AutumnsList

How to change spark plugs in a 2000 Ford Expedition

First let me begin by saying, If you do not have a strong background in auto mechanics I would suggest you not perform this tune-up! Not Joking!
This is not your basic spark plug change, it involves removing quite a few parts including the fuel rails.

But if your up for a challenge then grab a notepad or print all of this out for your reference.

Note: This is a step by step for a 2000 Ford Expedition with the 5.4 liter V8 engine, but is very similar to other models. Also the F-150 and other Ford's with this engine will be a very similar match.

Depending on your skills, tools and work place this job could take anywhere between 2-5 Hours! (not kidding!)

Tools you will need:
A 3/8 Ratchet
A torque wrench that is capable of inch pound settings from 85 to 185 (for spark plugs)
A long breaker bar wrench (you will need this!)
At least 2 long extensions with different lengths
A small extension
Swivel extension (you will need this)
Spark plug boot puller (not essential, but it is very hard to get the boot out if it comes separated from the coil)
7mm socket
8mm socket
11mm socket
Small stubby (thick) flat head screw driver (to remove the fuel rails off the injectors)
Some Anti-Seize
Some dielectric grease
A bunch of rags (around 4-8)
latex gloves (because you will get gas on your hands!)
Some WD-40 or something like liquid wrench (you will need this to remove certain bolts or risk breaking them)
A lot of patience
A little bit of motor oil (you will need this to put the fuel rails back onto the injectors, trust me!)
A small vacuum (optional, but very helpful)
A flashlight (I needed this several times, especially when checking for fuel leaks)
5/8 spark plug socket (with rubber grommet inside)
5/8 spark plug socket (without rubber grommet inside)
Digital caliper or spark plug gap tool (I prefer to use a caliper for better accuracy)
Some kind of compressed air (to blow out the spark plug holes before and after you remove them)
Wire and regular detail brushes (to clean parts and bolts with)

Here are some pictures of the tools you will need:
dielectric grease, Anti-Seize, and digital caliper

Tools you will need: from left to right (Air compressor, stubby screw driver, spark plug sockets (2), swivel adapter, extensions, spark plug wire puller, spark plug gapper, detail brushes; On Top: 1/2 inch breaker bar with 1/2 inch to 5/8 adapter, inch pound torque wrench)

Flashlight

Small vacuum, Latex gloves

WD-40, Shop Rags, Two 5/8 spark plug socket (one with the rubber grommet removed)


Step one: PRAY
Pray you don't break anything!

Step Two: SURE?
Are you sure you want to go thru with this? If so put on some latex gloves and let's proceed.

First you must re-leave the gas pressure in the system, which is always in a pressurized state. If you do not do this step you could catch on fire or cause an explosion!!!!

You can easily re-leave this pressure by doing three simple things:
One: Behind the foot-panel on the passenger side of the vehicle you will find the reset button for the fuel pump (This is the safety shut off switch in case the truck is in a roll over situation). There is actually raised letters that point to the button. You will need a strong mini flat head screw driver to CAREFULLY disengage the clip. If you cannot see what you are doing grab a flashlight, because you do not want to break this clip!
Two: Start the car for about 5 seconds, turn it off, then turn it over for another 5 seconds. Don't worry, as long as you disconnect the above mentioned fuel pump connection it will never start up. This is how the manual tells you how to do it.
Three: Disconnect the NEGATIVE battery terminal (I disconnect both sides)

Step Three: REMOVE BRACKET
Unbolt the power steering pump bracket. There are three bolts, one is a different size. If I remember correctly you will need a 8mm and a 11mm socket. Put the bracket aside.

Step Four: MAKE ROOM
Unplug any wires or vacuum lines that are in your way, trust me you will want to unplug everything in the way, because you will be elbow deep in the engine and the space is very limited.

Step Five: REMOVE DEBRIS
Now is a good time to break out the air compressor and blow out any loose debris from all of the spark plug and injector areas and on top of the engine, then hit it real quick with the vacuum being careful not to break any hard vacuum lines or wire connections. Make sure you are wearing your safety glasses! If you value your eye sight you will definitely want to put those glasses on, because the amount of crap that accumulates on top of an engine and in the holes and crevices is ridiculous!

