When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
I have a 2002 XLT super crew. When I bought the truck the motor begin to knock so I had it replaced. When the shop replaced the engine I was informed that the engine that came out of it had a manufactured date of 1999. The engine that was put in it I was told it was manufactured in 03 and I believe it has a sticker on the valve cover with the manufacturer date. I'm not sure if this engine came out of a 2003 F 150 or possibly a 2004 heritage considering many vehicles are manufactured before their year and the heritage would be the only body style of the old one that was manufactured in 2004. However I have read some articles that are saying that the motor used to have a common bug with the spark plugs popping out of them on the 5.4L, so they supposedly did some changes to the 2003 engine where the spark plugs supposedly have 8 thread count instead of 4 from the 02-03 to keep this from happening. If this is true then wouldn't that mean is I'm looking for spark plugs for my particular 02 that I would need to purchase under a 2003 F 150 to be safe? If there were any modifications done from 2002 to 2003, could anyone tell me more about them? Also is it possible that if the engine has a manufactured date of 2003 that it would be out of a 2004 of the Heritage body style? If they made both body style in 2004 did they put the same engine and both of them. I've been running this engine for about 10 months changing the oil every few thousand miles with 5w 20. Starting to wonder if I need spark plugs because I have replaced size coil packs planning on replacing cylinder 3, 5, and 8 and so far no misfire codes and no skipping or jerking. Now lately I recently plugged in my scanner and found a P0172 and P0175. Just recently got a new fual pump. It seems to run normal since I had replaced cylinder 6, 1, and, 2 Coils. However I'm not sure how old the spark plugs are in this engine and I'm wondering if the spark plugs need to be replaced to get rid of the rich codes. Every sense the fuel pump I have had p0455 and 457 but it's running normal. Before the fual pump was replaced the truck started stalling out eventually at every stop and randomly when parked idling for long periods. After the fual pump was replaced, it stopped stalling for a good few months but was getting the 455 and 457 codes but didn't affect driving. Eventually started stalling when pulling out of parking lots and if shut off and started back up at drive throughs but not near as bad as before. Started bucking and jerking particularly between 40 and 55 miles per hour. Assuming since it was a Ford and it was an automatic, that it was a possible transmission failure as I was getting no misfire codes. One day this jerking started getting a lot worse to a point I thought the overdrive was possibly going out because the jerking and bucking was particularly happening at higher speeds such as 65 miles per hour and 70 miles per hour which had never happened before but when I took it out of overdrive it seemed to run better so I thought oh boy another failing Ford automatic transmission then that night I leave work and started up to let it warm up and when I walk back out to it it is running like garbage and I got in it and it was vibrating and I knew right then if I plugged in my scan tool I was going to get a misfire code and sure enough a P0306 and P0300. So I had no choice but to drive it like that for a couple days and put a new coil pack on cylinder 6 and for the first time in about 3 or 4 months it wasn't even jerking between 40 and 50 miles per hour and riding normal in overdrive and I was trying to look at some post of people previously having coil packs go out in a certain order to predict that the next coils that are going to go out in mine are probably 1 and 2 so I went ahead and replaced those coils because before six I replaced 4 and 7. Now it is not stalling out at all every since then which has led me to believe that maybe that was the issue or part of the issue with stalling out as well I'm keeping my fingers crossed because it has not stalled out for a good month but I'm a little concerned about the 172 and 175 codes I was told that it's possibly the MAF sensor. There has been a temperature change from Fall to winter and my heater core just went out and don't have the extra vehicle to drive while replacing it so that is bypassed recently I hear a slight ticking noise coming from the motor once started up cold and usually when this happens its first thing in the morning when its about 40 to 50 degrees outside and sometimes in the evening at about 60 degrees usually the first time started for the day and after 1-3 seconds its gone. Every thousand miles I have to add about a quart of oil but I believe during this oil change I may have added the court of 5W30 instead of 5W20. Its about new for an oil change again. I don't know if that made take the ticking away when it's changed. I usually always get Pennzoil 5w 20 conventional. However I mostly want to know what kind of spark plugs to get for the engine vs. the frame for if they will be any different from the spark plugs for the original engine. This is a used engine out of another F 150 but obviously 1 or 2 years newer then my 2002. I could have got a good 5.4L that has all the bugs worked out I was told it had 120 K miles when installed and the truck was at about 158 K now that truck is at 172 K miles and I believe I've had three or four oil changes. The cold start ticking is new and I'm pretty sure new plugs would not be a bad idea if done correctly but I'm really scared to replace the coil on pack type plugs. just replacing cylinder 4 and 8 coils are nearly impossible to get to and the plugs are three or four inches deep inside the motor. are there any special tools required to get to these type spark plugs? The hole the plugs are in is pretty tight. I'm pretty sure a mechanic would charge 3 or 4 times as much to replace these plugs as opposed to the traditional plug wire plugs. also when I fill the gas tank up, I fill it up to where the fuel actually touches the gas cap and where I am literally $0.01 away from overflow. Would this be causing these codes to occur? Is this bad for the fuel injectors or any fuel supply components in a vehicle to fill it up this way. A mechanic told me this was actually good for the fuel pump but I'm wondering if this puts too much pressure on the injectors because just about any vehicle that you fill up like this I've noticed from experience if you sell it up to this point while the engine is running you can hear the engine surge a couple of times as you are getting to the top of the filler neck but the benefit of this seems that I get a lot more miles before the needle moves but if this is bad for my vehicle would like to know and to know why. By the way the engine sticker say 01-14-03 which I'm assuming is the manufacturing date. When did they release the Heritage for the year 2004 and what month did they stop production of the regular 2003 and start making the new body style for the XLT, Larriet, and King Ranch?
Spark plugs are dirt cheap, last 100,000 miles.
Only use the correct motorcraft plugs
The #1 bank is easy, even #4 once you do it a few times. You just need right extensions. I could do that side with eyes closed.
The #2 bank is a tad harder, but once youve done it its not that bad. Its just not convenient clean access for removing cops.
The plugs are the same. Plugs ejected due to poor factory spec of about 12 ft-lbs. Use correct value, around 26 lbs.
I doubtful plugs are problem for rich codes. No, fuel tank level has nothing to with injector pressure in a functioning system. With a plugged up fuel strainer on pump suction it could , but it would never cause excessive discharge pressure, just make it work better.
Evap codes are gross leak, the system isnt holding pressure since fuel pump replaced.
If you having that many coil problems it sounds like cheap chinese crap coils. Replace them with oem.
Just a note on the spark plug threads on these engines. We've had this discussion and we've come to find that 03 (Late) might have the upgraded heads after the 5/03 production date. It is rare though, as the E series got them first, since they are the worst to work on.
The actual date of the new heads first being used was 02/03, but the vans and SD 5.4 use got them first. All 04s with 2V had the 8 threads, including the Heritage, Expy, SD, and the E series vans. We even found one engine, with 8 threads on one side and 4 on the other in an 07/03 model. I bought a 5.4 out of an 04 Expedition and it has the 8 thread heads.
PS: Was that War & Peace I just read? Wow, a bit hard to follow without paragraphs and such. lol
What is the blue doodad? I have two clicker wrenches, bought a lower torque one at Harbor Freight but I'm asceared to trust it. My larger one is more for 28 lbs and up.
11-13-2017, 02:39 AM
Spark plug question
