snapped spark plug
06-04-2013, 06:27 PM
#1
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snapped spark plug
i figured this was interesting enough to share with everyone. so today my car started acting really strange and missing, so i pulled the code and it was a misfire in cylinder 6. picked up some new spark plugs, pulled off the wiring boot, and this is what i found:
as you can see, the spark plug snapped off in the wiring boot. i have no idea how that happened, but i have never even touched the plugs before. im waiting for the block to cool down, so i will post more pix up when i get the whole plug out. either way ive never heard of this happening before on a V6, so i figured it was pretty interesting.
you can see the little bit of spark plug that is visible through the recess where it snapped off
as you can see, the spark plug snapped off in the wiring boot. i have no idea how that happened, but i have never even touched the plugs before. im waiting for the block to cool down, so i will post more pix up when i get the whole plug out. either way ive never heard of this happening before on a V6, so i figured it was pretty interesting.
you can see the little bit of spark plug that is visible through the recess where it snapped off
06-04-2013, 06:35 PM
#2
More typically a GT problem, (I just changed my plugs yesterday, I have 3 broken plugs with the porcelain still in the head as we speak) I ordered a removal tool from autozone for the triton 3v (2003)... It's the same kit as the rotunda tool mentioned in the TSB for GTs. (You can also check the lengthly thread under taco bill's how-tos). I'm hoping to get these out myself without going to Ford.... but there is the tool for it (includes a bonding agent to pull the porcelain out without having to remove the head)
06-04-2013, 11:14 PM
#3
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So here's a quick update before I go to bed: turns out the plug in #2 was snapped as well!!! Ill post pix of everything tm, but the #2 plug didn't seem to have come out yet of the ceramic, but probably only a matter of time. Either way the car is running perfect now. But the spark plugs are still really weird
Last edited by tigercrazy718; 06-04-2013 at 11:19 PM.
06-05-2013, 08:27 AM
#5
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ok so heres the update and pictures:
both the plugs in cylinders 2 and 6 snapped at the pin. the wire boot (is that the coil pack? not sure on the technical term) on 6 was pretty much hanging off the plug, but the boot on 2 was still on the plug, probably because when the pin snapped on 2, it deformed a little to the side, causing some resistance from letting it pull out, because when i pulled that boot off it felt the same as all the others, unlike 6 which just fell away. thats probably why i wasn't getting a misfire code in 2. so here are the pictures:
the plug from #2
the plug from #3
both of them
sorry the pictures aren't the best quality, ill see if i can get some better ones with an actual camera. so this whole thing is very strange since these plugs only had 50k on them, and broke without me ever even touching them! i know the GT plugs break sometimes when trying to remove them, but this hasn't happened to a v6 as far as my research tells me. do yall think i should tell ford about this? i'm not mad or anything at them since i doubt it caused anything more than an inconvenience to me, but maybe they would be interested to know. anyway thanks to everyone for all their suggestions!
both the plugs in cylinders 2 and 6 snapped at the pin. the wire boot (is that the coil pack? not sure on the technical term) on 6 was pretty much hanging off the plug, but the boot on 2 was still on the plug, probably because when the pin snapped on 2, it deformed a little to the side, causing some resistance from letting it pull out, because when i pulled that boot off it felt the same as all the others, unlike 6 which just fell away. thats probably why i wasn't getting a misfire code in 2. so here are the pictures:
the plug from #2
the plug from #3
both of them
sorry the pictures aren't the best quality, ill see if i can get some better ones with an actual camera. so this whole thing is very strange since these plugs only had 50k on them, and broke without me ever even touching them! i know the GT plugs break sometimes when trying to remove them, but this hasn't happened to a v6 as far as my research tells me. do yall think i should tell ford about this? i'm not mad or anything at them since i doubt it caused anything more than an inconvenience to me, but maybe they would be interested to know. anyway thanks to everyone for all their suggestions!
Last edited by tigercrazy718; 06-05-2013 at 08:33 AM.
06-05-2013, 09:03 AM
#7
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06-05-2013, 09:27 AM
#9
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yea i had my stock rims and tires sitting in my garage for 2 years. my roomate went with his FRS so i decided what the hell ill give it a try. its actually a blast and pretty damn challenging. its not road course racing but its still pretty damn fun, and the whole event is like a big party
06-05-2013, 12:55 PM
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so went and talked to the guys at the Ford dealership. they said they had never seen anything like it before on plugs that young, but maybe those 2 plugs came from the same lot, and they had a metallurgical weakness at that point, and a hard spark from my coils caused it to weaken there. seems plausible enough but that was just a guess form the head tech haha. either way ill prob replace my coils so if anyone has any suggestions on what type feel free to share