Locate an Auto Repair Shop in Shanks, West Virginia

Shanks, WV Car Consumer Discussions

Re: Head bolts [ducks13]

by bison2 on Sun Sep 28 07:41:55 PDT 2008

I have no experience with your particular engine, but generally in a case like yours ,the headbolts could have seized in the treads or on the bolt shank if no antiseizure compound or tread sealant was used at installation in the past due to corrosion by coolant seepage. an other possibility could be that the bolts where overtorqued by the last person that worked on the engine. generally takes more force to loosen a bolt that has been tight for a long time than was required to tighten it. most head bolts are torque to yield these days and stretch a bit ,so they recommend using new bolts once removed,maybe yours where reused. bolt torque is lower if you have a aluminum head and/or block,than on steel components.

Re: Blown out Spark plug [zman3]

by woodye on Mon Aug 11 09:03:13 PDT 2008

There is a spark plug removal problem in the 5.4 Liter engine. The plugs have a long shank below the threads in a tight hole in the head going down to and open to the combustion chamber. Carbon and combustion crud builds up around the shank below the threads and locks the plug in place. Forcing the plugs can strip the thread since they may not be strong enough to break the buildup. I called a lot of Ford mechanics and finally may have found the solution. On a Warm Engine, (most Ford Service reps said Cold engine, wrong!) losen the spark plug 1/4 to 1/2 turn. Then spray carb cleaner around the plug. It goes around the threads and breaks lose the carbon and crud build-up around the long shank of the plug. I replaced my plugs using this procedure and everthing worked OK. You can hear the carb cleaner bubbling/sizzling, and the plugs came out fine. I used a magnet to pull them out of the head recess and had to wiggle a couple of plugs. Still a pain and knuckle busting job; but, didn't break any plugs. Champain makes a one piece plug, the stock plugs appear to be a bonded two piece shank. They are expensive and may not be necessary with the above procedure with a stock plug. If you have already stripped the threads, I understand Car Quest has a good kit with a hela-coil to replace the threads, if you can get the broken shank out of the head. Woody

Re: After market addition of heavy duty trailer tow package (536) [tomcincy]

by woodye on Mon Aug 11 08:52:41 PDT 2008

"Isn't it true however that in order to tow the 9,200# max with the HD towing package that you must use a weight distributing hitch?" Yes that's true. I believe it's in the Expedition manual. I've found out something else that may be usefull. There is a spark plug removal problem in the 5.4 Liter engine. The plugs have a long shank below the threads in a tight hole in the head going down to and open to the combustion chamber. I called a lot of Ford mechanics and finally may have found the solution. On a Warm Engine, (most Ford Service reps said Cold engine, wrong) losen the spark plug 1/4 to 1/2 turn. Then spray carb cleaner around the plug. It goes around the threads and breaks lose the carbon and crud build-up around the long shank of the plug. I replaced my plugs using this procedure and everthing worked OK. You can hear the carb cleaner bubbling/sizzling, and the plugs came out fine. I used a magnet to pull them out and had to wiggle a couple of plugs. Still a pain and knuckle busting job; but, didn't break any plugs. Champain makes a one piece plug, the stock plugs appear to be a bonded two piece shank. They are expensive and may not be necessary with the above procedure with a stock plug. Woody

Re: W/D Hitch for a Santa Fe [davesuv]

by bwd1970 on Fri Nov 09 06:36:38 PST 2007

When I spent some time examining the hitch setup I noticed that the hitch bolts are mounted not just to the underbody, but there is a sheet metal tube that that the bolts actually screw into. Looks like the tubt runs all the way to the rear axle area. I did try a 600/6000 lb equallizer hitch for a brief time. I was fearful of it twisting the light car frame, so I took it off. Also, my tent trailer rides low to begin with and a W/D hitch was discouraged by the Jayco dealer?? However, I have seen other posts where people are using them. I would recommend a light trailer with a tongue weight of less than 300#. Look at forums for the VW Tourareg. It is a unibody car, and users swear that it can hold up to a W/D hitch. Perhaps the German engineering is better than the South Korean, but it's worth a look for comparison. What seemed to help with overall towing satisfaction on the Santa Fe was a higher rise on the shank. I went to U-Haul and bought a 4" rise that put the ball height at 22". Coupled with the increase in height gained from the aftermarket progressive rear coil springs, it made for a much nicer towing experience. I still went with the Tacoma 2007 as a primary tow vehicle and am happy with that choice. If I hadn't had the opportunity for the Tacoma I would still be towing with the Santa Fe. I just didn't believe that the Santa Fe could hold up to towing over the life of the warranty/financing. We still have the Santa Fe and it's a great car. Good luck.

Re: Experts say bad wheel bearings: replaced them, but front end still noisy [tjfitz]

by tjfitz on Wed Jan 16 16:36:36 PST 2008

I left the pickup at a local repair shop and the mechanic zeroed-in on the differential. The shop telephoned me to come back and talk to the mechanic. He pried off the rubber cover over what I suppose is the fill-hole in the back of the differential and held a light there as he stuck a screwdriver in the fluid, then pulled it out and told me to note the silvery color of the fluid on the screwdriver shank. He thinks the carrier bearings are failing. The shop is quoting something over $700 to do a repair, and I am thinking I will park the pickup in the driveway until I can do any necessary work myself! Getting back to the mechanic, he also held a mechanic's stethescope to the differential near the drivers side axle (this is a two-wheel rear drive pickup) and I could hear some noise, which he described it as a "growling". He didn't listen to the transmission near the output bearing, but said he is almost certain the problem is in the differential, or possibly the rear axle bearings. (I seem to get in a real no-brain state when talking to any mechanic at any shop, and didn't think to ask him to listen to the transmission, although I had left a typed detailed description of the noise, my work, and also left a new transmission rear seal I had bought a couple of months ago, in case he found that was the source of the noise.) He also had me get in the pickup on the lift and put the transmission in drive to hear the noise, and it was the same as I hear when driving, so I suppose that proves beyond a doubt that the noise isn't coming from the front wheels, but I'm not as certain about it coming from the differential and not the transmission. I'll take the truck in to another shop tomorrow for a "second opinion".

Re: security light [siouxsqaw]

by ken68 on Wed Dec 12 17:38:25 PST 2007

Hmm.. seen that light before got the ignition key with a chip in it? Did the car start and keep running? My 2002 Buick Century has a key with a chip on the shank. It surounded by a black rectangle. It means your key(chip didn't read)..... That could be a bad thing if the ignition switch is failing cuase it will quit and not start at all.