So, last weekend the GF said she had been hearing a tick in her 2006 4L Ranger. I crawl up under it and see the right rear spark plug and wire vibrating and could tell it was loose. I jack it up, take the right front tire off, pull the liner back, and finally get a socket on the plug to tighten it. I tighten it by hand first the then the finale snug down with the ratchet. I notice it snugged up but I just felt it was trying to slip so I stopped. Well, it lasted two days and now has fallen out again. It appears the head is stripped. I am going to pull the plug out tonight and see if I can see where the threads are stripped. I assume I will find material on the threads of the plug.

My question is, is there anyway for me to make a temp fix till there is time to pull the head and repair it properly? I saw NAPA used to have a kit for the Triton engine but when I went to their web site I couldn't even find that anymore. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

 

I'm sure that most of the parts stores will have a repair kit available, whether in stock or have to order. The thread cutting tool is easier to use in aluminum heads, but will work for iron, just have to be a bit gentler with it.

You should be able to do this without pulling the head.
One tip I can add, having done quite a few of these. Fill the threads and grooves in the cutter with some type of grease. This will help capture most of the shavings, rather than letting them fall into the cyl. Don't try to go all the way in at once. Go in a little ways, back it out, clean/reapply grease, and go in a bit farther. This also minimizes the shavings that can fall inside.
Once the hole is cut out to the proper depth, spray some carb or brake cleaner on the threads to remove the grease left behind, so the thread locker has something to seal against.

 

Used to be called Heli-Coil. Do not know if this is still around. I did a bunch of these back in the day when aluminum heads were getting started, and people still changed their plugs every 10-12,000 miles, and would stand on that spark plug socket, and eventually after replacing plugs over a period of time, the plug would blow out. I still have the thread cutting tool, and the peen tool. You cut the threads using grease(clean often, replace grease), thread in the coil, and then use the peen tool(tap with a light hammer) to set the coil, to keep it from turning when you reinstall the spark plug. Comes in a kit, with good instuctions. Check your plug size. Use anti-sieze when you put in the plug, and no need to stand on it. If you find this product on the shelf, let us know..

 

Ok, I picked up a thread chaser at Auto Zone yesterday. I got home last night and ran it down the threads. Had there been room I could have screwed it all the way in by hand. As it was it was 12th of a turn at a time with a stubby ratchet. Chaser all the way in and it wobbles. Looks like the threads are shot. I also looked at a re-threader with a coil insert at A-Z yesterday also. It would most likely work but there is absolutely no room to work. This plug is right under the evaporator/heater core housing. Now I am wondering if Loctite Form a Thread will hold it until I have time to tear the engine apart.

 

No. Form a thread is very unlikely to hold, due to the heat and pressure.

 

You can take the fender inner panel out. Not to big of a job this will free up some space. You should be able then to work through the wheel well. Not ideal but may give you the room you need. I always changed that plug from the wheel well albeit without removing the inner panel. LOL

 

Problem solved. I installed a new plug and it actually tightened up. We took it to the Ford dealer and traded it for a new F150.

Do i feel bad? No, KBB had low on the truck at $9K. They gave her $7250.

 

Hey purplewg where did you trade the ranger? I want to make sure I don't buy from that dealer. Haha.

 

It was on the east coast of Fla. I am pretty sure the dealer gives 90 warranty on their used cars. This problem should show up in less than a week so the buyer will be covered. I did think about that.