I am looking at buying a 6.2.

My mechanic told me to stay away from the 5.4 due to issues with two piece spark plugs that are bad to seize and break when trying to change them. Apparently Ford says you are supposed to pull the head and beat them out from the inside to replace broken plugs. Also anytime you change the plugs, the coil packs in the 5.4 typically start to fail shortly thereafter. The way the engine is designed, it is difficult to get to the last two coil packs on the passenger side. Due to these two issues alone, he has had other mechanics bring him their trucks to repair these issues as they don't want to deal with them.

So here is my question...how do you rate the design of the 6.2? Do any of the above issues carry over to this engine? Are there any other common issues that I should be aware of?

I currently have a 6.4 Liter diesel...I have seen a number of postings on this engine that state that repair requires removal of the entire cab. This is a prime example of unnecessary repair labor that I am trying to avoid in my next truck!!!

Thanks for any tips...I have scanned the forums but have not seen anything major to date...but then I have just started researching this engine.

 

I don't think anyone has enough miles on one of these to have changed the plugs yet, so you might not get a response to that. And yes you do have to pull the cab of on the 6.4 for quite a few different things...totally rediculous and that's one of the reasons I'm trading mine in next week for a 6.2. Along with the fact that diesel is more money, without any gain in mileage. Also the higher maintenance costs of fuel filters, oil etc. And don't get me started on that f-ing "regen"....what a horrible idea. I looked under the hood of a new SD w/6.2 when I test drove it and there is alot more room under the hood than there is with our 6.4's. You won't see any cab off repairs on the new gas trucks. Being such a new engine, it may take awhile yet to prove itself completely, but so far I haven't heard any major horror stories.

 

One of my friends is a mechanic and he said the plugs are no problem. Pull the fender liners to do the bottom ones.

 

your mechanic is an idiot. There are removal tools available to remove broken plugs.

Just had my mechanic change our expeditions plugs for the second time. First round broke 3, this round none.

Ford does not nor has ever recommended pull the heads and beat out the broken plug.

You need a new mechanic.

 

LMAO Theres nothing like using a big #@$%&*# hammer to change your spark plugs!!!!!

 

I agree that there are tools to remove the broken plugs without removing the heads...and my mechanic has them. The problem is that it is possible for part of the ceramic plug to break off and fall down into the head...which causes a whole new set of problems. A good mechanic will not replace the plugs with factory 2 piece but with aftermarket 1 piece...which may be why you did not break any this go round. I brought this up to reference the poor design by Ford to see if the 6.2 motor has any similar design flaws. How many other engines do you hear of where the mechanic EXPECTS to break plugs during removal?

Yes Ford has recommended pulling the heads to beat out the broken plug as Ford is where my mechanic got his information.

Since you were so kind as to drag this thread down an insult myself and my mechanic...allow me a moment to bring things into perspective...I see in your signature that you drive a 6.0...with all the problems that motor has...it isn't hard to see who is the idiot.

 

Thanks for the good info.

 

I also own an 06 expedition with the 5.4 done plugs twice now. They broke three the first time. extracted with the tool. Second round none broke.

By the way my 6.0 has over 300,000 miles on it. Runs like new.

 

This is not true at all, Ford has a special kit that bonds to the section of plug left in the head to pull it out.

Most Ford mechanics though (my own included) use the Mac Tool to thread into the lower portion of the plug and pull it out.

 

The 5.4 has been a great engine in my 2000 F250, it has 242,000miles on it, still runs great and 1 plug is original, I changed the other 7 at 170,000 miles, did not break any of them, never had any issues with the coil packs.

I disagree with your mechanic on the difficulty of them and would like to see the Ford service bulletin that says they have to be beat out with a hammer.

I have a 6.2 in my 2012 F250 4WD Lariat, it looks like it is easier to get to the plugs on it.

 

beating them out would ruin that head....it just doesn't make any sense at all why someone would say such a thing if they had any clue about mechanical things at all.