Ford F-150 3.5L.Ecoboost Misfire issues/Hole drill Intercooler fix/2019 

Quick heads up, I called my ford dealer who has had my 2015 (123k) Expedition in there for multiple coil replacements and spark plugs. They told me the next thing that it had to be was coolant getting into the cylinder. This would require them to take a camera, shoot the inside of the cylinder then recommend replacing the head if there was evident moisture. I asked what the cost would be and they said roughly $2,200. (Bay Area CA). That said, I found this video after reading a bunch of threads. Within the first minute the expo ran smoother, after a couple pulls up and down the street the light was going away much quicker. My TS live-wire monitor was not even picking up the DTC or codes at all. Then on the final pull, I held it wide open to 100mph and no light came on. Literally a five minute fix. Saved me a small fortune. Thank you!

Love it. Thank you for posting this. I just picked up a 2015 with 58,000 miles. Has a little miss. Going to try this.

i have been saying this is a need on intercooled vehicles for years, im glad people are starting to DIY the fix. my friends mini had this issue, oil evap oil form the intercooler would make its way into the cylinder under boost and cause a misfire. whether or not it was the problem, that garbage doesnt need to be in there. nice post!

Thanks buddy for being patient and taking your time in teaching us what you know

Btw thank you so much for being so thorough and showing us the results of the fix.

Awesome video!!! Thank you for posting it!! Helped me bunches!!!

Hello Sir; thanks for the video. We have a 2015 -F150 3.5 Liter Eco Boost V6. When we pull a *3000 lb. trailer we get the Detonation or Preignition from this engine. It is best if you release the accelerator to stop engine damage if this happens. This is very stressful on a long journey when you want to get to your destination. I believe Ford is a super USA company, but it seems they are too lazy or cheap to offer a fix for this problem. I did learn to ONLY USE FORD MOTORCRAFT SPARK PLUGS AND COILS WHEN REPLACING PARTS TO FIX THIS PROBLEM. I even bought a engine analyzer to use after this knocking. By the way I never get any warning lights when this happens. I'll let you know what my analyzer says after I trouble shoot. Best of Luck. (The truck drives excellent and is very comfortable with good gas mileage.)

Good stuff man! Thanks for following through

Fixed my 2014 XLT eco boost. Exact issue with brown tip spark plugs (that only had 12K miles on them). Drilled 1/16" hole, rev'd engine to remove black oily liquid. Then, replaced with all new plugs. Issue solved. Thanks WLA!

Thank you for the honest opinion. Much appreciated.

Everyone - I have a 2016 Ford F-150 3.5 Ecoboost I’ve been dealing with the same annoying issue and have been trying to figure it out. IT ENDED UP BEING SPARK PLUGS AND COILS - MAKE SURE YOU GET OEM FORD ONES ONLY. I did do a aftermarket plug and coil and it went bad in a week. Very happy the truck is running good now! Take care.

The same thing is happening to my 2013 ford and I will follow and do the same thing you did hopefully my vehicle will improve for the better thank you for making this video!

I had the Check Engine light on for about 2 weeks since I got the code saying I had a misfire. I drilled the hole in the inter cooler drove it for 2 days hard to push all the junk out. And the light went off and it runs like a champ. I must say I also cleaned my Roush Air Filter as well. It was way over due so I'm sure that had something to do with it as well.

Thanks for the video. It really looks like those intercooler's actually need removed and flushed out.

Catch can system is the answer, not drilling holes. The other problem that is happening is intake valve coking, C.C. System helps to prevent coking, into intake Valves coking cause loss of power when it gets bad enough. Ford is re-engineering the GDI system to eliminate the problem. Gas Direct Injection.

Omg wow never would have thought that would have accumulated like that. Thanks

I just drilled my 2016 in the exact same spot, and got very little oil, although it was a black colour. Haven't started it yet, and since it's pouring rain, I'll just have to hope that I get more as I drive it. Thanks for the tip, and I think I'll leave mine open all the time.

Awesome coverage.

