1996 Windstar Tune Up

My windstar has been sputtering for two weeks now ,it idled fine and ran smooth until a load was put on it,like going up a hill or taking off at a red light. I bought the van with 102,000 miles and it now has 114,000 on it and it has really been a great van.I never did change the plugs or wires when I got it (I should have).
So after reading on this forum how much of a pain the plugs in the back are to get to I just took it to a mechanic. He ran a computer check on it and #3 was misfiring.
I had him change the plugs ,wires,fuel filter and air filter,at a cost of 258.00. I know its alot of money just for a plug and wire change but he did put double platium plugs and motorcraft wires as well as brand name fuel and air filter.
I was afraid that with a misfire it would be way more than just a spark plug. I checked the plugs when he took them out and they didnt have any oil or antifreeze on them and they were really just normal wear and tear. But the plug wires were those "one stop auto" cheap wires and he said that the #3 wire was so frail that it broke when he pulled the plug off of it.
After he was done he ran a computer check again and no codes came up,so I thank God it was something as simple as a tune up.

I figured I would put something positive on the board !!!!!!

Congratulations on the success.

I'm doing some overdue maintenance on my '99. Replaced the plugs after 120k miles of use .... that's about 40k miles too far to have used Motorcraft double platinums I figure. Trying Champions this time.

If you take the wipers, cowling, and air inlet ducts off, the rear spark plugs are accessible by leaning over the right fender. At least that's so on the '99. You may want to give it a try next time.