Rough idle and bad driving performance

[Guest]

Took my 2002 Ford explorer to get a smog repair on May 1st I had replaced the intake manifold due to coolant leak from what appear to be the coils or even perhaps the thermostat,
But upon turning the key to start the vehicle there was a crank but no start so this is the reason why I took the vehicle to the mechanic for the smog repair.
They call within an hour and say tabs off the ignition coils were broken they said they took off the manifold to make sure I put on the gaskets correctly but the gaskets are attached to the new manifold so there was no reason for that there was a vacuum leak so they torqued down the manifold 'correctly', they said that I had the thermostat gasket on incorrectly so they redid this for me they checked all my hoses and did a full inspection and my car cleared for smog.
300 mi later I was driving on the freeway and from what they said a spark plug blew, and I needed a replacement so I took truck back to this mechanic and they told me they had to rethread the hole for the new spark plug.
So within a month I spent over $1,000 with this mechanic,
So somewhat 3 weeks ago and 500 MIles into a 24,000 mi warranty,
I have coolant all over my manifold once again appears to be coming out the thermostat again one of the injector coils in the front of the fuel rail was missing the setting bolt, and car will not start, not even crank, my battery seems to be draining, and when I was troubleshooting the starting relay I swapped fuses with the blowing motor, before the swap car would take slowly, now after the swap I have a rapid tick coming from nearest to the steering column yet still under the hood of the car, doesn't sound nowhere near the starter or the starter solenoid, not even the fuse box.
Any ideas,?
Car lights still work radio still works

[carriedi]

first thing I would do is make sure the battery is fully charged up. Then tell me what happens when you try to start the engine.

blowing a spark plug out is common on Fords. spark plug torque on the 4.6L is 78 - 176 INCH/pounds (9-20Nm)

with these coolant leaks, has the engine ever overheated?

why would you swap the fuse with the blower fuse? Fuses are either good or bad (most cases) They don't increase or decrease the power that goes through them... What fuse did you switch the blower fuse with? the fuse for the ignition switch (fuse 23 in the underhood box) is a 30A. the fuse for the start circuit (fuse 4 in the left side of dash fuse block) is a 5A.The fuse for the starter relay (fuse 12 in the under hood box) is 50A.

let me know what happens when the battery is charged and you go to start it up. Once you can tell me what happens then, I should be able to figure out where to go from there.

Did you call the shop about the coolant leak coming back? Are they going to warranty that?

[Conrad]

For 2-3 weeks, my ‘19 f150 5.0L has decreased mpg, rough idle with low RPMs (sometimes under 500), decreased acceleration, and rough shifts around 5th gear (10speed trans). Any way these are related? History of Cam phasers replaced one side, VCT solenoids both sides of the engine. Engine sounds like a diesel at idle almost. Not the “characteristic noise of the 5.0 engine” either, worse, water in the car visibly shakes in the cup holder.

[carriedi]

is the check engine light on?

[Eddy]

I just topped off my battery with "smart water" although it is distilled it has some added ingredients including calcium carbonate and magnesium sulfate among others. Is this as bad as tap water, what can I expect?

[carriedi]

it's probably not all that bad but I would have gone with tap water rather than bottled water with added chemicals. Distilled water would be the best bet but tap water in most areas is fine. That is if the tap water in your area is good to drink right out of the tap. Places that you don't drink the tap water, I would not use that water in your battery.