Going to pull intake off to change plugs ...

[ranger_96]

When I was replacing my spark plugs, I used a 15 1/2 inch extension with swivel socket (bought it from Autozone for $12 and change) and long nose pliers to pull the cables that are harder to reach. It took me around an hour, and wasn't hard as it looks.

If you have the right tools, the job will be piece of cake.

 

[Rocky Ranger]

X2

When I was replacing my spark plugs, I used a 15 1/2 inch extension with swivel socket (bought it from Autozone for $12 and change) and long nose pliers to pull the cables that are harder to reach. It took me around an hour, and wasn't hard as it looks.

If you have the right tools, the job will be piece of cake.

This is what I did, the long needle nose pliers make it much easier to do. I like to tape the socket to the extension/swivel to keep them together when you have to remove the socket from the plug.
My Ranger had 70k on the original plugs when I changed them, what a difference it made with the idle and overall smoothness.

2 Items to add
Anti-sieze compound
Dielectric grease for the sparkplug boots

 

[ready to rebuild]

i agree my 93 calls 30k changes and with 228,000 miles thats alot of changes and i never took the intake off just cussed and busted my knuckles alot

 

[ubear7]

Do any of you have a 2000 with the fuel injection? i can't even reach my finger in there to pull on the plastic plug boot remover. The fi bar is in the way and I cant get my finger through the manifold holes alot less pull on anything.

 

[Cacher]

No need to remove if its a Inline 4. See my previous post on how to change them, it's easy, and just like skyking says here.

 

[modelageek]

sprakplug wire removal tool

I did this in my truck without removing the intake. the 2 wires on the driver side toward the back were a pain. the old wires were mototrcraft with the hooks on them. the new ones were autozone with no hooks. replacing the spark plugs was not all that difficult . I used a few extensions and a swivel. rem0ving the wires was a little bit of a pain i used a coat hanger to grab the hook and pull them off. I had purchased a sprakplug removal tool but it did not work for me. I saw somewhere that ford sells a tool to remove and install wires for this engine. Has anybody seen it. here are some suggestions I have

1) soak the wires at the plugs for these 2 plugs with wd40 so that you dont end up leaving a piece of the boot around the plug( you will be pulling the intake off then)

2) i would only buy motorcraft wires with the hooks on them

3) Putting the 2 wires back on was the hardest part for me. as I said changing the plugs was not that bad.

4) see if there is a special wire tool for this engine

5) I could not put the last wire back on the plug. I tried a few things, taping a rod to the wire, etc. that did not work for me . I ended up taking a piece of soft metal flashing about 2" by 12" I wrapped it around the wire butting it against the plug end of the wire butting it up against little rubber stops on the wire then i put duct tape around the flashing tight but not to tight where i could not slide the "tube" up and down the wire. I then fed the "tube" and the wire into the slot toward the plug. I was able to get the wire on the end of the sparkplug i pushed on the tube and popped the wire on. then i gently slid the "tube" back up the remaining wire and removed the 3 pieces of tape i had put on it . it actually worked pretty good. I then fed the other end of the wire back thru the slot in the intake and over to the coil pack,. I should have taken a pic but i didn't.

6) If you do take the intake off I would consider removing the injectors and at least cleaning them.

7) Ibough Bosch double platinum's but i should have gotten the best motor craft plugs available



I do have a question if you do take the intake off do you remove the whole upper part or do you remove just the 90 degree part and leave the piece that is above the valve cover in place . thanks for any help

 

[v6underpressure]

I just did this today on my 98 and it was literally a piece of cake. I don't see what all the commotion is about. I didnt need any swivels. Just long extensions. I used my 3/8" ratchet with whatever amount of extensions I needed. A long pair of needle nose pliers made removing AND installing the plug wires a piece of cake. Autolite makes direct fit replacement plug wires that have the plastic pull handles which make installation a breeze. Just get the plug wire in there and then clamp on with the pliers and push it in. This was not bad at all. No need to remove the intake at all.

 

[modelageek]

Did you get the set of wires that have 3 of them with the handles and the other 5 are regular. I agree the plugs are not bad but 2 of the wires were tough for me but I did not have the direct replacement wires or needle nose pliers

 

[v6underpressure]

Did you get the set of wires that have 3 of them with the handles and the other 5 are regular.

yes, those are the ones

 

[JibbaJibba56]

Back when I did this on a suburban street in Minnesota I just went for the upper intake removal, it's not that bad of a removal/replacement. If you go this route, someone hit the point that two lines are coolant lines that pass through the throttle body. Pretty easy to know which ones as they go back toward the passenger side just before the heater box at a T-splice. I honestly would rather remove the upper intake because I have fat hands and a short body so I have to literally sit in the engine bay to do most of this stuff. This job with intake and throttle body removal should take around 3 hours at best. If your tall (which to me is anybody 5' 8" or more) you should be able to avoid the intake removal by using a couple of extensions and a swivel along with a nifty metal hanger bent to pull the boots off. Another note of caution when doing the UI removal, be sure the pcv valve is seated correctly before replacing the UI and throttle body, if its not, when you plug the line back in to the under side of the intake, it will more often than not come unseated and give you an engine that bucks harder than branded bull.

Good luck