Manifold/header/muffler/tail Pipe problems of the 2002 Ford Expedition

2002 Ford Expedition - back passenger side spark plug blew out. Car was pushed to mechanic who was luckily close by at time of blow out. Spark plug was completely blown out, the coil was broken and the intake manifold had to be removed to facilitate repair. Total bill: over $1300. Ford knows about this problem - it is widely reported on the internet - but yet they do nothing to help their consumers.

We owned a 02 Ford Expedition which gave me no problem and I loved and owned it out right. In August of 07 the Expedition blew out a spark plug from the engine while stopped at a stop light. When I took it to the mechanic they speculated right away what the problem might be and upon checking it out found there speculation to be true. I phoned other mechanics who immediately said they were aware of the problem with that year engine and those surrounding it. It has obviously happened enough times for several mechanics to be aware of the problem and state that Ford was doing nothing about it. My husband went to speak to the Ford dealership who responded that it was not a problem and they were only aware of a few incidents and were going to do nothing about our problem. We ended up heli coiling the plug and having a temporary fix. We no longer have the vehicle because I could not trust that it would not blow a spark plug again and we have children and need a reliable vehicle. I'm very discouraged by the fact that I now have a car payment when I didn't before. I don't know if any other complaints have been made but the mechanics here seem to believe it is happening far to often and nothing is being done about it. Again I owned the Expedition out right and am very upset about the fact that I had to buy another vehicle because of something that never should have happened. Vehicles don't just blow a spark plug from the engine. Thank you tanya bishop.