I am looking at a 99 club wagon 1 owner van with the 5.4 engine. Should I be concerned with spark plugs freezing or breaking? Van has 158k. I have a 98 with the 4.2 that I can sell for almost the same price as the 99 with the larger engine. Any concerns or benefits with the 5.4?

I want more power. The v6 is under powered and it gets about the same fuel economy as the v8. I get about 12 in town and 15-17 highway and overall average 15.5. I have been warned that the 5.4 has frozen plug issues. I thought that was for engines made after 2007.

 

Nope. It's quite rare for someone to have a problem getting a plug out of a 2V engine. The 3V 5.4L that had those issues was never put into the E-series, so that's one less thing for you to worry about.

Make sure to use a torque wrench when installing new plugs though. Engines before 2002 had fewer threads in the head that can cause incorrectly torqued plugs to loosen up and eject.

 

Thanks for the tip/insight. This clears a lot of confusion. You and JWA always have the "facts".

 

Well, let's not get too carried away with premature kudos, at least in JWA's regard.

Building on Tom's advice any modular motor with plugs left in too long could have small issues with removing them however following the advice found here on FTE, especially the modular motor-specific forums isn't difficult, mostly time consuming when compared to changes at reasonable intervals.

Torque is muy importante so using a torque wrench is vitally important. While there's little if any factual info on blown or stripped out plug holes my guess is it could be greatly attributed to incorrect installation or over-tightening of plugs. This could have happened even during first assembly even at the factory.

Blown plugs, while an issue and major inconvenience for those who've endured it isn't really all that common considering the number of modular motors installed and still running. Multiply the trucks on the roads by the number of cylinders and you'd have quite a huge number.

Ask the current owner when and by whom the plugs were last changed. If "never......" there could be minor issues with plugs difficult but not impossible to removed without damage. In that instance it would be nothing more than using a good penetrating fluid like Kroil in each plug hole before attempting removal. When time to remove turn each plug out 1/8th turn, reapply Kroil, tighten plug and repeat turning out, this time 1/4 or 1/2 turn. Repeat this until the plug turns out freely.

I use only Motorcraft plugs, nickel-based anti-seize and slightly more torque than the 7-14 ft/lbs recommended---mine go to 22-23 ft/lbs. Keep in mind this is slightly controversial however when done properly it yields results that so far are problem free.

Longevity of the 5.4 is pretty legendary when/if recommended maintenance is followed. I've bought two used E250's with the 5.4, one w/203K miles, another w/165K miles when they came to me. Both are trouble free after 70+K miles and 35K miles on them respectfully. Oil changes are vital along with routine inspections and the occasional performance review via even a simple scanner that can access live data.

So that's all I know for now...............hope its helpful.

 

This is very helpful info. I will look at the service records of this van. It's a one owner van and the owner works for the Air Force. It appears to be a squared away van.

I changed the plugs on my E150 4.2 v6 twice since I owned it and it was easy. How much more difficult will a spark plug change on the 5.4 ?

The '98 base Club that I currently drive is a good running vehicle..However, it does not have rear ac, stereo, no cruise control. The front bucket seats are not comfortable. The seat belts in the front stick and need to be replaced. The steering gear has noticeable play. When I add up all the small things that need replacement, it started making sense looking for a van that has everything that I need and is selling for same price my van is worth. It's always a gamble. I am bringing my jack and jack stands to get under the van. I don't feel like doing another ball joint replacement, tie rods, shocks, etc. If everything looks good, I will buy it for around $3500.

I will post my decision. Thanks for the help on the spark plugs. I have spent hours reading past posts by JWA on the spark plug issue. As long as the plugs have been changed several times on this van by the same shop, I will feel comfortable with it. Like JWA, I use Motorcraft spark plugs because they work well.

 

Changing plugs is pretty uncomplicated and straight-forward regardless the engine. Your V6 might have fit into its bay and offer its own minor complexities or aggravations but on an E-Series its relatively easy. What makes it vastly less taxing is first removing at least one of the front seats which is crazy simple, 4 fasteners and one electrical connector.

At 158K miles if it doesn't need (or hasn't already had) new ball joints I'd be shocked. Factory using the non-greasable types works against us---thank goodness for Moog and Amazon--a match made in gear head heaven!

 

If the ball joints have not been replaced, I WILL replace them with MOOG again by removing the steering knuckle and bringing them to my buddy Dan for extraction via hydraulic press.

