my truck has 90,0198 and as far as i know the spark plugs have never been changed, prolly about time though. ALSO i bought the truck almost 1 year ago this month and it had 56,000 miles on it, so i have put about 34,000 miles or so on it this year alone. 34,000 miles a year is a lot for a car or truck in my eyes.

 

my 2001 truck has 92,000 miles on it and the orig plugs and no problem. i took them out about 40,000 miles ago and they looked almsot new. but it is about time to replace them. what is it going to hurt if you do leave them in there. my gas has not dropped any and it doesn't ping any and the idle is smooth as a babies butt.

 

im changing mine today, weather they need it or not. they've got 83000 miles on them... so they're ready for a change. i too took mine out a while back, and they looked fine.. but that was like a year ago, so, this time im just going to change them weather they need it or not... can't hurt.

 

ford says they can go up to 100,000 miles before changing but my thinking is which i may be wrong is that since not only is my truck my dd but its my work vehicle and i tow a trailer everyday which probably weighs around if not more that 3000lbs fully loaded in constant stop and go traffic things are going to wear out faster so i replace them earlier than most people would have to. i had notice the idle was getting rough and fuel mileage was starting to go down so i decide to change then and what do you know gas mileage went back up and it idles a lot smoother. plus that 40 bucks spent now is money saved later.

 

I am becoming convinced with these real fast. Looking good so far. I am changing my other 3 rangers out with these real soon.

 

Anyone have good or bad things to say about ACCEL spark plugs for the 4.0L?

 

I'd never leave plugs in a head for 100K.
Ruined a couple of heads by spinning the threads out of them from plugs that had rusted and siezed in, 40k is the absolute most.
The only reason they put plat plugs in is so they can get through the lease period and get sold before needing change, then the second owner "IF" he can get them out flips the bill, not Ford or the Dealer.
Cheap insurance to change at or before 40K

 

I beieve that most manufacturers list 100K miles for tune up and spark plug change to reduce the PUBLISHED cost of maintenance.
Modern plugs do last longer and my Ranger does not even have a cap or rotor, but keeping plugs in there for 100K does seem like pushing them.

 

i agree with bob, 50K is just about time to change them.

it all depends how u drive. stop/go driving will require plugs to be changed more frequently then someone who puts all highway miles on.

so if ya drive 30K in town with a semi heavy foot, id change the plugs. if u drive in the highway at a steady speed id change em at 50K.

saying plugs last 80-100K is silly...

plus D has giggle gas and thats hard on plugs...and im sure he likes to let his truck stretch its legs ;-)

 

I got Bosch +4 in my truck about 2 years ago, no problems at all and gained some gas mileage. The ones I took out were all brown and crappy looking.

 

I just bought a 1998 Ford Ranger with the 3.0 V6 and I must have every socket size except for the one I need. Is the socket size 16mm. My socket set has the 15 and 17 and one too tight and other too loose or is it SAE. Also need to know if on this 3.0 if I need to take the intake manifold off on drivers side to get back 2 plugs off.

 

You need a complete METRIC socket set and it's not SAE.
You don't have to take the intake manifold off to get the spark plugs out.

The two that do give problems are at the back near the heater box.
I use the spark plug socket with a 3/8th universal connector.
It makes it just long enough to get in there with out being to long.

When you change you oil though, the steering shaft is in the way.
There is a single bolt holding that in place in the shaft from the firewall.
Once the bolt is removed, the steering shaft itself can be slid down and easily swiveled out of the way.
Be sure and not to turn you wheel when the shaft is disconnected.

 

Thanks Jeff for your kind reply. So you are saying to disconnect the steering shaft on the drivers side to remove the back 2 plugs right, and to remove the back plugs on the passenger's side is pretty much normal. On that Metric socket set I have everything except the one I need and I believe it is a 16mm that fits the plugs.

 

No, I just added that for an easier oil change, but it certainly wouldn't hurt to gain access to those plugs on the drivers side.
As for the spark plug socket size, I just went out to the garage and checked.
Looks like 5/8 SAE or 16mm will fit the plug _ 5/8th for sure.
I actually don't have a 16mm deep socket to check, but when I measures the actual plug, it came up as 15.81mm.

My actual spark plug socket for that size has no listing of the size on it, but the 5/8 fits the same.
I think if you had an actual 16mm deep socket, it would fit with a little less slop.