Spark plug on cylinder #7 blew out of the cylinder head. 2nd time this has occurred on this vehicle. Repair shop states it is not repairable this time approx. $3000 for new head installed. This is a known problem on this 5.4 trition engine. Ford should recall to fix this problem 130,000 miles on this truck.
2001 Ford E-250 engine problems
11 complaints (61% of all complaints for this car). Typical mileage when it fails: 120,000.
- owner complaints
- 11
- of this car's complaints
- 61%
- typical mileage
- 120,000
- crashes
- 0
- recalls
- 0
Which part fails
- Engine3
- Exhaust system: manifold/header/muffler/tail pipe1
- Exhaust system: emission control: gas recirculation valve (EGR valve)1
- Engine: gasoline1
At what mileage
Complaints by mileage at the time of the problem.
0k-25k
25k-50k
50k-75k
75k-100k
100k-125k
125k-150k
150k-175k
175k-200k
200k+
Ford E-250 engine problems in other years
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Related investigations
Spark plug ejection from cylinder head
On september 6, 2005, odi received a petition requesting that the agency investigate allegations of engine spark plug ejection in certain model year 1997 through 2004 ford vehicles with triton v-8 and v-10 engines.odi received a total of 474 non-duplicative complaints on the subject vehicles where the complainant, or the dealer repairing the vehicle, reported that a spark plug detached from the cylinder and/or ejected from the engine.as of december 8, 2005, odi is not aware of any allegations where the alleged defect resulted in a loss of vehicle control, a crash, an injury, or a fatality in any of the 10,319,810 subject vehicles.in addition, odi is aware of only two incidents where the vehicle stalled without restart.information contained in the odi consumer complaints and obtained from 72 telephone interviews with complainants showed the following:(1) 99% of the complaints were on my 1997 to 2002 subject vehicles.(2) most the complainants reported hearing a loud pop while driving or upon starting up the vehicle followed by a loud, repetitive clicking or popping sound.(3) many of the complainants reported that the popping sound was accompanied by some loss of vehicle power; however, in 99% of the incidents reported, the vehicle did not stall.in the very few incidents where the vehicle did stall, most vehicles could be restarted.(4) only a small percentage of the complainants cited that they smelled gas or a slight burning smell when the incident occurred.(5) in all but a very few incidents, vehicle damage was limited to the engine.in one incident, the complaint reported that the fuel rail was damaged and replaced after one of the spark plugs ejected from the engine; however, the complainant reported that the damage did not result in any type of fuel leak or fire.in another incident, the only incident where a fire was alleged, the complainant reported that no fluid leak was observed, but that a fire resulted after the spark plug had ejected from the engine and he had restarted the vehicle and driven to another location.none of the complainants reported any damage to the vehicle hood.(6) only two complainants reported that they observed what appeared to be some drops of fuel coming from the cylinder where the spark plug had failed or on the spark plug itself; however, each of these complainants reported that there was no smoke or flames as a result of his incident.as the petitioner noted, and odi?s analysis showed, it is possible for a spark plug to detach from the engine cylinder threads in the subject vehicles.however, odi?s analysis of 474 complaints describing such incidents found only a very few alleged any safety-related consequences.none of these showed any evidence of a serious safety consequence.given the large population and relatively long exposure time of the subject vehicles, the complaint analysis indicates that the risk to motor vehicle safety from the alleged defect is very low.in view of the foregoing, it is unlikely that the federal safety agency would issue an order for the notification and remedy of the alleged defect at the conclusion of the investigation requested in the petition.therefore, in view of the need to allocate and prioritize the federal safety agency?s limited resources to best accomplish the agency?s safety mission, the petition is denied.
DP05005
What 2001 Ford E-250 owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
I own a 2001 f250 ford with an 5.4l gas engine . The rear passenger side spark plug blew out breaking ignition coil causing small fire . The threads were gone and heads must be replaced on vehicle.
While driving under normal conditions, the #2 spark plug blew out of the head and stripped out the threads making it impossible to reinstall the spark plug without having major engine work done. This is the second occurrence in this engine. I have since been informed that this is a common occurrence and should have been fixed before the heads were put into production. The ford dealership wants approximately $3000.00 to replace the heads. I have used an aftermarket repair kit approved by, but not used by ford. Removed part is available for inspection. I am losing countless hours of work time, I am self-employed, and over $100.00 in towing expenses.
Was driving my 2001 ford e250 vortec v8 at approx. 30 MPH when a spark plug blew out of the engine. An hour and a half away from home , in a not so good area of town. I was left stranded. 120,000 miles on odometer.
I own a 2001 ford e250 van. This van has been a reliable vehicle and maintenance has been easy and predictable. However today the third spark plug on the passenger side blew out of the cylinder head. Though it was a exhaust leak at first because of the sound. I pulled of the freeway and opened the engine cover. At this point I restarted the engine to find the exhaust leak. A large flame immediately began bursting out of the open spark plug hole. Although I was able to turn the engine off quickly this scared me considerably as I know their are fuel lines that run right by the spark plug. I had it towed from their to a shop. I have researched this and found that it is a common problem with many of fords engines. I even found cases were cars had been destroyed by fire as a result. It concerns me that there has been no recall. I do not expect warranty from ford for a vehicle this old. However this seems to be a potentially life threatening problem and I would think that merits a recall. I have a three year old daughter that rides in her car seat next to me in the van at times. That car seat is less than two feet from the spark plug in question. Separated only by a thin engine cover. Again I am really quite amazed that this has not resulted in a recall.
I started to hear exhaust noise on my 2001 ford f250 super duty with a v10 engine with only 53,000 miles. In checking, I found that the bolts that were hold the exhaust manifold to the engine were breaking off at the cylinder head. 6 out off 10 cylinders had broken bolts and the other 4 were near breaking. There is a danger of fire in the engine due to the hot exhaust gases. The repair is very expensive due to having to remove the bolt studs still in the engine head without doing any damage .
Tl*the contact owns a 2001 ford e-250. While driving 15 MPH a popping sound was heard. The contact opened the hood, but was unable to locate the sound. The mechanic inspected the vehicle and noticed a spark plug was blown out of the cylinder. The mechanic repaired the thread in the cylinders with an insert kit. There have been no other failures since the repair. The current mileage was 83,000, and failure mileage was 70,000. *ak the consumer provided the repair invoice for the vehicle. Updated 08/03/07
While driving 40 MPH driver heard a loud popping noise coming from the front. Suddenly the vehicle stalled. The driver was able to restart the vehicle, and drove it to a dealer for inspection. *ak ford only replaced the passenger side cylinder head which left the drivers side cylinder head at risk. *sc
This van's motor ceased up for no reason according to the dealership. There was plenty of oil. This should not have happened for this van has 72,000. Just out of warranty.
No knowledge of anything wrong. A grinding noise started, took it to the ford dealership that day, now we need a new transmission. This van has only 70,000 miles on it. This should not have happened.
Questions about the 2001 Ford E-250 engine
Does the 2001 Ford E-250 have engine problems?
Owners have filed 11 complaints about the engine of the 2001 Ford E-250, 61% of all its complaints, more than any other problem.
At what mileage do 2001 Ford E-250 engine problems start?
The typical (median) mileage in owner complaints is 120,000 miles.
Was there a recall on the 2001 Ford E-250 engine?
There is no recall for this problem on this model year.
Other 2001 Ford E-250 problems
Suspension 2Tires 2Airbags 1Electrical 1Transmission 1
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used 2001 Ford E-250?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history