changing the spark plugs today driver side went well

pulled the # 1 spark plug boot off and WTF?????

from the factory # 1 spark plug was only threaded in half way , could not believe what i was seeing

engine was running top notch all the time with the spark plug like that

# 3 and 5 are seated correctly but # 1 is not

took a close look at the original spark plug , yep only half the threads were used

not to mention , the wrong spark plugs to begin with , were supposed to be SP498

i have never seen that before

 

That is an odd one.

Were they Motorcraft and just not SP498, if not they were not Factory installed, may have been dealer that changed them and goofed up.

 

yes they were motorcraft spark plugs

they SP498 platinum plugs were specific for the mazda 4.0 pickups and not the rangers from what i have read

i have the extended warranty on this truck and i have left the service manager a detailed email about the problem

inside the cylinder head spark plug threads are heat damaged and look to be slightly deformed

hopefully the dealership mechanic can repair the threads by running a tap through them

there is rust on the top half of the spark plug threads go figure