Ejected and siezed spark plugs

[C. Court]

My daughter has an R reg (it's actually a year older, having been re-registered on import from N. Ireland) Fiesta with a 1.3 Endura engine.

Two nights ago, in the outside lane of a dual carriageway, there was a bang and a flapping noise and it died. inspection revealed that at No. 2 the ceramic core had been ejected from the spark plug. The AA man said this is a common problem with this engine (Fiesta and Ka).

I had a look at it this afternoon. The metal bit of the plug is still in place. Goodness knows how it will come out. The other three are all old looking and seem to be well and truly rusted in. There is quite a lot of rusty debris in the shallow wells around the plugs. The AA man said it looked as if they had never been changed.

It's done 86,000 m. The service record shows that a garage changed the plugs at 60,000 m. I don't know if they did. Is there any way of finding out? I guess after 26,000 m it would be difficult to tell.

It's been regularly serviced (at the appropriate intervals) by a main dealer, though after the last two times with it, and with my Mondeo, we had already decided not to use them again. I see from the service schedule that they were not due to be looked at until 90,000. In the light of this, I think I'd get them done every time. Meanwhile, does anyone have any ideas about

1. How to get them out?

2. If the head has been damaged by the corrosion (as has been suggested is likely, in view of the state of the remaining plugs) what is a new one likely to cost? And is it worth putting a new head on a 86000 m engine?

3. Whether Ford are still content with the 30,000 m interval for plug change?

4. How on earth the main dealer failed to spot there was a problem at 80,000. Each time we get a list of £1200 worth of stuuf to be done and each time we end up agreeing hardly any of it is necessary!

Disappointing.

C. Court

[Steve]

welcome to FOC

I would imagine they will drill out the old plug although i guess they need to be careful.

[tomshepp]

Get a welder to weld a ring of weld around the inside of the offending plug. This will break the corrosion bond and it will come out with a spanner. Wire brush the others and apply a drop of diesel weekly for three months and the other threee will come out, too. 

[williamweb]

1 hour ago, tomshepp said:

Get a welder to weld a ring of weld around the inside of the offending plug. This will break the corrosion bond and it will come out with a spanner. Wire brush the others and apply a drop of diesel weekly for three months and the other threee will come out, too. 

Posted in 2008 ,probably scrapped by now but you never know👍