Just replaced my 5.4 plugs at 84k; here's my experience
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12-28-2007, 10:04 AM
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Just replaced my 5.4 plugs at 84k; here's my experience
Sorry this is such a long post but I hope the experience shared here will help others. Changing plugs on the 5.4 is definitely a PIA. Since it was my first time, (Ford Expy 5.4 4x4 with only 84k miles), I took a long time to do it properly (over 12 hours in my case), and very carefully. Tools & parts required:
(1) spark plug socket
(1) 5-80 lb-ft digital torque wrench (Sears)
several new 3/8” extensions including the 6” version suggested by others
several new ¼” extensions (for the COP bolt removal)
several 3/8” to ¼” and (vice-versa) adapaters
(1) telescopic inspection mirror (to see down #4 and #8 plug well)
(1) telescopic magnetic pickup tool (mandatory, especially for withdrawing the plug after you loosen it)
(1) telescopic small parts pick up tool
(1) several feet of vacuum tubing (definitely use it for starting all the plugs in the holes, do not start those plugs with anything else but by tubing that you control and start the plug by hand on.)
(1) can each of carb/throttle body cleaner, liquid wrench, and silicone spray
(1) tube of dielectric grease
(1) tube of anti-seize
(8) plugs - in my case, the OEM manual called for the Motorcraft AWSF22E’s, but the Ford parts guy sold me the SP-479’s, check this link http://www.ryderfleetproducts.com/cg...uct_detail.jsp ; I compared the old and new plugs and it turns out they are almost identical, except the SP-479’s have almost twice as much threads than the original.
(8) COP boots/springs (not the entire COP, just the boots and springs), they came in a tune up kit I ordered from Witty Deals, here is the link: http://www.wittydeals.com/product_in...d=60&year=2000 ; you can’t beat this deal, all 8 boots/springs only cost $28.00. Witty boots and springs are exact OEM replacements
Other things you will need:
Air compressor (for blowing out dirt and grime from around the plug wells and the engine – mine were not too bad, but they were dirty and oily and there was a lot of dirt, sand, grass, etc. that had blown in the engine crevices that I didn’t want anywhere near the plug wells.)
Some notes:
I started the job by removing the negative batt cable. Just do it to be safe. Then, I removed the fuel pump relay and cranked the engine over a little bit to remove fuel pressure in the rails (it dumps it back to the tank.)
Interestingly, I was able to do this entire job without removing the fuel rails, although I can see where it may make the job easier, it is in fact not completely necessary to remove them. I had even bought a set of sixteen fuel injector o-rings just in case, but never had to remove the rails or injectors, but I’ll keep the o-rings around if I need to remove an injector at some point.) I had read in many posts and articles that some people say to remove the rails and some say it isn’t necessary. I was skeptical, but surprised to find out that when you removed the COP electrical connector, then the COP retaining bolt, the COP itself becomes flexible enough that you can bend it under the fuel rail and work up and out. The COP is sitting on top of a flexible rubber boot with a spring inside of it. So it came out fairly easily. Be very careful with removing and re-installing the COP bolt, I used several ¼” extensions and the 7mm socket to remove each bolt, but I left the loosened bolt in the hole and then used the magnetic pick up tool to pull it out of the hole safely, you don’t want to drop that in the intake valley.
I removed the air cleaner, throttle body top cover, various PCV and vacuum hoses, the power steering reservoir brace, the DPFE switch, several wiring connections like the one to the crankshaft indicator, etc., and took out the entire PCV hose that runs from the PCV valve to the back of the throttle body – mainly so I could inspect it thoroughly for the first time. You will need to pad the radiator support with a blanket since you will be on your stomach for most of the work. Use plenty of lighting to get in close and see what you are doing. You will find that the fuel injectors turn in place so you can move the connectors out of the way as you remove the COPs, or just remove the injector connector completely.
