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Water in Spark Plug Wells!

110K views 44 replies 27 participants last post by  Crasky85 
#1 ·
Last Friday morning, I started up my 2000 Focus (SE - Zetec) for my short morning commute and noted that the engine seemed to be running rough. The car had been driven the night before and ran normally. The night was cool and misty and during the night, the temperature dropped to below freezing, so the grass was white and there was a thin layer of frost on the car when I started it. After cleaning off the frost, I took off down the street and noted the engine wasn't running quite right, but I arrived at the office without significant trouble. I guessed that there might have been some moisture that had gotten into something (sensor or ignition module) and figured that maybe in the daytime heating, the problem would clear itself.

After work, I got back in the car and, to my chagrin, the rough performance persisted.

The next time I got in the car was to drive to the airport to drop off my daughter. I took the Focus because I thought the longer ride might clear out whatever was causing the problem, or would trigger the computer to record a diagnostic code. Well, about half way to the airport, the condition got significantly worse. Now the engine felt like it was running only on three cylinders. The check engine light started flashing furiously.

At this point, I was committed to completing the trip, so I pushed on to the airport. When I arrived and parked the car, there was a smell coming from the engine . . . it wasn't oil and it wasn't antifreeze. I popped the hood
and noticed steam whisping from one of the spark plug boots.

I pulled out the spark plug boot and, to my surprise, there was water on the head that was deep enough to fill each spark plug well and bridge from cylinder to cylinder!

I let the car cool for a while and then went about trying to wick out the water with paper towel. I couldn't get the paper towel down into the spark plug wells, so I used the pump from a window cleaner spray bottle to pump out the last of the rusty water. When all of the water was out, I
reconnected the spark plug boots and the engine started and ran perfectly.

When I got back from the airport, I once again pulled a spark plug boot and looked inside. I found what I expected to see, a completely dry head. But I also noticed that the spark plug boot was fully covered in rust from the water that had been standing inside.

Has anyone else experienced a problem like this? I can't imaging where so much water could have come from or how long it could have been there. I would have thought that the head gets hot enough to drive off any moisture that might condense in this area!
 
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#2 ·
What kind of spark plug wires do you have? I only ask this because some boots don't go all the way down and maybe moisture could've collected in there? But either way that is some scary stuff. how could water collect in there?
 
#3 ·
These are the original spark plug wires. The boots, and particularly the seal rings at the top are still in good condition . . . soft and pliable.

I have, on at least one occasion cleaned (sprayed down) the engine bay, but that was months ago . . . and at the time, I made sure the plug boots were tight and and only lightly sprayed the area of the plug boots. I must confess that at the time, I didn't pull a boot to ensure no water got inside, but given how rusty the water was, it must have been there a while. But then, I would expect water would evaporate quickly from the heat of the head. I'm stumped.
 
#4 ·
I had the same problem occur about a month ago. Finally took it to the dealer who charged me almost $300 to suck water out of the spark plug wells & replace wires & plugs.

About a month before this, I had hosed off the engine after spraying it with Simple Green. This is the only thing I can think of that could have caused this problem. From now on, I'll just have a dirty engine!
 
#5 ·
Epilogue (I hope) to the water in the spark plug story.

After having pumped out the water from the spark plug wells and re-installing the spark plug boots, the car ran well for the most part, but it started intermittently hesitating and missing again in the next two days. Last night, I removed all of the spark plug wires/boots, cleaned the area of excessive rust (yeah, I knowingly poured water back in there), pumped the water and rust back out and then dried the area. I pulled the spark plugs and took the plugs and wires inside for a thorough cleaning.

Conductive rust had coated both the boots (inside and out) and the exterior of the spark plugs and that was apparently providing an alternate path for the current to flow, instead of jumping the plug gap.

I removed the rust, dried everything, installed the plugs, put silicone on the boots and installed them, and then drove off for about a half-hour. The engine ran as smooth as can be.

