There isn't a plug problem-there's an installer problem. I still own 2 and have owned 4 different 2V modulars with a combined 600K+ miles of driving with dozens of plug changes and have never had a single plug problem. Our fleet at work is made up of nearly all 2V modular F150's that are worked hard and we have never had a single plug problem in well over 3 million combined miles of service.
Improper installation and attempting to torque plugs with extensions,etc on the torque wrench are what ruins the threads in the cylinder heads and leads to the plug "blowout" problem. Another issue is the driver/owner ignorance-continuing to drive a truck hard when it's pinging like hell will cause issues due to the stratospheric combustion chamber pressures and resonances that are induced on the plugs.There's nothing wrong with the design of the cylinder heads. If there were these "problems", then you wouldn't be able to keep plugs in them on 30+psi turbocharged race engines.
Installer and driver ignorance are cause of these "blowout" problems.
JL

 

I say bulls*** it is a problem--my plug was an original factory plug and the truck only has 61,000 miles on it--the service interval of 100,000 miles is still a couple years off. Ford knows its a problem but since it has not killed anyone they sweep it under the rug. Why else would they redesign the heads, which BTW have the opposite problem--the plugs don't come out--they break off. I will agree that in some cases installer error-improper torque-causes this to happen, however the design of the motor does not make changing the plugs very easy anyhow--and if you need to change out the head itself the Ford dealer removes the cab from the truck to get access.

 

You need to get your facts straight.
Ford redesigned the heads for 3 valves per cylinder.
I pulled a cylinder head off of my 3V '05 model to fix another problem,and had no issues at all-doing it by myself-without removing the cab.
You drove your truck for 61K miles without a simple servicing-and you expect the plugs to stay put-I agree that a 100K miles service interval is a joke,and is why I never lety a set of plugs go more than 50K miles-period. You didn't as much as pull them to check them at 50K miles-and wonder why you have a problem.
Just for reference,my '05 3V had no problems whatsoever when I changed the plugs on it at just over 50K miles-if I had left them for much longer there would have been-a few we a bit difficult to remove,but they did come out without alot of drama.
Again,it IS NOT a design issue,it's a maintenance and improper installation problem. Ford changed the thread count for '03 to help alleviate this "problem", but apparently you can't fix in engineering what's being damaged by installers, because there have been reports of plugs "blown out" on those as well.
JL

 

Langton there has it. I'm not bias towards one side or the other (installer problem vs. engineering flaw) but Langton does have a good point in torquing the plugs. The use of extensions, universals, and everything else doesn't read an accurate torque measurement on the spark plug itself.

 

It's an issue on the Mustangs too. I have a friend with a 96 Cobra that had it happen. Once he fixed it with the heli coil it was fine.

 

And the Cobras are all 4V engines that have more than the "4 threads that are crap".
JL

 

My 56 Ford/292 would blow out the second plug on the passenger side everyonceinawhle.
Those were a Tapered seat plug. Once the exhaust cut that taper the plug would never stay in again.
I guess this plug thing is an old problem eh?

 

Ok I checked my facts and the "Scheduled Maintenance Guide"-Normal Schedule-for the 2002 Ford that came with the truck says nothing about the spark plugs till page 24 where it says 100,000 miles "change spark plugs" among other things. At 50,000 it does not say take a plug out and see if its ok or any other mention of spark plugs at all, unless the vehicle is used as a delivery, taxi, patrol car or livery (none of which apply to my truck) then the spark plugs are to be changed at 60,000 miles. Also if you take a truck to a Ford dealer with a blown out plug they will tell you that Ford does not recomend installing any type of insert--they recomend a head swap, and I was told by the service manager that they remove the cab to access the head. Now its great to know that the swap can be done without taking the cab off, however that is not how Ford does it. Now I am not a mechanic, nor do I play one on TV, I am your average truck owner that performs most of the regular maintenance on his truck himself. I do not have the time or the tools to do a head swap--hell my truck is to big to even get into my garage. So I still say that it is a design problem. I will agree that some of the plugs that are being spit out are due to people not installing them correctly--but the design of the motor does not make it very easy to get a torque wrench in there.

 

I have a F-150 2001 and have had 3 spark plug blow outs. Talking to a friend in a machine shop : the heads are aluminum and there are only 4 threads holding the spark plug in. Normal spark plug are black steel and they will eat up aluminum threads. IRIDIUM spark plug were made to not eat the threads on aluminum heads. But the fix is put inserts in. The kit cost 250 but is well worth it. Or like another friend said " if the engine is running good and not missing don't change the spark plugs"

 

Good point! Reason I say this is because my 97 F150 with the 4.6 had right at 100K miles on the clock when I bought it in 01. It now has 176K miles on it and I have yet to touch the plugs.

It runs just as good as the day I bought it, gets anywhere from 16 to 22 mpg and is noise free. I have replaced the IAC valve only on that motor.

I know the day is coming when those plugs will need changing but I'll cross that bridge when the time comes.

 

I assure you that you do not have 176K miles on the original plugs. Somebody's changed them at some point.
JL

 

i wouldnt be so sure of that. i just changed the plugs on my bronco at 182k and i know for a fact they were factory plugs. one of my tbirds went 145k on factory plugs too. also, the problem with the 5.4 blowing plugs is a design problem. the fact that people are saying "if it runs good, do NOT touch the plugs" or if you dont torque them exactly right they will blow out, do not use this type of plug, etc, means that its a design flaw with the head. if i have to pull the plugs every so often just to make sure they are ok or change them with kid gloves to keep from hurting them, then there is a problem. you can take any other v8 ford has ever made and torque all 8 spark plugs to different specs, too tight, too loose, too whatever, and you will not have the problems you do with the 5.4.

 

Just because somebody gets away with improper installation in the past,doesn't mean it's OK to do so today.
I'm going to say it like this: If this plug blowout "problem" were a reality,and not laziness of the owner or improper initial installation, then every single 5.4L on the road today would be broken down at some point with this mythical "defect".This also applies to every 2V 4.6L and 2V 6.8L out there..
Change the plugs at a reasonable interval,use antisieze on them,and DO NOT USE A DAMNED TORQUE WRENCH ON THEM. There is no way possible to get an accurate torque value with an extension or universal on the torque wrench.
JL

 

just because it's a design flaw doesn't mean that every single engine out there is going to suffer from it. it just means that a higher percentage will suffer from it. take the 6.0 for example. would you argue that there are no design flaws with it since 90% dont have the problems that the 10% do? when a special kit is made just for the 5.4 to replace blown out spark plugs, then it means its happening at a lot higher frequency than it is on other engines. just like the egr delete kit for the 6.0. its made for a reason. my point is i cant take my 5.0, put 8 different brands of spark plugs in it, tighten them to ungodly different ratings, dont use a torque wrench, coat them with antiseize, etc and not have to worry about having one blow out. spark plug blow out was not a concern before the 2v triton and its not a concern since then. not saying its never happened on any other engine, but its not a widespread problem like it is on the 5.4.

 

These "kits" you're referring to are made by companies looking for a profit. Just because there's a "market" doesn't mean there's a problem.
JL