Do each plug one at a time and replace all nearby connectors, hoses that you removed previously as you progress. For the most part, I used a 3/8” ratchet connected to a 10” extension, connected to a 3/8” universal swivel, connected to a 6” extension, connected to another 3/8” swivel, and finally connected to the spark plug socket. I took rubberized electrical tape and wrapped each joint connection to keep them from coming apart or slipping, you don’t want the plug socket left down in the plug well. I also took the rubber grommet out of the plug socket, it was useless and would not hold the loosened plug for extraction, so in my case, I just loosened the plug and then used the magnetic parts retrieval tool to pull out the loose plug. I used the vacuum hose attached on the end of the plug top to replace the new plug. Make sure you coat the new plug threads with anti-seize. Also coat the COP retainer bolts with anti-seize. I also used the vacuum hose attached to the COP retainer bolts to start them safely in the holes, in some cases, it is really hard to get your hands in there to start the threads without dropping the bolt. Just be careful with that. The Ford shop book says to torque the COP bolts with 7 nM of force, but I just felt it was way too tight and did it by hand. You should hold down on the COP as you are tightening the bolt and make sure it does not have too much play after tightening the bolt, there may be a very small amount of movement in the COP after tightening it, but that’s ok, just don’t over tighten it or you will strip it.
The Ford OEM manual is very specific about the 9-20 Nm (7-15 lb ft) torque value and the 1.32-1.42 mm (.052-.056 in) gap on the plugs. I torqued my plugs to 13 lb ft. It doesn’t feel very tight when you are torquing it, but I used a very accurate torque wrench that I also made sure I calibrated before the job. Torquing it correctly is the way to go, but I will say that it is very tough to torque the #4 and #8 accurately without adjusting for all of the extensions and angles you experience in getting clearance for those. You need to read your torque wrench manual and adjust slightly for the extra connections, but in no case should you over torque the plugs or you will strip them in the heads. You should be continually using compressed air to clear out dirt as you go, especially the grimy area around where the top lip of the COP boot contacts the plug well top, you wan this ring of space clean to make a clean connection to the boot.
After you replace the plug, you replace the COP. I removed the old COP boots and springs and cleaned the COP body, then replaced the spring and new boot, then connected the boot to the COP body. At the top seam of the boot/COP connection, I put some dielectric grease to keep water out. A little further down the boot, I also ran a bead of dielectric grease to create a water barrier at the top of the plug well. Finally, I added a bunch of grease in the end of the COP boot, just shoving it down the boot about ¼ “ and around the bottom of the boot on the outside, this will ensure that the boot goes on and off the plug end smoothly, and it is apparently ok to let the grease get on the spring end where it goes over top of the plug. I guess the grease does not hamper the flow of current, so you can be liberal with applying it. Insert the prepared COP in the plug well and carefully down on top of the plug.
In my case, all of my plugs looked fine, a small amount of dark grayish-white deposit on each but that was it. The gap was a little bit wider, probably a little bit over the .056” mark, maybe .058”, but it was uniform across all plugs. The COP boots looked generally fine, relatively clean, a couple of them had some wear and tear in the seal at the top of the plug well, but they looked fine. All the plugs were tight and the threads looked fine. I guess I could have made it to 100k with those plugs.
I took the opportunity to remove and clean the throttle body and the IAC (even though I replaced the IAC about 20k miles back) while everything was off the top of the engine. Can’t hurt to do it now while you are doing the plugs. My TB was pretty dirty, and the IAC had only a slight about of new carbon, but all of it is clean now.
Reconnected everything and the truck started right up. Even after a couple miles of test driving it (and it is still in ‘re-learning’ mode), I can tell a huge difference. It runs like the day we bought it - at least for now.
(1) spark plug socket
(1) 5-80 lb-ft digital torque wrench (Sears)
several new 3/8” extensions including the 6” version suggested by others
several new ¼” extensions (for the COP bolt removal)
several 3/8” to ¼” and (vice-versa) adapaters
(1) telescopic inspection mirror (to see down #4 and #8 plug well)
(1) telescopic magnetic pickup tool (mandatory, especially for withdrawing the plug after you loosen it)
(1) telescopic small parts pick up tool
(1) several feet of vacuum tubing (definitely use it for starting all the plugs in the holes, do not start those plugs with anything else but by tubing that you control and start the plug by hand on.)
(1) can each of carb/throttle body cleaner, liquid wrench, and silicone spray
(1) tube of dielectric grease
(1) tube of anti-seize
(8) plugs - in my case, the OEM manual called for the Motorcraft AWSF22E’s, but the Ford parts guy sold me the SP-479’s, check this link http://www.ryderfleetproducts.com/cg...uct_detail.jsp ; I compared the old and new plugs and it turns out they are almost identical, except the SP-479’s have almost twice as much threads than the original.
