Hello gents. I've been curious as to why my rig seems to not have any more power at 3000+ Rpm than it does at 1500 and is not safe to pass someone on the highway with any oncoming traffic in sight so I decided to throw my Solus on it and go for a drive. The timing set and guides are new. It does need plugs I'll admit, but I found this when I decided to watch my 02 sensors. I'm a diesel guy but from what I remember on gassers it looks like bank 1 cat has kicked the bucket. Am I wrong? Top to bottom is b1s1, b1s2, b2s1, b1s2. No codes pending, stored, or when i run either self test.

 

plugs will make a world of difference in these trucks. i was having a very similar issue with mine. she was spittin and coughin every time i tried to get on it. if i drove it normal it was ok, but the gas mileage was terrible. I put a new set of plugs in it about 2 weeks ago and OMG! its like I bought a new truck. so I guess to answer your question I would try plugs first. they're a hell of a lot cheaper. I will say this about the plugs, make sure you have the Lisle spark plug removal tool and order an extra extractor bolt. I broke 3 of my plugs, and the extractor tool was a life saver. very easy to use. if done properly you can pull a broken plug in a matter of minutes. but the extractor bolt is a wear item and i only got 2 plugs out with it before the threads on it were too jacked up to get the third one out. ordered the new extractor bolt and had the tip of the plug out in about 2 minutes. the whole processs for the plugs really isnt as bad as its made out to be.

 

It's got a little rough idle warm, but when driving and when you get on it it's smooth, it just doesn't go anywhere in a hurry haha. The only reason I haven't done the plugs yet is because I haven't had the enthusiasm to take on the broken ones. I guess I should just grin and bear it and get it done. I sure wouldn't mind seeing a little better mileage.
I find a little irony in the fact that when I worked at ford I joked that the triton didn't have the power to pull itself out of a wet paper bag (I was driving a turned up Dodge diesel at the time), then I went and bought one and its worse than the tritons i used to poke fun at. Such is life.

 

if you're going to give it a go, watch these. Removing a broken one really isn't that bad. 5-10 minutes once you figure out how its done. like I said I would suggest buying an extra extractor bolt just in case. better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it. I learned this first hand.

 

Because the PCM tries to compensate so fast it is not wise to start analyzing without this being done .
Plugs with new boots ,dielectric grease and torqued in at 25 foot pounds is a starting point . Use oem plugs /and good boots . Misfires will drive you nuts as they don't like to set codes .
Guys on here have even rebuilt their transmissions mistakenly due to plug/boot problems .
loose plugs have caused exhaust manifolds to be replaced and cats redone .
Loose plugs are common on this engine --do not go by feel . Clean your contacts on coils too.

 

Hooked up IDS yesterday to check for updates and decided to watch o2 sensors on it too, the cat on one side is bad and it looks like I've got an interesting problem with an upstream sensor too. Perhaps that's why my power seems to come and go some. Here in a couple weeks I'm going to be getting plugs, boots, a cat/cat back exhaust, and now looks like probably a sensor. Then on to the ticking I'm thinking is a soft lash adjuster. This thing needs more work than the 7.3 it replaced with 100k more miles on it haha.