Step Six: UNBOLT
First we will start on the Drivers Side.
Unbolt the 2 bolts that hold the fuel rail on (chrome tube hovering on top of the plugs and injectors) I believe this was a 8mm socket.
You will want to put some rags around the fuel rail where it meets the injectors, because it will spill a little gas out when you pop the rails off of the injectors.

Step Seven: REMOVE FUEL RAIL
The fuel rail is mounted on top of each injector and is held in place by O-rings that sit on top of the injectors.
Make sure you unplug each injector before proceeding (you may not be able to unplug the rear on though)
Grab a stubby screw driver and gently pry up on the rail by putting the tip of the screw driver between the injector and bell mouth of the fuel rail. Try to be careful, but in my experience this futile, because it takes a lot of force to separate the injectors from the rail. You will most likely end up popping the injectors up from the engine anyways, so be careful and pull up hard while using the screw driver to give you some leverage.

Step Eight: INSPECT INJECTORS
Once you get past step seven you will want to remove each injector from the fuel rail, because putting them back in with them on the fuel rail is almost impossible!
You should blow out each injector hole each time you remove one.
This is very important: When you pull each injector off the fuel rail make sure the O-ring is on the top of each injector, if they are original injectors the O-ring will be blue. If you don't see some, then they are either stuck up in the fuel rail opening, which you will need to get a mini screw driver to gently pop them out of there or they fell out when you pulled the fuel rail off. I had both of these happen to me. To check if they are stuck in the fuel rail just stick your pinky finger in there and you will easily feel it. If your finger goes all the way in, the O-ring has fallen out, grab your flashlight and start searching! It helps to have a long pair of tweezers handy.
Now that you have them all out, now is a good time to wipe them down and check for cracks, one of mine was cracked all over the place at the injector tip. Just make sure you don't get any lint or dirt from the rag into the nozzle part and DON'T blast any air into the nozzle opening either! Also DO NOT use any kind of solvents to clean it, some plain water and maybe a tiny bit of dish-washing liquid would be o.k.
One more thing, if you had a code that said a certain cylinder was misfiring, then take that injector and move it to a different location (as close to the front as possible would be best, that way if you get a code on the one you moved it to it will be an easier repair).

Step Nine: UNBOLT AND REMOVE COIL
Starting from the front, unbolt the coil pack hold down bolt, which I believe is a 8mm socket. Once removed, twist the coil pack back and forth to loosen the boots grip from the top of the spark plug, then grab as much as the boot as possible and pull up on it while still twisting back and forth. If the coil separates from the boot don't push it back down, just take it out and gently put it aside. Grab your spark plug boot puller wrench and remove the boot.
put on some safety glasses and blow out the spark plug hole, getting down as far as you can into the hole. Be careful, mine had a ton of dirt and crap in there that came shooting straight up!

Step Ten: CLEAN AND CHECK COIL
Clean off the coil and boot with a regular detail brush, a rag and an occasional blast of air. You will want to gently and carefully pull the boot off of the coil to inspect the coil wire inside. It should not be broken or disconnected from the coil.
Carefully check the boot for cracks or any kind of holes. Cracks or holes will cause an spark to jump thru the boot and ground out. If it's damaged you must replace the boot. Make sure you align the two arrows up when putting the boot back onto the coil pack.
Also check the rest of the coil (hard plastic part) for the same thing.

Step Eleven: REMOVE PLUG
Now remove the spark plug by using the spark plug socket with the rubber grommet in it. You will most likely need a breaker bar to get the spark plugs to unloosen, which was the case for me. Just unloosen them enough so you can finish with a regular ratchet.
Take a look at the spark plug to see if there is an unusual amount of carbon buildup or a if it is badly burned, or a if the ceramic portion is damaged, especially on a cylinder that was throwing a code. I also like to check the gap, this gives me a good idea if they were installed with the correct gap, in the truck i recently tuned the gap was .034 when it should have been .054, which tells me the last person who did them gaped the plugs for the V-6 engine! Not kidding!