Now if I can only figure out where that water came from . . .
 
#7 ·
If the source is from the plug, the water should have a definite green coolant tint to it. I have seen water in my plug wells a few times, always right after washing the engine bay. Seems that the tops of the boots don't really seal at the valve cover at all...
 
#8 ·
I recently picked up my Focus, I was down my friends house and we were checking it out and I pulled one of my plug wires. There wasnt any water, but there was rust just like you said was in yours. Im guessing the dealer must have steam cleaned the engine (because it is squeaky clean). I guess I am gonna have to work on cleanin mine out too.
 
#10 ·
Sorry for bringing back an old post but i had this same thing happen to me last winter. I cleaned it all out and has worked just fine until to night. I was goin to get somethig to eat and made it about 1/2 mile up the road from my house. Went to make a turn and a loud pop and instantanly no power and checked engine like flashing crazy. Turned it around just barely make it to the garage pop the hood and it blew off two spark plugwires and one of the plugs came out. It doesnt look like it took the treads out of the head. Has this happened to anyone before?
 
#12 ·
e only cause I've ever seen for water in the plug wells is from washing the engine.

Otherwise you'd have to submerge the car in a lake to get water in there.
__________________
Yeah. Almost every case I've hear on this forum, someone has mentioned they power washed their engine.
 
#13 ·
Hi, my first time here. Just reading about problems with water in spark plug wells, and I know of 2 people with the same problem on the 2005 model focus, and 1 with the same thing on a 2006 fiesta. The engines were not washed in any way, and I was wondering, is the water coming from the cooling system? Also, I noted that the water is not always there. Does anybody out there know what exactly is going on here? The water was very deep on 1 of the focus's, but funny enough, did not affect the performance. ?????????????? How??
 
#14 ·
Mr.Bont said:
Hi, my first time here. Just reading about problems with water in spark plug wells, and I know of 2 people with the same problem on the 2005 model focus, and 1 with the same thing on a 2006 fiesta. The engines were not washed in any way, and I was wondering, is the water coming from the cooling system? Also, I noted that the water is not always there. Does anybody out there know what exactly is going on here? The water was very deep on 1 of the focus's, but funny enough, did not affect the performance. ?????????????? How??
It's hard to say.

That being said, if you know of someone with an 06 Fiesta with that problem, why isn't that person going back to their Ford dealership for a warranty claim (provided they are still under warranty coverage)?
 
#15 ·
I had a similar thing happen. The passenger side of the plastic coolant crossover pipe thing split open and puked about a gallon or gallon and a half of coolant all over the engine bay. Lots of it found its way down where the plugs were. I dried it out with paper towels and re-greased the inside of the boots and its been fine, though I do want to change plugs and wires.
 
#16 · (Edited)
Mr.Bont said:
Hi, my first time here. Just reading about problems with water in spark plug wells, and I know of 2 people with the same problem on the 2005 model focus, and 1 with the same thing on a 2006 fiesta. The engines were not washed in any way, and I was wondering, is the water coming from the cooling system? Also, I noted that the water is not always there. Does anybody out there know what exactly is going on here? The water was very deep on 1 of the focus's, but funny enough, did not affect the performance. ?????????????? How??

If it was coolant in there it would be green or yellow so it's probably just water.

Regardless of what the people are saying I can't see ANY way short of washing the engine, leaving the hood open in a torrential downpour or driving into a lake/river that you would get water in the spark plug wells.

My 9 year old washed the engine in my wifes 2000 Zetec and it got water in there and ran horribly the next day. If the car wasn't running poorly than the water wasn't there for long or they got lucky.
 
#18 ·
drive the car hard once in a while.
dont make short hops .

on the weekends i try try to burn it a little hard
keeps the oil good and boils anything off.
(water in the plugholes/water in the oil)

i wash my engine a few times a year.
no problem after a nice drive. (D121)
get it hot once in a while!

granny driving is as worse as abuse.
 