I experienced the misfiring on my used 2011 3.5L that I had recently purchased, on a return trip from South Dakota. After struggling with it for a lot of miles I made it to Idaho. Took it to the local dealer and had them check it out, I hadn’t found all the videos on RU-vid about the DIY fixes. The dealer dealt with the plugs and associated hardware but they also reprogrammed the ECM module; I know the plugs and hardware helped but I think the reprogram did a lot to fix the misfiring I experienced.

Absolutely my issue. Drain the intercooler, change plugs and clean MAP sensors. Different truck. Runs perfect.

The drilling of the hole AND the plugs were the correct fix. The factory plugs were worn prematurely from being fouled by the moisture. This requires BOTH drilling and Plugs to fix.

I will try this method. I have been having the stutter problem for weeks. I have cleaned out all the plastics going to and from the cooler and everywhere else. I avail. Next to is to see if one or two of my coils are bad.

I drilled my weep hole in 2016. The lower valance is always covered in oil and crud because this thing spits so much crap out of it. If you're hesitant about this don't be.

Great video... thank you

Change the plugs at 60k miles. If you ever pull a coil then you should go ahead and change the plug since it's right there ($6). Do the weep hole mod and clear out the contaminants then install an oil-catch-can (separator) on both sides. This should eliminate the buildup in the first, and also prevent the recirculation back into the intake that corrupts the valves in the end (which they don't have a fix/process for). Keep the oil changed every 3-5k max despite the BS oil schedule published (this was to hack the EPA numbers not help maintenance in any way. The oil schedule on this 3.5 is wrong by any engineering standard being a direct injection turbo (ask an expert). Use Top-Tier detergent gasoline (high octane recommended b/c turbo ) since this will help valve buildup in the direct injection system and keep the injectors clean. The next thing to change is upgrade the oil pump to a high volume and do the timing update while that part of the engine is exposed. Then you can enjoy a kickass motor for HUNDREDS-Of-THOUSANDS of miles.

I shoot intake cleaner through that little hole while the engine is running about 2000 RPM. That cleans the gum buildup off the valve stems. That bypasses the sensors in the intake system so the cleaner does not damage them

also a better fix to prevent oil from getting into the intecooler in the first place is to add an aftermarket catch can which goes between the pcv breather and the intake pipe, it will catch all the oil droplets and only alow crank case air into the inlet tract.

you did fine with drilling the weep hole. The sludge that was in the inner cooler was what caused the plugs to foul out and give you the misfire. Also it a good idea to clean all 3 of your map sensors. And plugs should be changed ever 35,000 miles hope you having great luck with your truck

Try drilling a .128 hole or .164 only. I think you hit the oil cooling line in the inter cooler. Drill more in the corners. Good luck

For me the problem went away when I installed a oil catch can, the K&N air filter system, Dual pipes, MSD coils and the SCT X4 programmer. More power and the take off is powerful.

What comes out is emulgated/mixed oil and water, moisture comes in through the airfilter and blends up with the engine vent. Nasty stuff you should keep out of your engine at any price, try an external breather canister...a little expensive but solve a LOT of problems Bro !

Yea I'm gonna try this. I have a 2012 and I found there is a Technical Service Bulletin out there regarding misfiring. If your plug is showing carbon tracks then replace all of them and the coil boots. You could possibly bring it to a dealership since it's an official bulletin but I've heard a lot of them will argue and say it's not covered. The parts are cheap and easy to do yourself. For record I had a code for cylinder 2 misfire, replaced plug and coil pack and still had misfires.

I had the same issues with mine. Put new plugs, new trannie filter and oil but it still had skips and a shutter. It's the torque converter. Replacing it now. EXPENSIVE!!!

That is EXACTLY what mine was doing. Had the check engine light, change the coil #6, helped but still came back. Changed plugs, helped but came back, then coil #2 showed bad, changed it, helped but now I'm gonna drill this damn hole and see how it goes. I have a 2011 with 125,000

I change plugs before 35k and oil evey 4k. Just drilled my intercooler and only a little blow by drained out.

