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I read elsewhere that the Motorcraft SP 515 might be a one-piece replacement for the SP 514 two-piece spark plug. Does anyone know if that's true?
SP515 is the current spark plug. They are still 2 piece but are beefier in the crimp area and have a better electrode design to help with high RPM misfires.
Ford will never release a 1 part plug for the 3v as it would be them admitting the mistake and being held liable.
Once you get the old ones out you shouldn't have to worry about the plugs breaking again the next time. Just put some anti-seize on the ground shield and you will be set. Be careful not to get any on the electrodes.
For one piece you must go Champion, Brisk, or MSD. I think those are the only options. Honestly OEM/Autolites are good plugs after anti-seize is applied.
8-1-15 2005 Mustang, 4.6L V8, New Spark Plugs: MSD 3716 3IR6, 38,428 miles
• Champion 7989 and MSD 37164 3IR6 were the only 1 piece models on market
• Motorcraft 514 and 515 are 2 piece, although the 515 is supposed to have stronger construction
• On internet, Champion 7989 had attacks on quality including from mfg engineers. Cost was $85 with free ship.
• MSD 3716: is iridium tip SP. I found no attacks on quality. I spent $112 with free ship
• I ordered 2 of MSD 37164. The 4 stands for 4-pack. MSD style is 3IR6. #3 is style #; IR is iridium; 6 is heat rating
• Air Gun: blow out area around SP coils
• Coil Connectors: depress plastic clip and pull straight up. Remove all 8.
• Coils: Clamp bolts, 7mm short socket, 6” ext, ¼ air ratchet. Loosen all 8 bolts. SP pliers under plastic hold down portion and pull straight up. All coils popped out assembled except front coil LS. After remove coil with boot, pull on spring to make sure still seated
• Left Front Coil: Boot and spring came off. Twist spring back on seat by turn C. Push boot back into place.
• SP Tubes: air gun to blow out
• Spark Plug Removal: hex is 9/16. 9/16 long socket, 12” ext, 3/8 BB. 1/8 to 3/16 turn CC. Gunk Carb Cleaner: Fill each SP tube to top of SP hex head. Use drop light while spraying, do not over fill, and be sure to have on glasses. 10:20AM
• I waited about an hour. I began by turning each SP back and forth 1/8 to ¼ turn. I went back and forth at least 4 times. I then tried turning further CC, but with regular Clockwise ¼ turns. All 8 SP came out in about 45 minutes. Tools: 9/16 long socket with rubber SP insert, 12 ext, 3/8 BB
• Old SP: looked OK, but some looked to have a gap far more than .035”. They are 10 years old, and from the way the car first ran, poor quality fuel was probably used part of the time. No oil on electrodes so internal head condition probably OK
• New Spark Plugs: MSD 3716 3IR6, Made in E.U.. Cost about $112. Gapped at .035” while waiting for Carb Cleaner to work on the old SP threads. Lightly coat SP threads and extension with Anti-Seize. Do not get anti-seize on electrodes. Probably did not need to put on extensions, since new SP are 1-piece.
• New SP: insert into SP socket only enough to start insulator into rubber insert. Socket gets stuck on SP in tube if push SP all the way in. Use 9/16” long socket and 12 ext to get all 8 SP started in threads. Remove insert from 9/16 long socket. 9/16 long socket, 12 ext, and small 3/8 stub ratchet to tighten SP until seated. Tighten by feel using 9/16 ls, 12 ext, swivel head long 3/8 Ratchet.
• Coils: wipe clean and install, 7mm ss, 6 ext, ¼ R on clamp bolts
• Coil Connectors: reinstall
• Start-Up: started on 2nd turn of ignition key. Smelled gas at first. This went away after 10-15 seconds. May have been running rich with the SP514 plugs. Engine running smoother. It will burn rubber in first gear and in a hard shift to 2nd gear. Power increased a bit. Governor for high revs in 1st gear shut me down one time, very annoying. May need to contact Livernois about a computer program change.
great write up and pics. I think your gap is wrong though. factory spec is .0040 to .0050 iirc. motorcraft sp514 plugs come gapped .0054 or close. those plugs you pulled out didn't look that bad at all really. some scotch brite and nickel anti-seize and they would go another 30k. ill be curious to see if you get misfire codes, honest misfire codes.
The pre gap according to MSD was .035". Although the MSD directions below say that MSD spark plugs do not need to be gapped, they also say that I could go out to .035 + .008. All I did was use a wire type gapping tool and open the gap slightly to a true .035. From the factory the MSD measured .032-.033. I haven't had any misfires, but maybe going out to .043" would help performance and fuel economy. I mostly changed the plugs because I thought, "The longer I leave the Motorcraft spark plugs in there, the greater the chance they'll break when removed."
"As Iridium tip plugs were released, installers used incorrect gap tools and procedures resulting in broken or damage center electrodes. As a result, many installers assumed that one cannot adjust the gap on iridium tip plugs. While the MSD spark plugs are pre-gapped and do not require gapping, there are instances where the gap requires modification. MSD recommends a wire-style or feeler gauge gap tool, (Fig 1) which can adjust the gap without prying against the center electrode, (Figure 2). MSD also recommends adjusting the gap no more than +/- 0.008” from the preset gap."
I used basically same soak procedure except I spun them out with an impact gun. Took a bit to nut up and do it, but 10 mins later and they were all out without a break.
I put MSD SP's and MSD blaster coils and I had a very noticeable gain. I must of had bad plugs or weak coils before, because the car pulls really hard compared to before.
06-25-2015, 06:57 PM
