lowelanxd Posted December 16, 2011 Report Share Posted December 16, 2011 I just addressed changing the spark plugs in my 08 MKX today. Decided to take some time and get photos of the process and put together a how-to for anyone thats interested. I would like to upload the documents but cannot seem to get that function to work, so for anyone that would like the info, let me know, i would be more than happy to email it to you If your familiar with the steps necessary to make files available here for everyone, let me know. thanks.. Andrew 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowelanxd Posted December 17, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 17, 2011 ok, heres the info in PDF format. hope this helps. 3.5L sparkplug1.pdf 3.5L sparkplug2.pdf 3.5L sparkplug3.pdf 3.5L sparkplug4.pdf 3.5L sparkplug5.pdf 3.5L sparkplug6.pdf 3.5L sparkplug7.pdf 3.5L sparkplug8.pdf 13 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wlepse Posted December 17, 2011 Report Share Posted December 17, 2011 Nice...how many miles did you have on it before changing? Looking pretty dirty in there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evh Posted December 17, 2011 Report Share Posted December 17, 2011 (edited) Great write-up lowelanxd! Edited December 17, 2011 by evh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scorpio Posted December 17, 2011 Report Share Posted December 17, 2011 Very nice, I always do my own minor maintenance and I'm sure this'll come in handy eventually. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowelanxd Posted December 18, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 18, 2011 (edited) thanks for the positive feedback! the mkx has 63,500 miles.. its ovbious that there had not been a previous replacement of the spark plugs. the center electrodes were in decent shape, being platinum thats to be expected in a properly running engine.. the ground electrodes however were eroded away, and even with a cleaning and regap i would have not been convienced they were suitable for another 38K... so new plugs were used. Will be performing other routine maintence here soon, will post some more how too's along the way. ~Andrew~ Edited December 18, 2011 by lowelanxd 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Platinum White Posted December 30, 2011 Report Share Posted December 30, 2011 thanks for the positive feedback! the mkx has 63,500 miles.. its ovbious that there had not been a previous replacement of the spark plugs. the center electrodes were in decent shape, being platinum thats to be expected in a properly running engine.. the ground electrodes however were eroded away, and even with a cleaning and regap i would have not been convienced they were suitable for another 38K... so new plugs were used. Will be performing other routine maintence here soon, will post some more how too's along the way. ~Andrew~ Very good instructions, good detail. What is the torque value for the plugs and intake bolts? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evh Posted December 30, 2011 Report Share Posted December 30, 2011 What replacement plugs did you use? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlong Posted January 5, 2012 Report Share Posted January 5, 2012 Great post! Makes me want to go change my plugs now. I'm at about 61k miles. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Platinum White Posted January 5, 2012 Report Share Posted January 5, 2012 Very good instructions, good detail. What is the torque value for the plugs and intake bolts? I just replaced my spark plugs at 69756 miles with Bosch Platinum +4. Torqued them to 12 ft/lbs., cleaned throttle body and looked at the intake valve stems/heads, clean with no deposits. The old plugs were .060+ should be .054 when new. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyerjmr33 Posted January 6, 2012 Report Share Posted January 6, 2012 I just replaced my spark plugs at 69756 miles with Bosch Platinum +4. Torqued them to 12 ft/lbs., cleaned throttle body and looked at the intake valve stems/heads, clean with no deposits. The old plugs were .060+ should be .054 when new. At that slow gap growth, they would have gone 100,000 with ease-- what they are designed to go! The only benefit of doing the change early is that it keeps you busy and helps your spark plug supplier profit.Measured gap at 100K probably would have been around .063 and with today's ignition systems, it's no big deal! The instructions and photos were excellent! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boogity Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 I just replaced my spark plugs at 69756 miles with Bosch Platinum +4. Torqued them to 12 ft/lbs., cleaned throttle body and looked at the intake valve stems/heads, clean with no deposits. The old plugs were .060+ should be .054 when new. You will be sorry you used the +4 s. My fuel economy went down 15% with the +4 s. I put the OE plugs in and economy came back. I will never use anything but OE again. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
