My step does not fold up, but that looks like a handy one.

 

Follow Up Report:
All day Saturday was spent on this.

I have what I call a platform ladder that I use to gain access to the engine bay. It gets me about 20" of the ground.


I started on the driver side, saving the best for last!

What is that electrical bracket/vacuum junction thing? What does it do? I noticed it has a tire valve stem in it?

I did in fact put a new COP on the #5 cylinder, just because!

Here is what I found/did:

All fuel injectors are working.

No hoses are cracked, have holes or leak.

The MAF sensor was pretty dirty, as was the K&N air filter. Both cleaned.

The plugs were pretty worn. Not all showed the same wear/use patterns.
Some plugs were looser than others, in fact quite loose. I installed 10 new spark plugs, using anti-seize compound on the threads. Torqued them down to 25 lbs.-ft.

I tested the coils for the presence of spark. All ok. Even so, as noted above, did put a new COP on #5 cylinder as a "pay me now" measure, instead of having to go back in later and do it.

So far, all seems copacetic. Am driving with my fingers crossed!

Having gone through this process, I now understand/appreciate why the dealerships charge "an arm and a leg" to do it!

 

Thanks for the advice SDSC4x4! Going to give it another try today.

 

Thanks SDSC! Soaking the plug worked. 8 of 10 plugs done (1 and 2 left to do). Replaced the PCV valve too. I honestly think the in almost 50 years of working on cars, this spark plug change is the hardest single task I have done - and I used to restore Alfas!

 

Fun, isn't it? I am sure you are like me and just can't wait to do it all again; NOT! That #5 plug was really fun, wasn't it?

What torque reading did you use when tightening the plugs?

 

I looked at my COPS and 3 on the left side are not Motorcraft. Two of them have no sticker, and the 3rd one says Made in Hungary, but I can't read the MFG. I'll take out a magnifying glass and see if I can make it out. I'll be back shortly with the info....

It says right on it made in Hungary

Visteon Corporation is an American global automotive electronics supplier and Fortune 500 company spun off from the Ford Motor Company in 2000

So I guess it's still "Motorcraft"?