It was time to change the spark plugs

[Bruce51]

Remember when gas was leaded and spark plugs were changed at 5,000 miles?

I don't miss those days of changing points and condenser and shooting the timing.

While it seemed to be a simpler time all things automotive required maintenance far greater than the current offerings.

I just changed the plugs on my E150 4.6 two valve engine at 144,000 miles.
Yes sir the original plugs were still in the van.

However there has been a mileage decrease and slower performance noted lately.

Why did I wait so long? Well you've heard about the poorly designed new breakaway plugs Ford installed in all three valve engines.

I thought the van had the new plugs until I looked at the valve covers.

Right there I knew it took regular plugs and started to change them at 122,000 miles. Pulled the last plug and it looked darn near new so I put it back.

Finally I removed them all last week and some were well, a bit worn.

After installation, a new belt and a brake job it is once again running great.

This is the longest run of any plug that I have ever had in a vehicle.

Grew up around cars and working on cars Dad being the neighborhood shade tree mechanic.

Thanks Dad! You have helped save me thousands of dollars in auto repairs because, I was taught how to repair almost any problem.

OK now what is your story?

Bruce

 

[mauser9]

My hat's off to ya Bruce. No doubt you have saved yourself a bundle over the years. Not so mechanically inclined myself but yes a lot less tune-ups in newer cars at least. Recall a couple of my old cars "skipping" when it was in need of a tune up big time. Tell ya the truth I don't miss the carbs either. What I do miss is my old Challenger!

 

[Nevada Ed]

Glad to hear you got that machine running again in top shape.

These new plugs and oil are going to out last the darn car if they keep it up in the labs!!

 

[alexfitch225]

Remember when gas was leaded and spark plugs were changed at 5,000 miles?

I don't miss those days of changing points and condenser and shooting the timing.

While it seemed to be a simpler time all things automotive required maintenance far greater than the current offerings.

I just changed the plugs on my E150 4.6 two valve engine at 144,000 miles.
Yes sir the original plugs were still in the van.

However there has been a mileage decrease and slower performance noted lately.

Why did I wait so long? Well you've heard about the poorly designed new breakaway plugs Ford installed in all three valve engines.

I thought the van had the new plugs until I looked at the valve covers.

Right there I knew it took regular plugs and started to change them at 122,000 miles. Pulled the last plug and it looked darn near new so I put it back.

Finally I removed them all last week and some were well, a bit worn.

After installation, a new belt and a brake job it is once again running great.

This is the longest run of any plug that I have ever had in a vehicle.

Grew up around cars and working on cars Dad being the neighborhood shade tree mechanic.

Thanks Dad! You have helped save me thousands of dollars in auto repairs because, I was taught how to repair almost any problem.

OK now what is your story?

Bruce

Last major notable work I did on any vehicle was a few gaskets on a 92 cavalier. Did the head, valve cover and ended up doing the water pump with new gasket and serpentine belt. I'm like you grew up doing a lot of the repairs on various vehicles, I've always seemed to enjoy doing it for the most part.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

 

[arjay]

I've got a superduty with the v-10.Somewhere around 150,000 I started thinking about changing plugs, then one removed itself [emoji33]

 

[30-30remchester]

I put 203,000 miles on the sparkplugs of a 1999 GMC pickup I once owned. You could throw Elizabeth Taylor through the gap in the plugs but it still ran great and got the usual gas mileage.

 

[brucev]

My wife has a 2007 Toyota Yaris which she uses to get to and from work, etc. Gassed it up for her today. 302,000 miles... averages a little over 40 MPG with her driving it at normal highway/interstate speeds. I know it is on the original brakes. I thought we changed the plugs at 150K but she says it's never been done. Someone took a razor blade to her tires when the car was new so she only got 60K out of that set. Each set since then has gotten +100K. Current set had 60K and look to be headed for 100K. Oh... the car has not yet needed a alignment.

