The inevitable has finally happened...

LincolnLSE

LincolnLSE

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So while I was accelerating on the entrance ramp to the freeway on my commute to work yesterday, I felt my LS shudder between 50 and 60 mph - the tell-tale sign of going ignition coils. I have a 2002 LSE V8 and I just tripped 86,000 miles the day before. Although I have been reading about this problem on the forum for quite some time, somehow I just hoped that it wouldn't happen to me as my engine has performed flawlessly since I purchased the vehicle 2.5 years ago at 45k miles. Not to mention I drive the car like a grandpa most of the time - I don't race.

I haven't called the dealer yet to get a quote. I am pretty hands-off when it comes to issues under the hood, but after reading the Tech Article about replacing the coils - I am pretty sure I could do it. I do have a few questions for those of you in the forum who have dealt with this issue before:

1) I know the coil issue is most likely the result of a leaky valve cover gasket causing oil to enter the coil wells, thus shorting out the coils. The VCG replacement is clearly a labor intensive repair and one I would rather not deal with myself. Is it a bad idea to just replace the coils without replacing the VCGs? How much could I expect to pay at the dealer for a VCG replacement?

2) If you have replaced your coils without fixing the leaky VCG, how long did it take before you had to replace coils again?

3) Which seller should I be looking for on Ebay to purchase the $150 set of coils from? I have seen a couple of different sellers.

4) How likely is it that the dealer will let me buy the coils seperately and just have them perform the labor if I decide to not do it myself? Does anyone know the approximate amount of time/cost for the labor on this job?

Any tips you might have would also be appreciated. As I drove the LS today, the shuddering seemed slightly worse. I hate to be in a situation where my baby is sick... I can't believe that I actually had thoughts of selling the car today. Every time it entered my mind, I realized that there really isn't another car I would like as well as the LSE.

Thanks everybody! And hats off to LVC members for being so supportive when it comes to issues like this.
 
1) It's a bad idea because it'll just happen again, and faster than the time before because the gaskets are already deteriorated. The number $1100 resonates in my mind for this repair.

2)Every time I've seen it, they've done a complete repair.

3)Do a search on here for someone named Dooneybaby or something close to that.

4)I wouldn't purchase from the dealer. Look at the banner on the right side of the screen and find Team Ford Parts. They have cheap replacement parts, price not quality. As far as the dealership using parts not from them directly, I'm not sure. Call and give it a try. You might find it cheaper to use a trusted mechanic over the dealer, especially buying the parts 3rd party.

Coil Installation: http://www.lincolnvscadillac.com/tech/Lincoln-LS/Coil-Replacement/

Valve Cover Seal Installation: http://www.lincolnvscadillac.com/tech/Lincoln-LS/Valve_Cover_Seal_Inspection/Valve-Cover-Seal.htm

Good luck. Once I got mine replaced and all the kinks worked out it was smooth sailing. I hope the same for you.
 
The first major car work that I have EVER done was on my 2000 Lincoln LS. The FIRST job that I ever did was replace the passenger side gasket, all 8 coils and spark plugs. If a kid from the country can work on a car from the city, it can be done.

Since that time I replaced a lot of other items and currently am tackling the ball joint / new strut job and then new rotors and brakes from R1. Then again, this is my summer play car, so it is no hurry.

If I were you and it was the passenger side that needed replaced, do it yourself.
 
The $150 coils on Ebay say they are Motorcraft but they are not, they are generic coils, stay away from those. I was duped by them.
 
Snowseeker said:
I haven't heard anything bad about the ebay coils yet. What happened to you?
Click to expand...

The $150 coils are just generic or reman. the people selling them state they are OEM, they are not, only if you are paying over $230 then you can get real OEM coils.
 
So I finally had some time to call around for quotes today. I asked to be quoted for replacing both VCGs, all 8 ignition coils, and plugs (since they will be digging around in there anyway).

The results:

Lincoln Dealership Total: $2300
-$120 per coil & "coil cover" [whatever that is] = $960
-$235 replace spark plugs
-$1105 labor?

The tech at the dealershop told me that best case scenario would be about $1100 if I only replace the 1 bad coil and the VCG on that side. Which in my opinion is "best case scenario" for them because they know I will have to bring it back in again for more coil replacements.

Becks Auto, Andover, MN

Total: $1430 (both VCGs, all 8 coils, all spark plugs, & labor)

Local shop, used them before on other vehicles. The LS has only been to the dealership. I would recommend them though to LVC members who live in the Twin Cities area.

I'll be dropping the car off this evening. Will update status when they call me for the OK to get started.
 
Just keep your receipts in case this ever becomes a recall like with the 2003's. They might reimburse you for it.
 
The repair shop just called me. No leaks from the VCGs (I had assumed this was the cause of the bad coil(s)). They will be replacing all coils and plugs for just under $1000. MUCH better than the originial $2300 I was quoted at the dealership... On a side note, they did try to sell me new front rotors saying the tech felt vibration while breaking. I've never noticed a thing. :rolleyes:
 
Ouch, I just replaced my leaky covers, spark plugs and coils. All together it took me about 3.5 hours. The coils and spark plugs are very very easy to change on the passenger side, the drivers side is easy once you get rid of the dreaded 7mm bolt that hits the brake booster. The faq section was a great guide to replace them. I bought the $150 set of coils over a year when I had to replace one coil and it never acted up, now I replaced the remaining with them also.
 
I would take it for a second opinion if I were you just to be on the safe side. I wouldn't put it past a shop to say your valve cover gaskets are fine just so they can get the repeat business when your coils fail again.
 
About 2 hours after they told me I didn't need to replace the VCGs, the tech called me and said they found 2 plugs on the right side sitting in oil and 1 plug on the left side. Guess what? We are now replacing the VCGs! lol Apparently they just looked for oil leakage on the outside of the cover and didn't pull the coils.
 
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