I have a 2014 2.0 ecoboost explorer it always has the underboost code. I thought it was the turbo waste gate rattle that causes this

my 2011 f150 was doing the same, i put plugs drilled the hole ran it for 6 month, still the same, im going to replace the coils, hope they will work 112322 miles

Very good info.

Great video, I have a 2018 2.7 eco boost, 12,100 miles, ( retired, do very little driving with this truck) in 5 years. Same problems, going to drill hole in inter cooler. Have all new plugs and coil packs. Will drill hole first. Very damp in upstate SC. Especially this year (2023). If this doesn't work I am going to shoot this varmint!

Great video and good info. One question, after drilling the weep hole and letting it drain a couple days. Did you put a plug/screw back in the hole or you just leave it open???

I let mine go for a week and the sputter was gone. Now pulls full throttle runs with no more problems.

My truck started doing that a few kmiles ago will try this ,,my eco is at 315000kmiles already

I just fixed a customers truck recently by simply regaping the plugs back to factory spec, I told him he should replace the plugs this fall before winter, but this would get him by in the mean time. he had cylinder 3 misfire, but the truck would not flag a code until it was so bad that the ecu shut down coil pack number 3, which it turned back on after a few miles. any ways I regapped the plugs to .030 from being worn down to .048 and the miss was gone and the truck pulled like it was intended to with no more miss.

My 2013 3.5 would cut out and check engine light would flash when I floored it. I changed plugs and coil packs and its like new. I still want to drill the hole though.

Thank you

Have you tried to clean your mass air sensors. You can buy a special spray cleaner called mass air cleaner. At Walmart or your local autoparts store.

I just bought a 2014 F150 with the 3.5 ecoboost and it was only getting about 12 mpg the first so I decided to go to an less traveled county road and blow it out a bit and I floored it and it coughed and sputtered for a few seconds and the check engine light came on for about five seconds blinking away and then it stopped. The funny thing is that it went to 16 mpg after that which was good but it still does the coughing and sputtering if I floor it.

The condensation is what caused your spark plugs to file out in the first place. So yea it was the root of the problem. If you would have changed the spark plugs first you would just filed out another set of plugs

Maybe an active. Short drive on these vehicle's seem to create more Condensation. Which accumulates in the oil. And makes it not perform optimally.

What size drill bit you use?

Adding a catch can will catch all before intercooler

Thanks sir

1/8" hole is rather large. I drilled a 1/16" hole in mine and it worked well.

Big question is why are you not running catch cans?

The header mentions 2019, is that a 2019 with that many miles. I was wondering if the 2018 and 2019 and + models had the problem. If I drill mine, I will epoxy a barbed fitting into it and run a capped down tube for manual service at oil change time. That how some Honda motorcycles are fitted.

How much miles did your truck had at that time?

Just because the cylinder threw a code does necessarily mean its a coil,i had a bad plug,changed them out and it runs excellent,always start with plugs,if that dont do it then yes change the coil

would adding a catch can system do the same thing.??

How do you do this on a explorer. Everything looks different =(

Where did you get that outro music? I watch an RV channel and he has the same music, i thought he made it lol

I have 2011 F-150 3.5 eco with 122k miles doing the same thing. I changed the spark plugs and didn’t change. Drill the hole and just water came out. Going to drive it a couple days like you said and see what happen. How is your doing now?

Problem is once the crud is sucked up into the intake it’s going foul plugs and cause problems. Catch can prevents the problem after you fix the problem

Was that a 1/8 drill bit or 1/16. Thanks for posting. I am having the same issue..

What is the solution

This doesn’t cause a boost leak?

Never had a “EcoBoost” until now on a 2020. I’ve been trying to be proactive from the beginning (trucks simply cost way to much to recycle). I’ve already put a oil catch can on but not sure if drilling the hole in the intercooler is also needed. Seems like the oil/condensation will still be in the cooler with it without a can? Maybe all this has been addressed by Ford now with the gas being added above & inside the cylinder? One have anything to do with the other?