I never thought of removing the front seats for spark plug removal. You are a genius or at least half a genius! On the V6, I can remove and replace in less than 30 minutes because at 180 pounds, I am skinny as a snake. However, I don't like being twisted like a pretzel.

 

Dealer must have loved my van, the Ricon 6 way power seat base moves the drivers seat back over a foot, there is no way I'd do my own plugs on my 5.4, I hate how it's crammed in there, I paid to have it done.

 

A B-18 is easy, a 9N.


I did a dry run. First, I couldn't find the plugs. I was spraying Gumout on the coils.


AHA ! Plugs are on the end of a rubber hose deep down inside a plastic valve/cam cover.


A bag of tools: several extensions, adapters, universal in 2 sizes, 2 7mm sockets ( case one runs for it) a new flex head ratchet with an 18" handle.


Bought a new plug socket....the old size. incroyable !


Right side, berm side, coil screw was semi-frozen. Squeek squeak squeak. PC Blaster. 30 minutes +. Came out rusty.


Left the blaster in. Is that OK leaving Blaster in the aluminum head ?


The second amazement was the coil. I bought a spare coil for the trunk. Only opening the package to see what a coil looks like did I ID the coils there.


If parts go in and out like a Volvo's, we are saved.


Utube and the forums advice is essential.


What is remarked and not obvious to the first time plug changer, is physical effort required. A max amount of bending and wrenching together is demanding. Those muscles were never used together before. if you're not in good shape. have a pot belly...

 

could you post photos of the tool? I am sort of excited to try a dry run followed by the real deal.

 

I don't think Blaster will etch aluminum or anything.

To the OP, an engine as old as a '99 would have the 4-thread plug holes, and an engine that old could have corroded or weakened threads from prior plug changes. Gotta be careful with the torque. Reaching the plugs is not fun; I have not changed them but I did change one blown coil which happened to be in the left front cylinder (cyl 5 I think). I could reach it from the open hood.

Understand completely about the V6. My '02 E150 4.6 had better EPA ratings than the 4.2. My son drove our van a lot, and one summer he had a local bike shop job where the delivery van was an '03 E150 with the 4.2. He absolutely hated it when the van had a bunch of heavy treadmills in it to move to a different location.

I test drove a 4.2 just for kicks when buying my 4.6, but coming out of a GM Savana with a 350 (a lot like the 5.4 in output) even made my 4.6 feel a bit weak. But it gets great mileage with my usual lightly-loaded driving. But I really liked the performance of the 350. Your '99 will be a pre-PI engine I think (PI is "power improved" and I believe it started in 2000 or so?)

Good luck; the van will last you for a while, and I am already sad that the E vans are gone, replaced by the Transit.

George

 

4 threads? I thought the 5.4 has 8 threads?

What mpg do you get with the 4.6? Many folks that own the 5.4 tell me that not only is it powerful but it also gets reasonable mpg on the freeway 16-18. The 4.2 is so under powered under a load that around town driving is about 11-12 mpg. Once it gets going it's okay and will often eak out 18 mpg with a tail wind going down hilll in neutral. . I often pity the engine when I drive up hills as it down shifts and struggles to make the climb.

 

I believe the 4.6 got more threads circa 2005 and am not sure when the 5.4 was fixed. But yours is an early one being 1999. Pre-PI heads.

Over 122k I have tracked every gallon of gas that has gone into my van. My overall average is 16.01 mpg. On the road I can get over 17 cruising 70-80; I've had a few trip tanks over 18 mpg keeping it below 70.

Worst tanks around town have been 13ish, city driving in the snow with winter fuel. But given my overall average, not many tanks were this low.

The 4.6 needs to rev to make power too, but that is not gonna hurt the engine. The 5.4 has the same bore and a lot longer stroke, so it is gonna have more guts like my old GMC 350 engine. Loved the engine in the Savana but the van was a POS....

Good luck,
George

 

My 5.4 will pass everything but a gas station, 15 is the best it can do, the 4.6 is a dream, until you try to tow, I compare them like a 302 and 351, the only 6 I would accept would be the 300, inline, they are a beast that won't die.

 

Maples, that is hilarious! If I wanted economy I would get a Prius. I want the power to drive in the mountains. The 4.2 is fine around town and on the freeway. At 100k it still purrs. We bought it for camping and most of our miles are driving in the mountains. I hear you on the inline 300. Plenty of torque. Problem is that you can find them on old vans with lots of miles. I want the obd2 port and all the electronics.