I changed my sparks plugs and wires today. I don' think they were the original plugs but they definitely needed to be changed. I wasn't having any performance issues but figured at 100K miles a little preventative maintenance is in order. I was going to write up a little DIY, but honestly it's pretty intuitive. I mean if you don't take one look and know what to do then you're in trouble and probably shouldn't be doing it anyway. There are definitely some tight spaces, but following what I've heard it wasn't all that bad. Here's a little tutorial. First, obviously, pull off the intake. Just pull up on it and it comes off. To give yourself more room, you'll probably want to take off the windshield washer resevoir. I did this by taking off the black "bolt" on top of it, and then unhooking the clips. I also undid the lower hose and drained the resevoir. After that maneuver around the hoses so it comes almost completely out and out of your way. Ok, now that it's out, remove the torx bolt with a T30 on each of the 4 coil packs on each side. Then start removing wires. It helps to have the Lisle spark plug boot removal tool. I removed them all and layed them on the ground in order. Of course I was changing wires, so if you're just changing the plugs you probably could just leave them attached to the coil pack. After that it's just a matter of getting a socket in there and loosening them. Again, just a common spark plug change here so there's not much to say. I put some anti-seize on the plugs and put new Bosch F8DPP33 (got them from the dealership) back in and used Magnecor 8MM Electrosports wires. Voila, spark plug and wire change complete. It's not really too hard assuming you can work a socket set. Any question, don't hesitate to ask.
This how I got the windshield reservoir off. Basically undo the top bolt, then unplug the two pieces. I also undid the bottom hose and drained it. Then make sure the hoses running down the side are unclipped and move it out of the way.
No, don't mind at all. I tried ordering them online but even though the website I ordered from said it was the F8DPP332 what actually came is the FR8DPP33. I'm not sure why they'd advertise a non resistor plug and then send a resistor plug. Anyway, they were $8.27 a piece online. Since I couldn't actually get the right plug online though I just called the dealership. They had the correct non resisitor plug, and after telling me they were $11 and change per plug I asked if he'd come down on the price. He did to $9.50 a plug which was good enough for me. I think the wires were $190 for the set plus $8 shipping.
I replaced my plugs with NGK Iridium and it made a very noticeable difference.They were worth it. I only have 35k so wires aren't an issue yet. I was able to replace the plugs without having to remove the washer resevoir. There was actually more than enough leaving it in place. I changed all 16 in less than 2 hrs. Most difficult installation drill is make sure you PRE crush the plug washer before you finally torque tha plugs down. Otherwise within a few trips you run a risk of compression loss or possibly having the spark plug backing out and seriously damaging your engine.
You know I gotta ask. Any power increase with the wires?
I think I said this in the MAF topic, but unfortunately, not really. I didn't have any performance issues anyway and maybe it accelerates a little smoother and idles a little smoother but really if it does, it's not really noticeable. Oh well. I still believe in preventative maintenance so it's still worth it to me.
I replaced my plugs with NGK Iridium and it made a very noticeable difference.They were worth it. I only have 35k so wires aren't an issue yet. I was able to replace the plugs without having to remove the washer resevoir. There was actually more than enough leaving it in place. I changed all 16 in less than 2 hrs. Most difficult installation drill is make sure you PRE crush the plug washer before you finally torque tha plugs down. Otherwise within a few trips you run a risk of compression loss or possibly having the spark plug backing out and seriously damaging your engine.
How do you pre crush the plug washer? I thought you just tighten them and they will crush themselves?
Not completely. Generally washers bind against the seat on the 1st tighten. Its surprising how far the crushcollar collapses. Its a U shape that usually takes 3 tries to actually get the body of the spark plug to seat. Pull out a plug thats only tightened once it should look like the pictures jtbeche posted of the USED plugs. Look closely at the washer. Both upper/lower sections of the washer are touching together. If thats what it looks like, your good to go. If not, reseat em. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
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