Step Twelve: GAP PLUG
Make sure the spark plug gap is correct. I like to use a digital caliper to get it perfect and a gaping tool to open or close it if it needs to be changed. I bought some Motorcraft Platinum's which were already perfectly gaped

Step Thirteen: INSTALL PLUG
Use the spark plug socket with the grommet, but do not put the plug all the way into the socket. Put it in enough for the socket to just grab hold of the nut pattern on the plug, but not to loose so it slips off.
Apply some anti-seize liberally to the threads of the plug, but not so it is dripping off of it.
Put whatever extension is necessary on the socket so you can SLOWLY extend it down the hole being careful not to hit the threads into the top of the hole (you don't want to get any kind of dirt on the threads).
I like to turn it counter clockwise a couple of times so i know it is seated correctly.
Now slowly turn it so the threads line up. If it feels tough going in back it back out and try again, you should be able to turn it a few times by hand before you need to attach the torque wrench. Note I said torque wrench! Do not use a regular socket wrench here! And make sure you set the torque wrench to the correct setting before you begin.
Before you attach the torque wrench pull the socket out of the hole and attach the spark plug socket without the rubber grommet in it and finish tightening the plug to the specified torque settings (you will find this in the repair manual).
The reason I use this second kind of socket is so you can actually remove the socket once you fully torque it. If you don't change the socket you will spend a lot of time removing the socket off of the plug!
Make sure you are very careful when starting the plugs into their threads, there are only 3 threads down there and that makes it very easy to cross thread them. If that happens you will need to take it in to a shop where they will have to perform surgery! This is a very expensive fix that could cost you thousands of dollars!, so go slowly and take your time!

Step Fourteen: REPEAT
Repeat Steps Nine thru Thirteen for each of the remaining coil packs and plugs.
Note: you will have to change your extensions and move the fuel rail this way and that way to gain access. You will need a swivel adapter for the rear plugs.

Step Fifteen: REPEAT FOR OTHER SIDE
Once you are done, just repeat these steps for the other side.

Step Sixteen: INSPECT AGAIN
If you didn't do this when you took out the injectors you may want to carefully look at each injectors O-rings for any kind of damage. I had one that was smooshed somehow and when i put it back on it leaked like crazy! Luckily I had to change one of the injectors, so I used the O-ring from the old one and that solved the problem, but I did have to take the whole fuel rail off again.

Step Seventeen: COAT O-RINGS
Before you try to put the fuel rail back on you will want to lightly coat each and every O-ring with a little motor oil, so you can actually get them back on, because trust me you will never get them back on without some lube. Just tip the oil over (while the cap is on) then back to the upright position, unscrew the cap and there will be enough oil in the cap to dip your finger into and coat the O-rings.

Step Eighteen: INSTALL FUEL RAIL
Align the fuel rail onto each injector, it helps to have the injectors slightly leaning outwards. Once aligned you will need to use a little muscle to push them down over the O-rings. Look at the bolt holes to see if you have them on far enough. You should have the bolt hole in the middle of the oblong hole that is part of the fuel rail bracket. Tighten the bolts until they are close to being tight, then back them out a little.

While holding down the fuel rail tighten the back bolt first, then the front while still holding the fuel rail down, this will ensure you have a nice tight fit.
Now do the same for the other side.

Step Nineteen: RE-CONNECT
Re-connect all the electrical connections for the coils and injectors making sure you have them going to the correct ones.
Note that you will have to connect the rear injector and coil for the driver side before you put the fuel rail on or it will be extremely hard to do so afterward.

Step Twenty: RE-CONNECT OTHER
Re-connect all electrical and vacuum lines you removed.

Step Twenty One: REATTACH BRACKET
Reattach the power steering fluid brace.

Step Twenty Two: REATTACH CONNECTIONS
Reattach the fuel pump shut off connector, put the negative battery cable back on, then put the truck in the "on" position, DO NOT start the truck yet!
Grab your flashlight and shine it on every single fuel injector to see if any gas is spraying or leaking out of the top of the injector. The injectors can be swiveled back and forth, so I recommend that you do this and see if there is any leakage.
If you see no leakage at this point, then go ahead and start the truck and check each one with the flashlight again for gas leakage.
As one more safety measure I always turn off the truck, check for leakage, then once again do the above test once more. A gas leak can be extremely dangerous, so a few checks could mean the matter of life or death!
Make sure you are always wearing your safety glasses when you perform any type of leak test, you never know what may come out at you!

I will finish editing this tomorrow!

great how to thanks, you have no idea how much you helped me out!