Been reading a lot about the plug issues and was thinking of replacing mine @36k before I get too much mileage and hoping they will be easy to remove now. If not, my local part's store has the removal tools.

Will I have the same problem if I use new Motorcraft plugs or did they redesign because of this issue ? I've read that Champion has a 1 piece plug but not sure how well they perform. I never thought Champion made a good plug (in the past) compared to Bosch, etc.

Thanks

 

The Best Spark Plugs for a Ford 5.4 Engine | eHow.com

Just found this article. Looks like Motocraft did beef-up the 5.4 plug.

 

Regardless of the plug design, you'll find that your 5.4L will perform the best with the Motorcraft plugs in it.
The F150 guys that have put in Champion and other brands have found that after a few thousand miles they are having sputtering and hesitation issues, amongst other things.
I, and a lot of the truck guys, will recommend you stick with the Motorcraft plugs. You shouldn't have too much of a problem with an 07+ Expy as Ford had pretty much caught on by then and made a fix. You're not likely to break of 6-8 of them like the 04-06 F150 guys.

 

As far as I know the main problem was carbon build up, to much carbon seizing the spark plugs.You could seafoam every oil change to help knock off some of the carbon, or IIRC you could get a can of carbon buildup remover from the dealer.

 

Just got done removing all 8 and didn't break any. Took my time and soaked each one with carb cleaner after loosening. All I need to do now is figure out which Motorcraft plugs to use. My dealer quoted me $26 each!! Not sure if I need to go with the SP507 or the SP509 plug from Motorcraft. Anybody know the new part#?

Thanks

Shawn