spark plug worries
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Posting Guru
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,101
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From: Poway, CA
spark plug worries
ok, here's one that i think shouldn't be too hard, i just can't figure it out. i pulled out my champion truck plugs (not worth the money if you ask me)out of my 90 f150 L6 a month ago and saw that after only a year the tips had turned a rusty-burnt color and were chalky. i figured it was a fuel thing so i changed out the filter and put in new autolite plugs. i pulled those today and the chalky residue is gone, but they have turned color too! what does this color indicate? i'm running 87 octane mostly, but the truck only has 50K miles so should that really affect the plugs? also, it does have a fairly significant exhaust manifold leak. (chatters mainly on a healthy acceleration). would that have anything to do with it? any help is greatly appreciated.
Senior User
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 416
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spark plug worries
The deposits are most likeley from the addatives they put in our so called "gas". If the plugs are a tan to coffee colour this is normal, black would mean a rich fuel delivery of oil burning and whiteish would mean a lean fuel condition. I pulled the pugs on my 5.0 and they were so crudded up I was amazed it even ran, but at least the crud was a cafe au lait color so all is well with the fuel injection. Perhaps a change of fuel brands would help.
Fleet Mechanic
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 1,504
Likes: 1
From: Texas
spark plug worries
From what I have experienced and what my father experienced with his 82, the 300's like fuel that is better than 87. I ran 89 & 93 in my truck when it had the 300. Good acceleration, the plugs lasted a little longer, had almost a red deposit color on them (which baffled everyone at the parts houses!)
And it never had any pinging. My father's 82 would ping constantly, and when he asked me about it I asked him what grade of gas he was running. Told me the cheapest stuff he could find!
I asked him to try something better than the cheap stuff, and it worked. A little more power and no more pinging. Might give it a try just to see how it works.
1988 F-150, SWB, 5.0 EFI (formerly 4.9 EFI), M5OD 5 speed, 3.08 gears, Summit shorty truck headers, Custom built Flowmaster exhaust system. Force 4 LP6000 lightbar, Federal signal PA-300 100 watt siren, Icom IC-V100 50 watt mobile radio.
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1965 F-100 (just purchased 1/18/01), SWB, 390, C-6 auto. Dual exhaust, Not much else to do to it.
Can see both below.
[link:www.geocities.com/hotrodford_88/|Hotrodford_88's Webpage]
And it never had any pinging. My father's 82 would ping constantly, and when he asked me about it I asked him what grade of gas he was running. Told me the cheapest stuff he could find!
I asked him to try something better than the cheap stuff, and it worked. A little more power and no more pinging. Might give it a try just to see how it works.
1988 F-150, SWB, 5.0 EFI (formerly 4.9 EFI), M5OD 5 speed, 3.08 gears, Summit shorty truck headers, Custom built Flowmaster exhaust system. Force 4 LP6000 lightbar, Federal signal PA-300 100 watt siren, Icom IC-V100 50 watt mobile radio.
=======================================
1965 F-100 (just purchased 1/18/01), SWB, 390, C-6 auto. Dual exhaust, Not much else to do to it.
Can see both below.
[link:www.geocities.com/hotrodford_88/|Hotrodford_88's Webpage]
