact build date. ( or post it here and I can check it )


Matt

 

Will do, thank you.

 

I hope your near future plug change happens in a week or so. I did the same soak procedure you have done, and I developed a mis-fire do to the cleaner wicking all the way down the spark plug. It happened a week after I sparyed MC carb cleaner in the wells.

On a side note, I used a 14v cordless impact to remove the plugs. None broke. Worked like a champ. Still sweat my @#@ off tell all eight came out.

 

PT, LOL, thanks, I may have to do that this weekend. Really, an impact wrench? Weren't you afraid that would snap the plugs in half with the hitting motion of the impact wrench? I'm starting to sweat now just at the thought of it, lol.

 

I figured if it was going to break with hand tools, why not try with a small impact wrench. I used hand tools and a torque wrench to re-install the plugs.

I also removed them with the engine hot. All were out in less than an hour. That included removing cop's. I did have the removal tool on hand in case some broke.

 

When I decided it was time to change the plugs (2006 Mark LT 4x2, 5.4, 35,000 miles) with the Motorcraft SP 515’s. Although I knew about the carbon build-up/plug removal issue, I decided not to change the plugs until there was a replacement plug that I was comfortable with…meaning I knew it was a good quality plug in terms of component design and construction. Although I did follow the most recent TSB, I also relied on my experience back in the 1970’s when aluminum heads & intake manifolds were just entering the street scene and never-seize did not exist. Here are the exceptions to the TSB that I did…
1. I ran Lucas fuel injection cleaner, mixed at 3 times their recommendation in 1 full tank of gasoline. Purpose…if I was lucky, it would dissolve or loosen any carbon buildup (although many do a real fuel injection cleaning also- and it is probably a best practice to do if you have more than 45-50,000 miles on the plugs)
2. Although I am a fan of PB Blaster, I used a product called ChemSearch “Yield”. The issue I have with using carb cleaner is the lack of lubrication…..in the old days of removing steel plugs from aluminum heads, we use to mix up acetone & ATF…or of we needed more lubrication, kerosene & ATF, “Yield” provides this lubrication- much better IMHO than even PB Blaster.
3. Yes, I put anti-seize on the plug threads (I know the TSB says not to)
4. Of course…a lot of patience, I really doubt if I ever put more than 20-25 lbs of force during removal (purposefully)
The end result, only one plug even “squeaked” coming out (but it basically unscrewed like a regular plug- literally). Plug #4 was initially a little stubborn, but after the second try, then waiting about 30 minutes, it came out with very little effort…just kept wiggling the plugs (tightening/loosening) by 1/8th or even less of a turn- and they all came out without a single one breaking or any issue really. Another technique that can definitely be used is to loosen the plugs about 1/8 to ¼ of a turn, start the engine for about 1 minute- this allows the flame to travel up around the plug to burn off the carbon, let cool, then remove with the process I previously described.
As far as using an air ratchet, I can understand the theory of “shocking” the carbon loose, but I have also seen and experienced in my younger days some real disasters.
Actual working time: 2 hours…..including washing my hands, total time was 5 hours.
FYI- Why I choose Motorcraft.
In the 1970’s I ran (like many) Champion’s in just about everything (even had the gold palladiums), but stopped in the early 1980’s when they changed their copper-core design and the resulting quality problems that IMHO still exist today. Since then I have run Splitfire (non-platinum) in my old world (1960’s) cars, Bosch in my late 1990’s vehicles (both because the cylinder head design really prefers these types of plugs), but I really had hesitation because of the construction/component quality of the non-Motorcraft plugs and really questioned the durability in this application about the Motorcraft SP508 or SP 509’s which are single platinum. Given the types of loads and burn/flame promulgation rates in the chambers, I really had doubts about the style of the plug with single platinum having the ability to “survive” as long as they engineers said. What do ya know…the SP 515’s are double platinum.

 

Hated to do it, but pulled the trigger and had the stealer do the plug change today. Even with a 20% rebate card, it still came to $407.80 with tax.

They charged $19.15 for the plugs (available online for ~$12.15), which is a rip.

They said only one broke so I guess it could have been worse. Drives like a champ, but I am still in pain taking that hit on my account. Such BS that we have to pay for their crappy design, bastages...

 

should have asked to see the broken plug..just to be sure they weren't BS'ing you