(8) COP boots/springs (not the entire COP, just the boots and springs), they came in a tune up kit I ordered from Witty Deals, here is the link: http://www.wittydeals.com/product_in...d=60&year=2000 ; you can’t beat this deal, all 8 boots/springs only cost $28.00. Witty boots and springs are exact OEM replacements
Other things you will need:
Air compressor (for blowing out dirt and grime from around the plug wells and the engine – mine were not too bad, but they were dirty and oily and there was a lot of dirt, sand, grass, etc. that had blown in the engine crevices that I didn’t want anywhere near the plug wells.)
Some notes:
I started the job by removing the negative batt cable. Just do it to be safe. Then, I removed the fuel pump relay and cranked the engine over a little bit to remove fuel pressure in the rails (it dumps it back to the tank.)
Interestingly, I was able to do this entire job without removing the fuel rails, although I can see where it may make the job easier, it is in fact not completely necessary to remove them. I had even bought a set of sixteen fuel injector o-rings just in case, but never had to remove the rails or injectors, but I’ll keep the o-rings around if I need to remove an injector at some point.) I had read in many posts and articles that some people say to remove the rails and some say it isn’t necessary. I was skeptical, but surprised to find out that when you removed the COP electrical connector, then the COP retaining bolt, the COP itself becomes flexible enough that you can bend it under the fuel rail and work up and out. The COP is sitting on top of a flexible rubber boot with a spring inside of it. So it came out fairly easily. Be very careful with removing and re-installing the COP bolt, I used several ¼” extensions and the 7mm socket to remove each bolt, but I left the loosened bolt in the hole and then used the magnetic pick up tool to pull it out of the hole safely, you don’t want to drop that in the intake valley.
I removed the air cleaner, throttle body top cover, various PCV and vacuum hoses, the power steering reservoir brace, the DPFE switch, several wiring connections like the one to the crankshaft indicator, etc., and took out the entire PCV hose that runs from the PCV valve to the back of the throttle body – mainly so I could inspect it thoroughly for the first time. You will need to pad the radiator support with a blanket since you will be on your stomach for most of the work. Use plenty of lighting to get in close and see what you are doing. You will find that the fuel injectors turn in place so you can move the connectors out of the way as you remove the COPs, or just remove the injector connector completely.
Do each plug one at a time and replace all nearby connectors, hoses that you removed previously as you progress. For the most part, I used a 3/8” ratchet connected to a 10” extension, connected to a 3/8” universal swivel, connected to a 6” extension, connected to another 3/8” swivel, and finally connected to the spark plug socket. I took rubberized electrical tape and wrapped each joint connection to keep them from coming apart or slipping, you don’t want the plug socket left down in the plug well. I also took the rubber grommet out of the plug socket, it was useless and would not hold the loosened plug for extraction, so in my case, I just loosened the plug and then used the magnetic parts retrieval tool to pull out the loose plug. I used the vacuum hose attached on the end of the plug top to replace the new plug. Make sure you coat the new plug threads with anti-seize. Also coat the COP retainer bolts with anti-seize. I also used the vacuum hose attached to the COP retainer bolts to start them safely in the holes, in some cases, it is really hard to get your hands in there to start the threads without dropping the bolt. Just be careful with that. The Ford shop book says to torque the COP bolts with 7 nM of force, but I just felt it was way too tight and did it by hand. You should hold down on the COP as you are tightening the bolt and make sure it does not have too much play after tightening the bolt, there may be a very small amount of movement in the COP after tightening it, but that’s ok, just don’t over tighten it or you will strip it.
The Ford OEM manual is very specific about the 9-20 Nm (7-15 lb ft) torque value and the 1.32-1.42 mm (.052-.056 in) gap on the plugs. I torqued my plugs to 13 lb ft. It doesn’t feel very tight when you are torquing it, but I used a very accurate torque wrench that I also made sure I calibrated before the job. Torquing it correctly is the way to go, but I will say that it is very tough to torque the #4 and #8 accurately without adjusting for all of the extensions and angles you experience in getting clearance for those. You need to read your torque wrench manual and adjust slightly for the extra connections, but in no case should you over torque the plugs or you will strip them in the heads. You should be continually using compressed air to clear out dirt as you go, especially the grimy area around where the top lip of the COP boot contacts the plug well top, you wan this ring of space clean to make a clean connection to the boot.
