1999 Triton V-10 tune-up time.

[83GMCK2500]

David (88gmctruck) and I are helping a friend do a tuneup on her SD, IIRC it has ~170k on it. It idles pretty rough and we pulled a plug to look at it, both electrodes were worn and the insulator has a hot spot. I am looking for anyone that has worked on these things. I read in the other '99 V-10 thread that they like to spit the plugs out, great...how can we minimize that? Does that engine prefer one brand/style of plug over another? Reason I ask is I know that Vortec 350s LOVE AC Delco Platinum plugs, and not any other kind.

What else should we look at under the hood, tune-up wise? It probably needs everything. We put half a can of seafoam in through the brake booster vacuum line and fogged up a whole block getting on it. The one plug we pulled had a torn boot, I've never seen plug wires like that, wtf was Ford thinking, how $$$ is a set of those?

 

[ak diesel driver]

I don't know if it is the same as the 5.4 but my buddy has one. The spark plug only has 4 threads that hold it in and the rest protrudes in to the cylinder. Which allows it to carbon up and then when you pull the plug it takes out the threads. It also has a 2 piece pressed together plug which has a tendency to come apart at the seam which is right below the wrench flats. Aftermarket does make a welded plug now. IIRC your supposed to crack the plugs loose and use some sort of penetrating carbon remover which you spray around them then wait and come back later work the plug back and forth alittle and spray more stuff and repeat and hopefully get them out without stripping the threads

 

[Triton]

1999-2004 V10's are 2 valve engines and have very shallow threads in the cylinder heads for the plugs. The new plugs will need to be torqued to the factory specs so "hey that seems like it will work" is not an option for them. 2005-2010 V10's are 3 valve and have deeper threads so the plugs do not blow out like the 2V's btu the other problem is they do not always come out and if they do it's usually in 2 pieces leaving the lower portion of teh plug and ceramic resistor in the cylinder head. My recommendation would be Motorcraft Factory plugs, replace the COP boots using electric grease on the ends and torque the plugs properly.

 

[83GMCK2500]

What is the proper torque spec? I still haven't done this yet, I replaced the started on that truck though.