How to change spark plugs on 02 Explorer XLT 4.0

[Allstar04]

The cylinder #2 is miss firing, the dealer said most likely it needs a new spark plug. The dealer said it would take 3 hours of labor to fix because the spark plugs aren't on top. Midas said the same thing.

Today I looked under the hood and followed the gray cords from distributor cap to 3 spots on each side (Which I believe are the spark plugs). I can easily change 4 out of 6, the other 2 on the passenger side are just behind a tube that comes off the air filter which can be removed.

I am just wondering if anyone has a step by step on how to change the spark plugs.

And why everywhere is saying it would take 3 hours when I can easily reach 4.

Thank you ahead of time

 

[jasongt06]

I changed the plugs and wires in my 05 Explorer 4.0 and it was a little bit of a pain because of a coolant tube that I had to remove to get them out. You should be able to do it yourself in 2hrs. Just use Motorcraft Plugs & Wires and you will be good to go.

 

[eques.fl]

Did mine this morning in about an hour. Thought the back two on the passenger would be much more of a pain than they were. I actually made it more complicated using some extensions and a universal to get around the air intake junk. They came out easy enough after I just stuck a plug socket on the furthest one back, stuck my arms down past the stuff in the way, attached the ratchet, and loosened it right up. Actually easier than the driver side!

 

[flipside]

the easiest way to do it is to take your passenger tire off theres a flap if you have one under fender wells thats held in place with plastic tabs easy to take off then you'll see all the spark plugs with easy access it takes about an hour to do all six. you might want to check your plug wires to hade same problem but wasnt spark plugs #2 plug wire was dead so try to avoid costly repairs by simply checking whitch is easy all u need is a digital volt meter i bought 1 for less then 5 bucks put it on ohms 20k and probe bouth ends it should read 5000 per foot so driver side plug wires should be 5000 or 5.000 passenger side should be 10000 or 10.000 this would surely determine the cause of your miss fire weather it is your plug wire or spark plug hope this would be of help

 

[thepotroast]

As said above....easiest way to take the plugs out is NOT from the top...but from the sides. Take your front wheels off, remove the little rubber mud skirts that shield the block from debris kickups, and you can access the plugs directly from here with an extension...

It's a 20 minute job for any shadetree mechanic.

 

[alexk]

3 hours? When I got my ignitoin coils changed the mechanic only charged for 1 hour of labor when I had him do 1. Never even charged on the first 2 b/c he included them with the tune up.

 

[thepotroast]

3 hours? When I got my ignitoin coils changed the mechanic only charged for 1 hour of labor when I had him do 1. Never even charged on the first 2 b/c he included them with the tune up.

The stealership probably goes by the service book as far as hour charges, which likely calls for 3 hours of labor. Whether it takes them that long....that's another question!

They may in fact come in from the top...however the plugs are easily viewable and accessible from the wheel wells when the truck is up on jacks and the front tires are off.

Again....a 20 minute job.....even charging a full hour of labor ( ~$75 ) seems to be a ripoff to me, to change some spark plugs....

 

[fofopirata]

Just changed all 6 spark plugs and everything worked fine. Definitely it's a good idea to take the right front tire because it makes all easier (you can definitely change the 3 plugs in less than 20min)... the left side was the hardest for me, I didn't take the tire out because I thought that it was going to be easier from the top but it was a little bit harder due to the steering wheel, the brake fluid container and other stuff... At the end, it took me around almost hour and a half to change all... I thought it was going to be harder but I have to thank "thepotroast" for the tip on the tire...

I don't have mechanic skills so anybody can do this if I could.

 

[turborich]

I have no idea why anyone would pull the tire off, remove a coolant tube or charge 3 hours labor to change the plugs in a 4.0 V-6?

I changed all 6 of mine without ever removing anything except for the spark plugs. It only took about 30 minutes to do the entire job and was very easy to do. All you need is a ratchet, socket and a couple of extensions to get the job done. It's honestly very easy.

 

[Exproblems]

I have no idea why anyone would pull the tire off, remove a coolant tube or charge 3 hours labor to change the plugs in a 4.0 V-6?>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Sounds ridiculous to me as well to remove all those things just to change spark plugs on the 4.0L V-6, but "Fofopirata" appears to be driving an "Explorer Sport or XLS" model and that could be the difference in the difficulty of changing out the plugs. I'm not familiar with the set up of the engine compartments on the Sport models myself.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> All you need is a ratchet, socket and a couple of extensions to get the job done. It's honestly very easy.>>>>>>>>>>>>

I did mine a similar way, but used a swivel, spark socket(for the angles) to remove the old plugs and a torque wrench to tighten up the new plugs to specs. For more room on the passenger side, I loosened up the air intake tubing clamps at the air box and throttle body, then rotated the air intake tubing upside down laying it on top of the valve cover and out of the way. Gave me plenty of room and view to pull the plugs on that side. I also changed the wire set as well. Not a hard job on the Explorer 4.0L V-6.

 

[Asmilindog]

In some models there is part of the AC system beside the 2 plugs nearest firewall. A must have in Texas heat. Use the tire trick to get below it and complete job takes no more than an hour. My plug gap was .054. And use a socket with a sponge inside to grasp the plug.