After you replace the plug, you replace the COP. I removed the old COP boots and springs and cleaned the COP body, then replaced the spring and new boot, then connected the boot to the COP body. At the top seam of the boot/COP connection, I put some dielectric grease to keep water out. A little further down the boot, I also ran a bead of dielectric grease to create a water barrier at the top of the plug well. Finally, I added a bunch of grease in the end of the COP boot, just shoving it down the boot about ¼ “ and around the bottom of the boot on the outside, this will ensure that the boot goes on and off the plug end smoothly, and it is apparently ok to let the grease get on the spring end where it goes over top of the plug. I guess the grease does not hamper the flow of current, so you can be liberal with applying it. Insert the prepared COP in the plug well and carefully down on top of the plug.
In my case, all of my plugs looked fine, a small amount of dark grayish-white deposit on each but that was it. The gap was a little bit wider, probably a little bit over the .056” mark, maybe .058”, but it was uniform across all plugs. The COP boots looked generally fine, relatively clean, a couple of them had some wear and tear in the seal at the top of the plug well, but they looked fine. All the plugs were tight and the threads looked fine. I guess I could have made it to 100k with those plugs.
I took the opportunity to remove and clean the throttle body and the IAC (even though I replaced the IAC about 20k miles back) while everything was off the top of the engine. Can’t hurt to do it now while you are doing the plugs. My TB was pretty dirty, and the IAC had only a slight about of new carbon, but all of it is clean now.
Reconnected everything and the truck started right up. Even after a couple miles of test driving it (and it is still in ‘re-learning’ mode), I can tell a huge difference. It runs like the day we bought it - at least for now.
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12-28-2007, 10:20 AM
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#3
12-28-2007, 08:25 PM
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Nice write up. Not to hurt your feelings but it took me about 4 hours to do the job. Regardless of timeframe, it was a pain! The dealership calls for 3 hours of labor. I also had to put in a sleeve for one of the plugs because it blew out about six months earlier. Anyway, I bought my plugs and coils from a guy on Ebay for $112. The whole set was new. Don't buy used because you don't truely know how close to 100K that coil maybe. The dealership wanted $80 per coil! I had the job done on my 97 Ex by my local shop at 130K. He charged me $65. Day 2, he wished he had charged me more. I did my wife's 2002 Ex, 97K, myself. When Ford says no tune-up until 100K, it's real. My wife's check engine light started to come on when the Ex turned 95K. After the tune-up and a code reset, the light hasn't been on since. Once again thanks for the write up. At least for those who choose to go to the shop, they know what is involved in the job.
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12-31-2007, 11:28 PM
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I appreciate all the folks who have confidence in their ability to do a plug change in every range I've read on this forum - from 45 minutes to 4 hours for all 8 plugs, including paying a shop to do it or paying a kid to do it - my hats off to all of ya. IMO, there are way too many things that can go wrong if you rush it or do something wrong, and there is absolutely no way you could ever be 100% sure that mechanic or kid didn't strip a plug or even skip #4 or #8 or crack a COP bolt flange or forget to torque the plug correctly - unless you see it done or do it yourself (that is, if you have the ability to do it - no knock intended on people who do not have the ability). I don't believe that Ford 3hr (or less) time warrant.
#6
12-31-2007, 11:39 PM
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#7
01-01-2008, 02:04 PM
Very nice write-up. This site is great. You guys have saved me a lot of time and trouble (money too).
I had to replace the #1 plug/coil at 85k on my 2000 expy. It was easy to do, but when I looked at the rest of the plugs and what you would have to do to get to them I was a little unsure if I should even try to do the rest myself. I like to do my own work if I can. I think I have read every post about the job on this site and most are saying what a pain it is.
I ordered new coil packs off ebay and got a set of motorcraft plugs. I bought several extensions,swivels, a new torque wrench, an air compressor,di-electric grease, and anti-seize. I then kept putting off doing the job for almost six months.The truck ran great and it wasn't at 100K yet.
I finally had the guts to give it a try (I was going to have a five day weekend and I had another car I could use if something happened). I unhooked the battery and moved and tied most of the hoses out of the way. I left the fuel rails on. I put a blanket over the front and had a stable step to stand on.
I decided to start with #4, it looked to be the hardest. I used a mirror to verify all debris was blown out of the plug well. Replacing the plug went ok, I put a new one in and tried to pull the socket out it was stuck on the plug. I reattached the socket and pulled the plug out again. It was a brand new plug socket and held the plug really tight,I had taped the socket to the extension but it didn't hold. I put some grease on the rubber and it worked fine after that. I have a six and a eight inch locking extension,I think a seven inch would have been great.