Liked the way her car ran so much that in 2010, I bought one for myself. It only has 148K on it. But... other than gas and oil changes and one set of tires... it has just kept hopping down the road like the Energizer Bunny! Pretty good cars. Sincerely. bruce.

 

[Bruce51]

My wife has a 2007 Toyota Yaris which she uses to get to and from work, etc. Gassed it up for her today. 302,000 miles... averages a little over 40 MPG with her driving it at normal highway/interstate speeds. I know it is on the original brakes. I thought we changed the plugs at 150K but she says it's never been done. Someone took a razor blade to her tires when the car was new so she only got 60K out of that set. Each set since then has gotten +100K. Current set had 60K and look to be headed for 100K. Oh... the car has not yet needed a alignment.

Liked the way her car ran so much that in 2010, I bought one for myself. It only has 148K on it. But... other than gas and oil changes and one set of tires... it has just kept hopping down the road like the Energizer Bunny! Pretty good cars. Sincerely. bruce.

That is pretty amazing and helps my point that the cars today can just keep going.

All the work needed to keep cars going back in the 60's included a lot of STP, oil,grease,plugs,gaskets and bailing wire. Engines wore out fast with the blue smoke screen trailing out the back. Don't even get me started on VW bugs. Need to fix it, pull the engine almost every time.

I enjoy the comfort, power and dependability of the modern machines.
I'm getting to old to crawl around and under them and enjoy the oil, grease, dirt and rust.

Today if there is a problem Google it for the answer. If you want to do it yourself watch a U tube video for how it is done.

Saves time and keeps the mechanics honest.

Bruce

 

[4barrel]

When the 4.6 Ford after high miles like in post 1 has a miss it may have a cracked plug --a bad coil --or a heater hose leaking on the last cylinder on the right side rear dripping on a coil--a stuck egr valve --or a pcv hose. Just remember to put put the correct lube on the plugs if aluminum heads.

 

[snubbyfan]

I personally miss manual transmissions, carburetors, points, condensers, etc.
No power anything, windows, door locks, or steering.

The only thing electronic was connected to speakers.
Okay, I did like power brakes.

I remember changing a carburetor in 14 degree weather.

A/C I didn't need no steenkin' A/C. To this day, I still don't use it.

Back in the day, a fellow could work on his car. Changing carb. jets, adjusting idle mix and speed.

My favorite car was a '75 Toyota Corolla. I removed the A/C and smog pump. It had one belt that drove the water pump and alternator. Manual transmission and steering. Just as simple as could be.

Now everything's computer controlled.
I do havta admit though that due to a motor nerve condition, I now drive an automatic transmission.
I've always had a manual transmission. Until now.

Don't think I'll ever get usta shifting into 4wd with a little dial on the dash instead of a transfer shifter lever.

 

[Hillbilly77]

I just threw a set of plugs and wires at my 2005 Silverado in September.
They were OEM plugs with around 180,000 on them at the time. I was getting a random misfire code on cylinder 3, so I figured it was about time.

About 2 weeks after that I had to put a set of head gaskets on the truck due to an internal coolant leak.

Last week I mounted my own tires.


I hate paying somebody to do something I can do myself.

 

[Hillbilly77]

Don't think I'll ever get usta shifting into 4wd with a little dial on the dash instead of a transfer shifter lever.

Yup, I'm not a fan of that fancy electrical-tricity shifting.

My 2005 Silverado has a mechanical shifter on the floor, right where it belongs.

 

[RSBH44]

Yup, I'm not a fan of that fancy electrical-tricity shifting.

My 2005 Silverado has a mechanical shifter on the floor, righ where it belongs.

Been driving Ford trucks prit'near all of my life. I definitely Do Not miss getting out of the truck to lock in the front hubs.

