Ford 5.4L Triton V8 is crap

[JD40MO77]

All you do to get the spark plugs out of the 5.4 is to go get your impact..............yes that's right your impact and socket ..........and make sure you have it set to run the plug out and NOT in...........then when you pull the trigger don't let up.

I mite know someone........... he worked at the local dealership since 74 and just brought his toolboxes home last April....

And as crazy as it sounds dad said he tried other ways to get the plugs out like warming the engine then applying penetrating oil and using the other company recommendations and those tended to lead to a broken plug.........

I am pretty sure there are now updated spark plugs for those engines.

Anyways, not recommending anyone should "try this method at home"..........at least not without conferring with others first!!!

 

[Monster5601]

No I'm talking about the TWO VOLTS that burned up in a couples garage and in Mooresville, NC home and Barkhamsted Connecticut. But the crash test fire makes three - THAT WE KNOW OF.......

"And now this story from Barkhamsted Connecticut where a Chevy Volt is being blamed for burning down a families garage as the electric hybrid vehicle was being charged overnight in the couples garage. Lets face it the massive amount of electricity that must be used to recharge these vehicles is probably **** on old houses with old-fashioned wiring. In this case only a well placed firewall saved the family from losing their home as well as the garage. This will likely not be the only time something like this happens as more and more folks move to buy electric vehicles in an attempt to reduce their carbon footprint.
"

"Fire Marshalls in both cases ruled that the Volt was not at fault for the fires"

Third Chevrolet Volt fire could bring about new EV regulations

Investigation Continues in Garage Fire That Burned Siemens Charger, Chevy Volt | Cars In Depth

 

[qstott]

I love to hear someone say "they don't make them like they used to". Especially when they are complaining about the ac compressor going out, or the power window motor stopped working, or the door lock actuator quit, or the cd won't eject, or the abs light is on, or the air bag light is blinking, etc, etc. Back in the day, you were lucky to have a heater, much less an AC. A vehicle was due to hit the junk yard at 100,000 miles. About a year ago I bought a '95 Ranger as a second truck just to beat around on. A 4 cyl 5 sp with air and a radio. It had 150,000 miles on it, and I didn't even blink an eye at the mileage. It now has about 170,000 and I changed the sparkplugs and oil. I expect it to run another 100,000 or so without major problems. I have a buddy that works on high tech fax machines and copier/scanners and travels daily. He has a '97 F150 with 470,000 miles. He replaced the rear end bearings at about 250,000, and has changed oil, brakes, tires, plugs, wires, and that's about it. He bought an Escape from me with 160,000 miles on it and now has about 270,000. He is thinking about changing plugs for the first time, but is hesitating because it still runs fine and he know he will have to pull the upper intake to get to the ones on the rear. Yep, they don't make them like they used to I read somewhere if a new vehicle had a parts failure rate of 1%, there would be 200 things wrong with it at delivery.

 

[Diamondpilot]

This might lead one to believe the air cleaner isn't being used at all. A working air cleaner traps dirt, doesn't stay clean. More than likely the intake air is finding a path around the filter into the intake manifold.

I agree. The old engines need as much air coming in as the new engines. Its not a superior product, its a inferior air cleaner box.

Chris

 

[Diamondpilot]

I love to hear someone say "they don't make them like they used to". Especially when they are complaining about the ac compressor going out, or the power window motor stopped working, or the door lock actuator quit, or the cd won't eject, or the abs light is on, or the air bag light is blinking, etc, etc. Back in the day, you were lucky to have a heater, much less an AC. A vehicle was due to hit the junk yard at 100,000 miles. About a year ago I bought a '95 Ranger as a second truck just to beat around on. A 4 cyl 5 sp with air and a radio. It had 150,000 miles on it, and I didn't even blink an eye at the mileage. It now has about 170,000 and I changed the sparkplugs and oil. I expect it to run another 100,000 or so without major problems. I have a buddy that works on high tech fax machines and copier/scanners and travels daily. He has a '97 F150 with 470,000 miles. He replaced the rear end bearings at about 250,000, and has changed oil, brakes, tires, plugs, wires, and that's about it. He bought an Escape from me with 160,000 miles on it and now has about 270,000. He is thinking about changing plugs for the first time, but is hesitating because it still runs fine and he know he will have to pull the upper intake to get to the ones on the rear. Yep, they don't make them like they used to I read somewhere if a new vehicle had a parts failure rate of 1%, there would be 200 things wrong with it at delivery.

