On the 14th-gen F-150 every engine is coil-on-plug with 14 mm (9/16 in) hex plugs, so the tool list is short: a thin-wall magnetic plug socket, a 7 mm socket for the coil bolts, a set of extensions including a wobble, and a torque wrench. The 5.0 Coyote is the easy one — cover off and all eight plugs are reachable from the top. The 2.7 and 3.5 EcoBoost (and the PowerBoost, which is a 3.5 EcoBoost with a hybrid transmission) make you strip off the air outlet pipe and charge-air tubing first, and the three plugs on the firewall side are what turn a one-hour job into a three-hour one.
The mistake people make is doing this on a warm engine and then leaning on the plug with a long ratchet. These are aluminum heads with long, narrow plug wells: let the engine go fully cold, blow the wells out before the socket goes in, start every plug by hand, and torque it with a wrench instead of guessing. Skip the anti-seize too — Ford plugs are plated and the torque figure assumes dry threads.
| Item | Type | |
|---|---|---|
| Nitrile gloves Keeps oil and dielectric grease off your hands and the new plug insulators. | Safety | shop |
| Safety glasses Protects your eyes when blowing carbon and debris out of the plug wells. | Safety | shop |
| Socket wrench set 8 mm and 10 mm sockets, 1/4 in drive Disconnects the battery negative terminal and removes intake tube clamps and small brackets. | Required | shop |
| Flat-blade screwdriver Small, 6 in Loosens worm-gear clamps on the air intake and charge-air tubing on the EcoBoost engines. | Required | shop |
| Trim/pry tool set Nylon Pops the engine cover grommets and any cowl trim without breaking clips. | Recommended | shop |
| 7 mm socket 7 mm 6-point, 1/4 in drive (some coils use 8 mm) Removes the single retaining bolt on each ignition coil. | Required | shop |
| Ratchet 1/4 in drive, flex-head or stubby Gets to the tight rear coil bolts near the firewall. | Required | shop |
| Compressed air or shop vacuum Air blow gun with long nozzle Clears dirt from each plug well so debris does not fall into the cylinder. | Required | shop |
| Spark plug socket 9/16 in (14 mm) thin-wall, magnetic or rubber insert, 3/8 in drive The only socket that fits the deep, narrow plug wells on these engines. | Required | shop |
| Extension set 3 in, 6 in and 10 in, 3/8 in drive Reaches down the plug tubes; different lengths needed front vs rear. | Required | shop |
| Wobble or swivel extension 3/8 in drive, 6 in wobble Lets you approach the rear plugs at an angle where a straight extension will not fit. | Required | shop |
| Ratchet 3/8 in drive, standard and stubby Breaks loose and runs out the plugs. | Required | shop |
| Torque wrench 1/4 or 3/8 in drive, 5-50 ft-lb range Spark plugs go into aluminum heads and must be torqued, not guessed. | Required | shop |
| Spark plug gap tool Coin or wire-type feeler gauge Only to verify the factory gap on new plugs; do not pry iridium tips. | Recommended | shop |
| Spark plugs Motorcraft, engine-specific part number (match to VIN at the counter) EcoBoost, 5.0 and PowerBoost use different plugs and heat ranges. | Parts | shop |
| Dielectric/silicone grease Silicone dielectric compound Thin film inside each coil boot so it does not stick or arc. | Consumables | shop |
| Shop towels and brake cleaner Cleans oil out of coil wells, which is common on high-mileage EcoBoost engines. | Consumables | shop |
| Magnetic pickup tool Flexible, 12-24 in Retrieves a dropped coil bolt from the valley or under the intake. | Recommended | shop |
| Inspection light or bore scope LED penlight Lets you see the plug well and check for oil or coolant intrusion. | Recommended | shop |
| Insulated gloves (PowerBoost only) Class 0 1000 V rated Precaution if you must work near orange high-voltage cabling on the hybrid. | Safety | shop |
| OBD2 scan tool Basic code reader Clears any misfire codes and confirms no new codes after the job. | Recommended | shop |
Socket sizes are the same across the generation: 9/16 in (14 mm) plugs and 7 mm coil bolts (a few coils use an 8 mm head, so carry both). The difference is access — the 5.0 V8 needs only the engine cover off, while 2.7/3.5 EcoBoost and PowerBoost also require removing the air cleaner outlet pipe and charge-air tubing and benefit strongly from a wobble extension. Plug part numbers and gap differ between the EcoBoost V6s and the 5.0, so order by VIN.
| Spark plugs (2.7/3.5 EcoBoost, PowerBoost, 5.0 V8) | about 15 ft-lb (20 Nm) — verify in the service manual for your engine |
| Ignition coil retaining bolt | about 62-71 lb-in (7-8 Nm) — verify in the service manual |
| Battery negative terminal nut | verify in the service manual (snug only, roughly 71 lb-in / 8 Nm) |
| Charge-air / intake tube clamps (EcoBoost) | verify in the service manual (typically 35-44 lb-in / 4-5 Nm) |
The 9/16 in (14 mm) plug hex and 7 mm coil bolt are standard across these Ford engines and I am confident in them; a few coils use 8 mm heads, and you should confirm the exact spark plug torque and part number for your engine in the Ford workshop manual or Motorcraft catalog before installing.
Ford generally calls for about 60,000 miles on the turbocharged 2.7/3.5 EcoBoost and PowerBoost, and roughly 100,000 miles on the naturally aspirated 5.0 V8. Turbo engines that see towing or tuning often want plugs closer to 40,000-50,000 miles. Check the maintenance schedule in your owner's manual for your exact model year.
No. The coils and plugs sit on top of the heads and are reachable after removing the engine cover, the air cleaner outlet pipe, and the charge-air tubing/resonator that crosses the engine. The rear three plugs on each bank are tight but doable with a wobble extension and a stubby ratchet.
A 9/16 in (14 mm) thin-wall spark plug socket on a 3/8 in drive, plus a 7 mm socket for the ignition coil bolts (some coils use 8 mm). A standard-wall plug socket may not fit down the well, so buy the thin-wall version.
They come pre-gapped and you should only verify the gap with a coin or wire gauge, never pry an iridium or platinum tip. If a plug is out of spec, exchange it rather than bending the ground strap.