#19 ·
orionlion82 said:
drive the car hard once in a while.
dont make short hops .

on the weekends i try try to burn it a little hard
keeps the oil good and boils anything off.
(water in the plugholes/water in the oil)

i wash my engine a few times a year.
no problem after a nice drive. (D121)
get it hot once in a while!

granny driving is as worse as abuse.
When my son got water in the plug wells of my wifes ZX3 I just used the old shop vac to suck it out, worked great.
 
#20 ·
Same situation tonight. Sounded like it was not firing on all cylinders when i was driving home then when it was in idle, it was rough. Having just given up on a taurus SHO because one of a dozen problems with it was a bad ignition coil and plug, i pulled over and pulled the boot off of the spark plug. inches of greenish fluid. The level in the coolant reservoir was also over the maximum line. I also just bought this used 2004 focus 5 days ago and the engine was immaculate.


greaaattt.
 
#21 ·
Same situation tonight. Sounded like it was not firing on all cylinders when i was driving home then when it was in idle, it was rough. Having just given up on a taurus SHO because one of a dozen problems with it was a bad ignition coil and plug, i pulled over and pulled the boot off of the spark plug. inches of greenish fluid. The level in the coolant reservoir was also over the maximum line. I also just bought this used 2004 focus 5 days ago and the engine was immaculate.


greaaattt.
What engine is in your Focus?

It may be as simple as the previous owner had a coolant flush done and a shop possibly not being careful with the coolant (possibly getting it everywhere).

If you bought this from a used car dealer that has a warranty, you may want to tell them and get a response. They may have an explanation for it (hopefully). I hope it's not a sign something else is going on with your car.
 
#23 ·
I have the same problem with my 2005 focus lx. this happend for the 1st time to my car back in December and on the way to Edinbourgh at easter weekend. the electric light comes on,,, the car struggles to reach speed, the car jerks at low speed and the water is in the spark plug chamber. I was told a load of bull off a garage and was a fool for letting them rip me off with £190. my car is currently doing the same thing and i cant do anything to get it repaired as it's easter. BUT I did a google search and went to a site called honestjohn.co.uk
someone posted a problem about there ford focus and water in the spark plug chamber. i read a lot of the replies and they all say the same. Ford was going to recall the focus because of a fault on the window washer jets on the hood/bonnet, the spark plug chamber is situated under where the washer jets are, and the valve on the jets are faulty Ford kept there mouth shut and never recalled the focus, i am starting to wonder if that is the problem with our cars. one guy said that he has had no problem with the water in the spark plugs for over 18months now because he changed the valve on the washer jets and but some sort of car mats in the inside of his bonnet/ hood, the strange thing about this problem i have now with my focus is: my leaver on the steering to press to clean my windows fron and back,,,, they don't work to well now. i got to press many times one after the other, with short bursts just to clean the windows. I think it all makes sense. like i said this happend to me december and now 4 months later it's happend again.
 
#24 ·
Ok guys i have an update on the problem with water getting into the spark plugs.
On saturday last week my car went into a garage for repair. This cost me £39 all they did was toss water over my car lifted the bonnet and watched what was happening with the water, i was told the grill which is attached to the windowscreen was not close enough to my window and as rain water gets on the drip tray it builds up and starts to bend forward, they told me they but brackets on the area to keep it propped up, and they again changed the spark plugs and dried the chambers of the spark plugs, i paid the money and got my car and it was running great, i was also told this could happen again, and told not to put my car in a car wash, and try and find a cover to protect the spark plug area. WELL today i had a job up the road and was passing ford, so i went to ford and asked them if they had anything i could use to protect the spark plugs, i told them all the crap thats happend with the car back in december and again this easter, he said give me the key i will get a lad to look at it, on his return he said what the garrage i origianally went to told me wrong. All this time it was the washer jets on the bonnet. my winderscreen wiper dosent work to well either, i have to keep pressing it lots of times just to clean the windscreen, i have ordered the washer jetsx2 from ford and it only cost me £5.20. its a big diffrence from what iv spent so far. i'm so glad i went to ford.
 
