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Bucking/Surging When Driving!

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Old Aug 14, 2025 | 10:48 AM
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Default Bucking/Surging When Driving!

So I just recently acquired a 2007 F150 XLT with the 5.4L trition in it. 130k miles on it.
this is my first truck and the previous owner is family

They said they recently changed spark plugs got an oil change and when I got it it was running fine, no issues!

About 3 weeks ago it started bucking and the rpm’s jumped slightly but it was minor, 1 or 2 bucks every 10 miles.
NO CHECK ENGINE LIGHT.
I figured it would work itself out but it got worse, so I took it to my auto shop nearby and they test drove it and said they don’t know if it’s misfiring or if it’s the transmission but without a check engine light they would be guessing and sent me to a performance shop.
the performance shop hooked up a computer and took about 30 minutes and told me that 6 of the 8 injectors were clogged and that I should run fuel injector cleaner through it.

So I did, I’ve done 3 treatments so far and it’s still just not working, I replaced the fuel filter and it didn’t help, I googled online that the Fuel Pump Driver Module could be the issue so I replaced it and then I got a misfire with a check engine light so I put the old one back on and got a code for Primary Ignition Coil A, so I replaced the ignition coil and then my AC fuse blew after test driving it!
That’s as far as I am, PLEASE HELP
The misfire stopped and the check engine light is off but it’s still doing the surging.

the truck idles fine, shifts fine, and when it’s not surging or bucking it drives great.

My dad said to clean the throttle body and mass airflow sensor

Last edited by FijiFord; Aug 14, 2025 at 10:53 AM.
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Old Aug 14, 2025 | 12:34 PM
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I would suggest to watch live data for misfires, but it sounds like you don't have the capability to do this yourself? You would also be able to monitor fuel pressure with live data.
If you have a bad spark plug or even water got down in by the spark plugs boots it can cause misfires without being bad enough to throw a dtc or make the check engine light come on.
But without being able to see those data we would just be guessing. I use a $20 OBD2 Bluetooth dongle and an android app called torque pro to monitor these signals on my phone if I need to do diagnostics. There's also dedicated devices you can use like some of the nicer ones they sell at harbor freight.

A "performance shop" suggesting that 6 of the 8 injectors are clogged just smells like incompetence to me. Not saying it's impossible, but if something were to get past the in tank screen and fuel pump and filter why wouldn't it just clog all injectors?
And in many of our collective experience the OEM coils are the best and rarely fail. The best suggestion is to keep OEM coils and just replace the rubber boots and springs unless one is truly dead. The most likely problem in my opinion now someone breaks the clip or doesn't get the connector fully seated back onto the coil after doing the plugs.

If you can figure out what cylinder (s)? Misfiring I would take out the spark plug from that one and investigate. Sometimes it's just a dud plug.

Last edited by needsmoarturbo; Aug 14, 2025 at 02:42 PM.
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Old Aug 14, 2025 | 02:13 PM
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Very likely it could be any one or more of your ignition coils. When I had a couple of mine start going bad, the trans felt like it was slipping or bucking and no check engine light indicated misfires. I replaced all 8 in the end and never had the issue again
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Old Aug 14, 2025 | 02:24 PM
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Originally Posted by FijiFord
So I just recently acquired a 2007 F150 XLT with the 5.4L trition in it. 130k miles on it.
this is my first truck and the previous owner is family

They said they recently changed spark plugs got an oil change and when I got it it was running fine, no issues!

About 3 weeks ago it started bucking and the rpm’s jumped slightly but it was minor, 1 or 2 bucks every 10 miles.
NO CHECK ENGINE LIGHT.
I figured it would work itself out but it got worse, so I took it to my auto shop nearby and they test drove it and said they don’t know if it’s misfiring or if it’s the transmission but without a check engine light they would be guessing and sent me to a performance shop.
the performance shop hooked up a computer and took about 30 minutes and told me that 6 of the 8 injectors were clogged and that I should run fuel injector cleaner through it.

So I did, I’ve done 3 treatments so far and it’s still just not working, I replaced the fuel filter and it didn’t help, I googled online that the Fuel Pump Driver Module could be the issue so I replaced it and then I got a misfire with a check engine light so I put the old one back on and got a code for Primary Ignition Coil A, so I replaced the ignition coil and then my AC fuse blew after test driving it!
That’s as far as I am, PLEASE HELP
The misfire stopped and the check engine light is off but it’s still doing the surging.

the truck idles fine, shifts fine, and when it’s not surging or bucking it drives great.

My dad said to clean the throttle body and mass airflow sensor
posting actual code #s helps
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Old Aug 14, 2025 | 09:22 PM
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This could be caused by any number of things. And it would really help if you had an OBD2 device to track your fuel pressure while the surging occurs. It could also show you any misfires which could be helpful. And it's an invaluable tool to have with an F-150 as time goes by and other problems occur. So I'd recommend you get an OBD2 tool and use Torque Pro or Forscan. I use Forscan, but it just runs on my notebook PC (unless they now have a version that runs on a phone).
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Old Aug 15, 2025 | 04:50 AM
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they recently changed the plugs ? with what brand and did they change boots and springs ? post up the DTC's.
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Old Oct 29, 2025 | 07:30 AM
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Depending on the results of the leak down test you may have end up deciding to pull the cylinder heads have them reworked with new valves, replace the timing chains and phasers Etc. Put it back together and enjoy 200,000 miles in your future. definitely be cheaper than getting a newer truck with unknown problems.
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Old Oct 29, 2025 | 11:59 AM
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In my area there are tons of used trucks for sale. I would be shopping for a 2017 early production with 5.0 and 6 speed. No ten speeds or Ecobust for me. Second would be a 2016 with same. Or if you dont need a ton of power a 3.3 non turbo with 6 speed in a cheap 2018
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