spark plug life
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Had my car in for service a year ago (replace the infamous water pump). I asked that as long as they had everything torn apart, how much they'd want to change the spark plugs. $350!
I remember when changing plugs was a ten minute job. It wasn't that long ago.
I remember when changing plugs was a ten minute job. It wasn't that long ago.
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150 Posts
Again , there is lots of info on Spark Plug change intervals for the 3.5 - 3.7 L V6 engines on Ford/Mazda/Lincoln equipped vehicles. An actual Ford tech on YT , recommends 60K mile SP changes, & he has very detailed instructions on YT of a correct , how to do proceedure yourself.
Was in the upull the other day getting parts for the 98 "black turd".
On a whim, i found a random 3.0 and pulled what looked like the original
plug. There was almost NO center electrode left! yet it lived its life until
it was junked. probabaly did not run top notch, but it made it to the bone yard
like that.
bob
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10,304 Posts
Not mine but pic shows it can go for a time but bad things happen. Too large gap hurts the coil/coilpack. 100K is about the end of the platinum. After that the gap opens up more quickly.
Plugs cheap compared to the consequences of poor maint.
-chart-
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I'd change those out as soon as practical. The misfires are not too far away.
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10 Posts
I just had mine changed in my 2008 Bull yesterday at 134,700 miles. I have driven it 31,000 mostly highway miles in the past year.
My car was misfiring but not triggering any codes at all. It would do it intermittently at around 45-65 mph if I put a slight pressure on the gas without downshifting. I decided to replace the boots and plugs, had my trusty family mechanic do it, cost me $296 total.
I was thinking my car was having tranny issues, but right now it is running smoother than it has ever been and any appearance of slipping or hesitation has all but dissipated.
I would highly recommend doing so.
My car was misfiring but not triggering any codes at all. It would do it intermittently at around 45-65 mph if I put a slight pressure on the gas without downshifting. I decided to replace the boots and plugs, had my trusty family mechanic do it, cost me $296 total.
I was thinking my car was having tranny issues, but right now it is running smoother than it has ever been and any appearance of slipping or hesitation has all but dissipated.
I would highly recommend doing so.
My 2005 DOHC had about 115K miles on it when I bought it with a slight misfire. I pulled the plugs and the gap, which should have been 44 thou, ranged from 65 to 80!
This had caused the coils to overload and they all had hairline cracks in the 'resin' that seals the top. The wires going into the connectors had got hot enough to partially melt the insulation and they were welded together. The PCM was sent for repair as one of the driver IGBT's was giving problems due to the overload.
Because the previous owner had not changed or checked the plugs I ended up replacing: 6 plugs, 6 coils, 6 coil connectors and had the PCM repaired. Overall a very expensive fix.
Change the plugs, really cheap insurance.
This had caused the coils to overload and they all had hairline cracks in the 'resin' that seals the top. The wires going into the connectors had got hot enough to partially melt the insulation and they were welded together. The PCM was sent for repair as one of the driver IGBT's was giving problems due to the overload.
Because the previous owner had not changed or checked the plugs I ended up replacing: 6 plugs, 6 coils, 6 coil connectors and had the PCM repaired. Overall a very expensive fix.
Change the plugs, really cheap insurance.
My car had 134,000 easy miles on it. I just finished replacing the plugs. It took 6 hours. I am a normal do it yourself mechanic- retired Ford engineer. (older than average-75)
I did it carefully and cleaned up all the parts - keeping notes. The videos help a lot- except - when releasing the connector at the coil- the red secondary clip broke and you have to squeeze quite hard to get the primary lock to open- videos need to explain that better.
The original plugs were Motorcraft platinum. 5 had a .061 gap. one had a .064 gap. The recommended gap is .051 to .057. I hope I did not stress the coils.
The lower part of the intake manifold had heavy coats of blackened oil on it - anybody know why?
SURE GLAD IT IS DONE!! and saved some $
I did it carefully and cleaned up all the parts - keeping notes. The videos help a lot- except - when releasing the connector at the coil- the red secondary clip broke and you have to squeeze quite hard to get the primary lock to open- videos need to explain that better.
The original plugs were Motorcraft platinum. 5 had a .061 gap. one had a .064 gap. The recommended gap is .051 to .057. I hope I did not stress the coils.
The lower part of the intake manifold had heavy coats of blackened oil on it - anybody know why?
SURE GLAD IT IS DONE!! and saved some $
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421 Posts
My car has 101K on it. I bought a set of plugs, and will put them on my "when i get a chance" list.
I'll prob do the front 3 first, and then wait for a day i really feel like it to do the back 3.
I'll prob do the front 3 first, and then wait for a day i really feel like it to do the back 3.
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