#29 ·
UPDATE:
i'm not glad i went to ford, although i fitted the 2 black water jets on the bonnet of the car, it didn't make a hoot of a change. My car is now 5 yrs old. and since getting the car in 2006 in which it was not quite 1 yr old, i'v had 2 jets on the bonnet fitted, i'v had spark plugs changed 5 times because of water in the spark plugs, also i'v had the 2 front wishbones replaced, the coil pack replaced recent. a new spark plug cable, the washer bottle was clogged up this is why my windows couldn't get cleaned, just needed washed and put back in. so that's cost me £40. my stearing fluid was leaking so i had to get that fixed recent to. it sounds like i drive my car like a piece of i don't know what but i don't i respect my car and iv spent a fortune on all these repairs. the jeking and misfire has stopped since the car got a new coil pack fitted, so fingers crossed that's the end of that problem. now i need the belt changed, :mad:
 
#33 ·
i replaced the washer jets and that wasn't the problem. Ford told me wrong, you think u can trust em but half of them can't be bothered they say anything to you just so you spend money with them. i had a loose sparkplug cable, it was clean off the cap. i also got my coil pack changed and 4 new spark plugs, the coil pack was a big problem because it stopped the fuel getting through the lines properly which caused my electric light to come on and my car loosing power and it felt like it was going to misfire on it's self, so far so good iv not had any problems for a few months now. as for the water thing it is a mistory how it gets in the wells, since getting 1 cable replaced iv not had water in the sparkplugs. so far so good.
 
#26 ·
I've had exactly the same problem with my 2005 Focus. Out of the blue my engine warning light came on because it was mis-firing. Got to the garage to discover water in the engine. It had obviusly been there for some time because the water was rusty and it had corroded the core plugs into the head. I had to get the enginge sent away so the core plugs could be drilled out. By the time everything was repaired and replaced it had cost me £1000 in damage. Only a week after getting my car back the same problem occured again. It was then that my mechanic looked into it and found this website. If it wasn't for the posts here, we'd have been looking for the source of the problem for some time. I've now got the new style water jets, which hopefully will see an end to the problem. I have however contacted Ford about this, I think its disgraceful that they haven't recalled the cars to get fitted with the new jets. So far I'm still waiting for a reply!
 
#32 ·
sounds like u have the same problem as me, i was my car at home now, i never use a carwash or jet wash, so far i'v not had water in the sparkplugs, BUT i got the electric light come on since and i went to a garage and my car was jerking and trying to misfire and i was told it was the coil pack in which it cost £55 to replace, this was around february of this year, my car has never jerked again since and i'm hoping that this solves the problem. Go to a garage and ask em to check yr coil pack, i was told if u put yr foot on the gas heavy sometimes the coil pack will collaps and this stops the fuel getting through the lines as quick as it should be. if the electric light stays off my car in the next 6 months and i do not get the car jerking again i will repost hear and let you know.
 
#34 ·
Hi,

I'd be glad to hear if anyone resolved this issue?

Our 2005 Focus had its annual service last Wednesday and was running great it then started spluttering. The old water in the well issue

Water in the spark plug well has been know to us for a while as Ford changed our jets in 2007 however we no longer use the jets so it can be them. It usually happens once every six months and if I'm lucky I catch it before the engine light comes on.I can only deduce that rain is the issue

Anyway on Sunday it chucked it down for 7 hours and this is the only variable since the service. To get around the issue I brought some plastic pipettes and suck the water out and dry the well with a rag. I tend to do this now after every prolonged rain spell. I also ensure the car is on slant so that water can run off freely.

Its a pain but what else can I do unless Ford do a recall or find a solution
 
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