You think that sucks, try driving a 4.2 liter v-6. I never noticed the slowness, probably cause I have a manuel.
Ford 4.6L V8 or 5.4L V8?
- Thread starter Woody
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I hear ya. Ever seen the tow rating on a F150 w/ a 4.2 and a manual trans?
It is 2500 lbs or so. Not cause of the engine, cause of the transmission. My manuel 4.6 liter has the same tow rating, my brother in laws 4.2 liter auto has a 6000 lb or so rating, I would like to see that truck tow that much. The mazda 5 speeds that are put in these trucks are junk but Ford trys to cover their rear end by putting a lower tow rating.
OK, the spark plug issue was for the 5.4l only and that was for the "old" style trucks. The new style, I think 2003 or 2004, Ford redesigned the heads only. The problem with the older style was that the heads actually had only 3 threads per spark plug. They would sometimes loosen up because the spark plugs were steel and the heads were aluminum. Different heating coefficient. They have the coil on plug type of ignition system, those are a pain to change, does take some time and you will need extensions. The plugs are buried deep within the heads. The plugs in rear, numbers 4 and 8 are the hardest. They need to be torqued ocassionally. There are usually some tell tale signs before they spit out. It will sound like a exhaust manifold leak or a popping sound. If your a shade tree mechanic, you should be able to tell that something just ain't right and figure it out. When changing the plugs, you MUST wait until everything cools off to ambient temperature or otherwise, the plugs will back out, again, thermal expansion. The 5.4 has more beefed up parts, like the piston rod pins, piston rods, crankshaft. The 5.4 is the same as the 4.6 except that the 5.4 has a tad more stroke length. That gives it added volume. There were some concerns that the crankshaft was actually hitting the piston skirt, but Ford fixed that early own and happily replaced engines on those that developed this problem. These engines are a little more nosier than your probably used to, that is the overhead valve design. Especially when cold, they will all almost make a little noise until the oil gets up in the heads but it is a positive placement oil pump and pumps relatively quicker. This engine also uses oil pressure to regulate the slack in the timing chain so it is very important that you do not sludge up that engine.
97F150, I think you are confusing rods for something else. All engines with pistons have connecting rods. You know, those things that connect the piston to the crank?
There are definitely differences between the 4.6 and 5.4, at least for the two-valve versions and I'm 99.99% certain they hold true for the 3-valve engines also.
Forged crank for the 5.4 versus non-forged for the 4.6L is the major difference. The rod construction - powdered metal on teh 5.4- is another, I'm pretty sure the 4.6 didn't use powdered metal rods.
http://www.babcox.com/editorial/ar/eb40340.htm
The 5.4L is actually a 4.6L with a taller deck and a longer stroke (3.55? x 4.16? vs 3.55? x 3.54?), so the two engines share some common components including the heads and cams. However, the block, crank and pistons are all different, just like they were on the 302 and the 351W, so it’s important to know exactly what fits and what doesn’t before trying to rebuild this engine.
My mistake, I didnt think about connecting rods, I was thinking about pushrods. I stand corrected.
97 -
I figured as much. We all do it.
Just busting your chops a lil'.
No offense intended, I hope none was taken
I figured as much. We all do it.
Just busting your chops a lil'.
No offense intended, I hope none was taken
No offense taken, just wasnt thinking straight at the time.
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