 

[RSBH44]

My old man fixed everything. He never paid one red cent to anybody if he could fix it himself. Subsequently my brother and I grew up that way and to this day I still can't pay somebody to do something I know that I can do. I still do all the brakes on my and my wife's cars. in addition to tune ups ( what there is of one now a days) oil changes, belts ,hoses , water pumps etc.
However, as I get older it's getting more difficult to do and I look forward to it less and less. The misses says it's time to let somebody else do it but at the prices charged these days

 

[snowman]

My mechanical interest and aptitude made itself evident very early in my life, and has been extremely helpful both in my own life and among friends. I grew up farming with my father; and the absence of mechanical aptitude is a handicap for any farmer. Dad had poor tools, but we made do and I helped keep a number of old machines operating.

All this continued when I began to drive, and generally I made whatever repairs were necessary on my vehicles, unless I was short on time. Before buying a '06 Corolla in 2013, I owned a '91 Civic sedan. It was on that particular vehicle that I gained the most experience. Although repairs were rarely needed on it, I drove it for 18 years, and the last few years I drove it, it was requiring more attention.

I've worked on a few different cars of Japanese origin now, and have found them to be fairly simple machines(at least ones with which I'm familiar), even with the newer technological advances. The Civic was an outstanding example of this, and was wonderfully serviceable also. I was repeatedly astonished when doing a repair at the obvious forethought of the engineers in arranging components for easy access. I also had the same service manual used by Honda technicians, and that thing was a tremendous resource, especially in dealing with the codes put out by the ECM to diagnose engine problems -extremely simple to follow. I made a mistake now and then which is to be expected for a DIYer, but nothing serious or very costly.

My problem is that I am disabled and age is starting to catch up with me, making it physically difficult to do some of the work. One of these days I'm going to have to turn it over to professionals and pay the labor charges I've avoided for years now. Oh well, no sense bemoaning the inevitable.

Regards,
Andy



P.S. I also have a '96 F250 4x4 with manual front locking hubs. As someone else indicated, it's a pain to get out and lock and unlock them. However, I installed them because the originals were the kind which you could engage and disengage by backing up a ways while in 4x4 mode, then proceeding forward. I had at least one those freeze up on me, and they weren't really stout enough to withstand the stress required of them.

 

[Hillbilly77]

Been driving Ford trucks prit'near all of my life. I definitely Do Not miss getting out of the truck to lock in the front hubs.

They say those lock-in hubs were so you could take a minute and think about what you were getting ready to attempt.

 

[rwsmith]

It din't hurt my feelings.....

.....when they got rid of points and distributors and all that. The computers and sensors make the car run so clean the plugs last for years.

 

[DWalt]

I feel like a piker. My Ford Ranger has only about 75K miles on its clock with the OEM plugs. Had it for over 10 years, virtually no troubles so far, even the tires. I changed them out about two years ago, only because the sidewalls were getting ozone-checked, and the tread a little shallow, but not too bad. The worst car for maintenance I ever had was a '62 Ford Galacie with a 406 engine. Seems I was doing something on it about every weekend. I had to gap the valves several times a year, not a fun job. It didn't help that there were two attempts to steal it, both causing significant damage, the worst being loss of my progressive three deuces. Cars today really are far better than back then, at least more trouble-free.

 

[BUFF]

The old cars were a lot of steel, style and fun but current cars and trucks are definitely more durable. I remember that just about everything on wheels needed a ring and valve job before 100,000 miles, often way before that, regardless of how well you cared for it. Gas mileage is far superior, often by a factor of 5 times better. They pollute far less.

When I get nostalgic for older cars and trucks, I drive my '87 Ford F-250 with a 460 V-8. It was the last engine that Ford made with a carburetor. It burps and chugs a bit until it is warmed up. Fuel injection is so much smoother.

Don't even get me started on new versus old tires and brakes.

Yes, with the current electronics on everything, we can't usually do much of the repairs ourselves, but it also seems that we have a lot fewer repairs to do.

 

[twodog max]

Some mechanical things I will work on. I can tear down and repair a bush hog or a disc no big deal just lots of sweat. Do minor stuff to tractors. Work on a newer car or truck no way. To complicated for this old country boy. To close a fit and to many unknown gadgets in there. I found out years back that it is better for my checkbook and disposition to let someone else do that. I hate what it costs but with todays vehicles it don't come around very often.