I am with you and glad as heck they dont make them like they used to. They were JUNK, compared to what we have today. Dont forget points, rotors, and caps. What a pain that was. It seemed as if we had to work on them every week.


I just check the oil on my Titan yesterday. First time I have had the hood open since 4,000 miles ago. I do 5,000 mile oil changes. Cars today are so reliable you forget about them. My first 3 vehicles I checked the oil on them twice a week or so and nearly wore out the hood hinges.:laughing:


Chris

 

[simoutdoors]

I was life long Ford guy, with my Great Grand Father owning the dealership in my small town. Bought a Chevy last time around because when I was looking the newly released design fit better with my needs. Now less then 4 years later it is paid off and only has little over 50K miles. It burns a quart of oil every ~2500 miles and GM Service Bulletin says that is acceptable.... What? My typical plan is try try and get 10 years on a truck. Will this engine make it?

Not to say Ford is flawless either. Lost the automatic transmission in my last F-150 just out of warranty....

My opinion is vehicles are being built to be recycled after the the average American finishes paying off the loan they took out to purchase the vehicle.

 

[Jaylegger]

I agree. The old engines need as much air coming in as the new engines. Its not a superior product, its a inferior air cleaner box.

Chris

I remember, back in the day (with my older brother and friends 15-16 yrs old) it was cool and fairly common practice to flip the air cleaner cover to open up the box along the round edge (on their parents vehicles).

Some guys just plain refuse to recognize real progress no matter how obvious the signs.

 

[crashz]

I love to hear someone say "they don't make them like they used to". Especially when they are complaining about the ac compressor going out, or the power window motor stopped working, or the door lock actuator quit, or the cd won't eject, or the abs light is on, or the air bag light is blinking, etc, etc. Back in the day, you were lucky to have a heater, much less an AC. A vehicle was due to hit the junk yard at 100,000 miles.

Good point, but don't forget that back then, a family would typically buy a brand new car every 3-5 years. Very typical for only one car, and single income. By the second year of ownership, Dad would be out in the driveway swearing at the car and mangling something under the hood.

Times are totally different today. Mom and Dad both need cars to get to work and kids to soccer practice. Gone are the days of single income families. Absolutely nobody walks anymore just to get to a destination. Gone are the days where Dad has the ability to repiar his own car (beyond typical maintenance).

So vehicles seemed to have evolved to our needs. We need a vehicle that last longer, will go farther and require less work, depiste being able to do far more than ones in the past. i think they have come a long way.

 

[zzvyb6]

The garage fires where Volts were housed were caused by the morons who wired up their own version of a charger instead of having a pro do it.

There should be a ElectricCarbyNet forum for the uneducated Rubes who tackle projects requiring more than a third grade education.

Leave your prejudices at home. The Volt is an answer to the question of a non gasoline powered car for people who are paranoid about getting stranded on the way home. If I had one, I would never have to by gas again. And please don't quote any phony sales reports. All producuction for the first year was sold out. That's why there were so few dealer sales.

And as for the govt test fires, they were caused by dried up antifreeze that turned into an elecrical conductor, producing a short circuit. In the same vein, crash tests of gas cars and hybrids (with their batteries) require the batteries and gasoline to be unloaded within hours of the test completion. For some reason, NHTSA chose (or forgot) not to do this with the Volts.

In 20 years, there won't be any V8 or V6 cars or trucks (or whatever you want to call a 'truck' then), on the market or on the road. So, plan accordingly and sell that camper, boat, and utility trailer soon, before the market collapses. Oh, and hoarding won't work because it will be illegal to operate one, much less fuel it. Buying a good welder generator to power your Nissan Leaf on the fly might make a good choice, too.

 

[BigBoyinMS]

(I may be rehashing what others have said but I only read the first 2 pages.)

The OP does have a legitimate gripe. All manufacturers have a bad design at one time or another. The spark plug issue on the Tritons is a known bad design. In fact, thread repair companies make universal thread repair kits for all heads but they also make special kits just to repair threads in a Triton head. And tool companies have special tools, just for the Tritons, to try and remove broken plugs.
As far as the plastic intake... plastic isn't the issue. It could be another bad design with not enough plastic in that area. Or it could be a one-off issue. Don't know.
But the biggest issue I saw was the number of thin-skinned posters. Toughen up guys! A fellow says a particular Ford engine is junk and some of you act like he's talking about your wife or something! Man-up and don't take it personally! Let's show a little respect for each other.