07Edgefan Posted January 14, 2012 Report Share Posted January 14, 2012 ok, heres the info in PDF format. hope this helps. Thanks for posting the information. That will definitely help me change my plugs! One question for you, based on a different post I read: Do I need to change the plenum gasket even if it doesn't show damage? Thanks. Aaron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whatedge Posted May 12, 2012 Report Share Posted May 12, 2012 Do you need to replace the intake gasket after taking the manifold off? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Feirstein Posted May 13, 2012 Report Share Posted May 13, 2012 (edited) Be very careful if you have a 2007 Edge or MKX! I just did my Edge at 90,000 miles. The OEM fine wire plugs sported a gap somewhere between .075 and .081. These were replaced with fine wire iridioum plugs and the intake gaskets were changed also. The dealer cost was about $35.00, and they old ones looked fine to my eyes. The Very Careful note concerns the fact that "early" 2007 models sported a heated PCV valve just forward of the PVC hose. I did not know this and pulled the wires out of the plug end. Even though the official three volume 2007 repair manual shows a part number, Ford, in fact, does not have a replacement plug end. It took me several hours to do micro surgery on the wires to restore the plugs function. Be careful out there. I also found that the locking clips for the wires going to the on plug coil were a bit of a pain and one of the rear clips fell off. I solved that by using an appropriate plastic glue to hold it in place. (After I had to remove the upper manifold to cure a miss caused by its loose condition. Gerrrr. It took me far less time and effort the second time around. By the way, even with the excessive gap in the OEM plugs, the Edge ran just fine; but 90,000 miles seems to be a good time to change out the plugs. Edited May 13, 2012 by Feirstein Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Feirstein Posted May 15, 2012 Report Share Posted May 15, 2012 I can now report that after the plugs were changed at 90,000 miles my fuel economy seems to have improved just a bit. I just got over 25.3 MPG on the highway for the first time (OK, there may have been a tail wind, and the road was progressively on a slight decline in altitude from Canada to Albany, NY, and the speed was kept under 70 MPH). But still, this was a first. I can report about 17.5 for city driving. Again, just a tad better than I noticed prior to the plug change. Perhaps 90,000 miles is a bit too long? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sadiq90 Posted June 8, 2012 Report Share Posted June 8, 2012 thanks bro do i need to remove the battery or not? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Feirstein Posted June 10, 2012 Report Share Posted June 10, 2012 No need to remove the battery. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blockisle9 Posted June 13, 2012 Report Share Posted June 13, 2012 Wow! It's been a long time since I've changed plugs. The last time I changed any, I just opened the hood popped the wires off the plugs and went right after the plugs. It looks slightly more involved now..... (null) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vetteman56 Posted October 11, 2012 Report Share Posted October 11, 2012 excellent write up! great pics. Very much appreciated! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rkedz Posted January 9, 2013 Report Share Posted January 9, 2013 Thank you for posting the pics. I was hesitant on changing the plugs. 92,000 miles. Dealer wanted $300. Your pics made it so easy. only took an hour. Thx :hyper: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TurbineTuner Posted January 21, 2013 Report Share Posted January 21, 2013 I'm getting ready to change my spark plugs and your instructions are great! I currently have 92,000 and although my 2007 Edge runs great, I think it's time. Appredciate the post with the info! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
autom8r Posted January 21, 2013 Report Share Posted January 21, 2013 (edited) Plugs replaced with the help of this post. I left the connection to the MAF in place, disconnected the intake hose between the MAF and throttle body. I left the PCV tube attached to the intake hose and set both aside. Some additional notes: The connector to the TB works the same way that the Spark plug connectors do. Slide the red tab in the direction that you want to pull apart the connection. Pinch the plastic tab beneath to release the plug and simultaneously pull apart the connection. The coolant tubing running over the upper manifold releases easily. The wire loom is taped to some keepers that insert themselves into the upper manifold. The keepers are difficult to pry off without damaging them. It is easier to cut the tape wrap and pull the loom away from the keepers. This is shown but not described in the write up. This is also a tattle tale for spark plug replacement, if the wiring has not been tampered with, chances are that the stock plugs remain. The upper intake cannot be removed without unclipping these wires from the keepers. After the intake manifold bolts are removed, gently rock the manifold loose. Lift the manifold and rotate it counterclockwise around the purge valve mounted near the TB. I recommend that the intake openings be covered to prevent debris, or worse, from accidentally falling into the cylinders. I used frog tape for this purpose, same for the PCV connections. The rubber spark plug boots are designed to keep debris out of the park plug cavities, but I blew them out with compressed air before removing the spark plugs. I also examined them before I removed the plugs for valve cover leak issues. Oil in a spark plug journal indicates valve cover gasket failure. The gaps I found at 103k measured from 0.066 to 0.071. Use a wire tie to re-attach the wire loom to the keepers. On a scale of 1 to 10, a solid 2, same effort as a brake job. Edited April 25, 2013 by autom8r 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stkedge Posted February 25, 2013 Report Share Posted February 25, 2013 I haven't looked at mine very closely since I only have 50k miles but isn't there a way to get to the back 3 without removing the intake? Like with some swivels and a locking extension at least that was the way I did it on previous vehicles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beston38st Posted April 23, 2013 Report Share Posted April 23, 2013 Autom8r, or anyone else with 100k on the car, did you have any issues removing the old plugs? I'm about to do mine at 99k but am a little worried about running into a siezed plug. Did you end up having to replace the manifold gaskets? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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