The weep hole will help clean your intercooler , but you have to plug the hole really good and tight with a threaded bolt and some Teflon tape because the boost pressure CAN NOT ESCAPE, otherwise will throw codes and lower your power. Best way would be to remove and clean the intercooler inside with some diesel, dry it and then put the weep hole with the bolt for future drainage, and in the same time install catch cans

Did FORD fix this problem after this year??

Any change in your mpg? I just bought a 2014 F-150 3.5L with 105,000 miles. It runs great but I only get around 15-16 mpg’s. I was hoping for 18-20 mpg’s as I mostly put on highway miles. I’m not sure if the plugs have ever been changed as I just bought it. I’ve read on forums that they should be changed much more frequently than Ford’s recommendation of every 100,000 miles. Did you notice any change in mpg’s? Did you measure the gaps on the old plugs? What gap did the new plugs have?

I am having this same issue with my 2013 ecoboost. I have changed my plugs but didn’t solve my issue. When I lived in Wyoming and Kansas I never had any issue but now since o moved to Florida it has been doing it more frequently so I guess I should drill a hole in my inter piper to fix this issue? I am curious because one comment said you accidentally drilled into the oil line that circulates through your intercooler?

Now, go put a Stainless Steel Sheet metal screw in that hole like i did & take it out whn you change yr oil if you think you need to... my 2014 eccoboost was shuttering etc. engine light came on, i plugged my tester in it said cylinder 3 misfire, i cleared the code, went out punched it again, said cylinder said cylinder 4 , then 1, i not only replaced the plugs & made sure the gap was at .032, but also put new coils on cylinders 1, 3, & 4, pretty sure i did'nt need to but did any way, runs like the day i bought it new, also those iridium plugs in these eccoboost engines, yr manual says they are 100,000 mile plugs, change them at no more than 60,000 miles, it will save you the headache of thinking yr transmission is slipping 👍 , For Sure ....

You just need an oil catch can and also new spark plugs. Most of the time that’s all it is. No need to drill holes.

Super smart that intercooler is a pressurized system. When you put holes in it you lose boost pressure. Nice Work lol.

Hello Im having the same problem now I just change spark plugs and coils… my question is…. Did you leave the hole open for ever ??? Thanks by the way

Have a 17' expedition with the 3.5. I have the same problem. I replaced the spark plugs back in the spring which helped for a few days, but same symptoms in just a matter of a week or two. When I replaced the spark plugs the front two cylinders ( 1 and 4 ) had a lot more black on them as if it was burning oil. I'm reluctant to start drilling into the intercooler though it seems like it would help. Does anyone have any other videos with actual footage of driving with the weep hole drilled and no other parts replaced?

78,000 miles u need to change the plugs, I change mine every 70,000 and haven’t had any issues

The same thing happened to my Ford I am surprised that for money factor has done nothing about it🤑🤑🤑

What year is your truck?

Did u ever fix the skipping issue if so how ?

Nice video but if your check engine light is flashing that means it's a misfire.

Seems like that would create a boost leak

Remember if you have this happening to your ecoboost, clean your mass airflow sensor and throttle body.

Did you notice if your gas mileage got worse after drilling a weep hole? Seems like mine did..

Buddy the hole did solve your problem you needed plugs yes but that junk was spraying on your plugs for a long time may have ruined them. So those plugs were bad so drilling the hole didn’t fix it all the way the plugs were already fouled. But now new plugs won’t get that junk on them! So the hole will keep that junk from spraying on the new plugs

Fords better idea lol.👍

So what fixed the problem? Just switching out the plugs? How about the coil pack? I have the same thing going on 2018 3.5 with 102K miles. P0306 error code (#6 cylinder misfire) came on yesterday when I hit the throttle on freeway ramp. I love my truck. I just wish I could put a Toyota tundra engine inside of it.

How are you going to fix your boost leak you created lol WTF MAN ! 🤯🤣😂🤔🧐