5.4L Ford Spark plug ejector button

So I'm watching the prices of Expeditions fall and thinking that my Explorer is getting long in the tooth to tow heavy things, not to mention being generally uncomfortable.

I'm looking somewhere in the 05-07 range (probably waiting a little while to see if the 07s drop a little more in value.) That basically means the 5.4 was the only engine option in the big Ex. With the HD tow package I should be able to happily tow a 25' sailboat or my Mustang on a flat trailer, should the need arise. All while drinking gas a staggering rate.

What years were the worst for the spark plug self-eject on the 5.4L? What's the solution? What kind of damage does it do? What should I look for?

And no, the answer isn't a Tahoe/Suburban. Their seats and I don't get along.

The spark plug ejectors were the earlier 2V 5.4s. In that range you'll be looking at the 3V version, and they have the opposite problem, the plugs don't want to come out. If you google "Ford triton spark plug" you'll find pages of info on it. I was able to change the plugs on my 07 F-150 with moderate difficulty, only broke one. I followed the Ford TSB and used the special Lisle tool.

It's a weakness, but every car seems to have some kind of Achilles Heel. It wouldn't stop me buying one. If nothing else, you can pay someone to do the plug change, then you'll basically never have to worry about it again.

Its not a weakness if they have been changed every 40K or so. A lot of dealers had this figured out early and were swapping them before they became a issue. Its actually a selling point posted in most 5.4 ads.

The spark plugs have been a problem long enough that there are tools available to make it not a problem anymore.

oh. Those. I own a 2005 Mustang. And the Lisle extractor tool. No problem there. BTDT.

but I do believe I'll put that on the list of things with which to beat down the dealer price when the time comes.

I've got a set of 8 updated plugs and the Lisle tool if anyone needs them. $110 and I'll plop them in a flat rate box. I sold my '06 F150 before I ever changed them.

I watched a couple of youtube videos and was going to use the 'impact on low setting' method and use the Lisle tool remove the stubborn bit if it was still in there.

ultraclyde wrote: I'm looking somewhere in the 05-07 range (probably waiting a little while to see if the 07s drop a little more in value.) That basically means the 5.4 was the only engine option in the big Ex. With the HD tow package I should be able to happily tow a 25' sailboat or my Mustang on a flat trailer, should the need arise. All while drinking gas a staggering rate.

My former boss used to tow a 26x8.5 trailer loaded down with close to 7k lbs worth of DJ equipment with a '05 Expedition. They actually tow pretty well, and averaged 12-13mpg while loaded.

In reply to yamaha:

That's what I've heard. The 05-06s are rated to 8900 lbs with the HD tow package (and 3.73 gear) and the 07s are rated to 9200 with the HD tow package and 3.31 gear. Plus I like the front end redesign.

Unfortunately, non towing mileage is about the same if you aren't careful

Interestingly, Expeditions are selling for about 3/4 to 1/2 of what F150s are locally, even though the SUVs typically have 20k less miles. Plus, I like the enclosed SUV storage and the slightly shorter body length.

In reply to ultraclyde:

I am unsure of how heavy that trailer was, but could vouch for it requiring an anti sway hitch to even be acceptable to drive. I went with my former boss to KC, KS and back(from Muncie, IN) to deliver a 3d printer to a buyer without a trailer, IIRC, we averaged around 16-18mpg cruising at 80 the whole way.

I have heard horror stories about gas mileage on those gems. Friend towing a 16 foot enclosed trailer with a 1200 Datsun inside, me towing a Neon on a flat deck 18 foot with my 4.8 Silverado, I burnt well under half the gas he did.

Is it bad that I immediately thought of this?

In reply to Streetwiseguy:

Apples to oranges, enclosed versus open cannot be compared.

I have a 2005 Expedition with which I tow a 24' enclosed trailer carrying the race car. Total loaded trailer weight is about 7500 lbs. Performance is quite reasonable while towing. It's certainly not as quick as my previous F250 diesel, but it does ok. Fuel consumption, on the other hand, is pretty miserable. 75+ mph while trying to not slow too much on hills, and it gets 7.5 mpg. 65 mph is closer to 8.5 mpg.

One thing to be aware of. Because of the IRS, it's more sensitive to tongue weight. As setup for the F250, I had 1600 lbs of tongue weight (not intentionally, just what it measured). Even with a load levelling hitch, that caused too much sag of the rear compression which led to vibration from the CV joints. Getting the tongue weight to 850 lbs and being more aggressive with the load levelling fixed that.

Rust. Look for it when purchasing these. Other than that I love my expedition.

Streetwiseguy wrote: The spark plugs have been a problem long enough that there are tools available to make it not a problem anymore.

lots and lots and lots of anti seize

Chevrolet Tahoe is the answer here. because LsX

Tom_Spangler wrote: The spark plug ejectors were the earlier 2V 5.4s. In that range you'll be looking at the 3V version, and they have the opposite problem, the plugs don't want to come out. If you google "Ford triton spark plug" you'll find pages of info on it. I was able to change the plugs on my 07 F-150 with moderate difficulty, only broke one. I followed the Ford TSB and used the special Lisle tool.

IIRC the 2v engine was also called the Triton when in trucks.

Either way, Ford really swung the pendulum on that one. But at least they were able to package a spark plug in a two-intake-valve chamber without having to go through the valve cover or go in through the exhaust side.

wbjones wrote:

Streetwiseguy wrote: The spark plugs have been a problem long enough that there are tools available to make it not a problem anymore.

lots and lots and lots of anti seize

Bad idea.

The threads aren't what sticks, the long extension on the chamber side of the threads is what sticks. It's a very tight tolerance to the head to reduce crevice volume (which increases emissions) and that area fills with carbon over time. Then the threaded portion, which is swedged on for some reason, comes out and leaves the rest of the plug in place. The reason lots and lots of antisieze is a bad idea is that it can run down the plug and foul it, since you'd essentially be putting the antisieze in the chamber.

The Tool works most of the time, and there's a "last resort" mod you can do to a second tool to get most of the ones that the standard tool can't get. I did have one where the tool could not sufficiently grab it, even the "last resort" tool. What we ended up doing was pulling the intake manifold off, putting an in-frame valve compressor on the offending cylinder to get the intake valves as far open as they could go, then we drove the end of the plug into the cylinder and fished it out through the intake port.

Tom_Spangler wrote: It's a weakness, but every car seems to have some kind of Achilles Heel. .

^^^^This. It seems every forum you go on each vehicle has at least one glaring fault (or more!) that has to be dealt with at some point.