I started each plug by hand and took my time torqueing them. Replaced all plugs and coil packs in about four and a half hours. What a relief.
One thing I didn't do is put anti-seize on the coil pack bolts. I think I might do that when we get some warm weather.
Thanks to all on this site I have replaced the IAC valve. Replaced the rear wiper motor (one of the ears were broke off the mount). I have used Sea-Foam with great results. I have the Ford repair cd-rom.
I now have to replace the multi function switch for the wipers. The wipers will be going full speed at start-up about 50% of the time. I have to turn it off/on real quick a few times to get them to stop. I tried to take the switch apart from the end, I can't get the "cap" on the end to come out.
Bryan
I had to replace the #1 plug/coil at 85k on my 2000 expy. It was easy to do, but when I looked at the rest of the plugs and what you would have to do to get to them I was a little unsure if I should even try to do the rest myself. I like to do my own work if I can. I think I have read every post about the job on this site and most are saying what a pain it is.
I ordered new coil packs off ebay and got a set of motorcraft plugs. I bought several extensions,swivels, a new torque wrench, an air compressor,di-electric grease, and anti-seize. I then kept putting off doing the job for almost six months.The truck ran great and it wasn't at 100K yet.
I finally had the guts to give it a try (I was going to have a five day weekend and I had another car I could use if something happened). I unhooked the battery and moved and tied most of the hoses out of the way. I left the fuel rails on. I put a blanket over the front and had a stable step to stand on.
I decided to start with #4, it looked to be the hardest. I used a mirror to verify all debris was blown out of the plug well. Replacing the plug went ok, I put a new one in and tried to pull the socket out it was stuck on the plug. I reattached the socket and pulled the plug out again. It was a brand new plug socket and held the plug really tight,I had taped the socket to the extension but it didn't hold. I put some grease on the rubber and it worked fine after that. I have a six and a eight inch locking extension,I think a seven inch would have been great.
I started each plug by hand and took my time torqueing them. Replaced all plugs and coil packs in about four and a half hours. What a relief.
One thing I didn't do is put anti-seize on the coil pack bolts. I think I might do that when we get some warm weather.
Thanks to all on this site I have replaced the IAC valve. Replaced the rear wiper motor (one of the ears were broke off the mount). I have used Sea-Foam with great results. I have the Ford repair cd-rom.
I now have to replace the multi function switch for the wipers. The wipers will be going full speed at start-up about 50% of the time. I have to turn it off/on real quick a few times to get them to stop. I tried to take the switch apart from the end, I can't get the "cap" on the end to come out.
Bryan
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#8
01-02-2008, 04:58 PM
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I still remember when I did it - and I had to do it twice in short interval. The reason was, my 00 EB got totaled a few moths after I got it (and of course after DIY suspension upgrade and plug change lol). Like it so much that I got a similar vehicle 99 XLT, same color. At least I was better the next time around when I did the plugs on the 99, installed Autolite double-plat and it's still good after 35k. Also replaced 4 boots (NAPA has only four in stock when I worked on it) and installed them on locations that are hard to access.
Because of gas prices and our XP not a daily driver, I probably will not do it again ever for this vehicle, and I'm fine with that
Because of gas prices and our XP not a daily driver, I probably will not do it again ever for this vehicle, and I'm fine with that
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01-13-2008, 07:09 AM
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Originally Posted by conehead
WOW,
Thanks for the information. I have 86,000 on my 2000 EB/5.4. I think I'll wait for a few more miles and a 5 day weekend. Im very mechanical, and with your advice I believe I can do it.
Thanks again for the help.
Conehead
Thanks for the information. I have 86,000 on my 2000 EB/5.4. I think I'll wait for a few more miles and a 5 day weekend. Im very mechanical, and with your advice I believe I can do it.
Thanks again for the help.
Conehead
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02-24-2008, 06:53 AM
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#13
02-24-2008, 09:17 AM
I time the plug change with one of the coolant changes. This way I can pull the heater hoses off the firewall and gain much more room to work on the right bank. The only problem I had with the left bank is the COP screw on the #7 cylinder. A 1/4 drive crowfoot wrench makes removing that screw somewhat easier.
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02-25-2008, 09:58 AM
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