[amstel78]

Was in the process of changing driver side spark plugs when I began to pull the red insulator boots that were left in the head. Well, unfortunately they were all brittle and cracked right in the middle, leaving half of them stuck on the plugs inside the head. What can I do to get them out? I've been trying to use my long needle nose pliers, and they just crumble and stay in place. Help!!!

 

[Dave2302]

Hi,

Use a "pick" with sharp cranked end to destroy them into little pieces, and blow all the bits out of the plug hole with compressed air, making sure you get all the bits out before removing plugs :wink

HTH,

Cheers Dave

 

[amstel78]

Thanks for the tip Dave. I'm using a small flathead to split them in the middle and pliers to pull the rest out. It's very slow going but it's working. I'm dreading the last plug for cylinder 12. You can't even see it.

The car has 59k miles on it. I figured I'd change the plugs now since I did passenger side around 56k when I had a coil pack failure. The boots on the passenger side all pulled out without incident. Not sure why this side all decided to disintegrate.

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[amstel78]

I got all of them out. Disaster averted. My truck is unfortunately out of commission at the moment, so it was imperative I get my Mercedes back on the road.

Anyway, when I got to the last boot on cylinder 12 and pulled, I thought it would break in half like all the rest. I don't think I've ever yelled "thank you Jesus!" out loud before.

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[amstel78]

So everything's back together now. Three of the 12 plugs had signs of arcing and corrosion. After replacement, the car accelerates with a bit more pep. Engine feels a tad smoother as well. Based on what I see with the factory plugs, 11 years, and 59k miles later, these plugs should have been changed a lot sooner.

I'll probably replace all 24 plugs after 40 or 50k miles instead of going by the 60k interval.

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[Dave2302]

Hi,

Glad you're all sorted :smile

I personally think all Motor Manufacturers set too high an interval on Spark Plugs these days :wink

My personal recommendation is 4 years or 40k miles, whichever is the sooner.

When you compare the cost of Service Items like Oils, Filters, Plugs etc they are buttons compared to an expensive failure, so "Cheap Insurance" ............

If an eroded Plug Electrode melts and burns a hole in a Piston, or the Plug misfires thus hiking up the Firing Voltage and burning out a Coil Pack then it wouldn't have been a good economic choice to have run them to the max mileage specified :wink

Cheers Dave

 

[amstel78]

Thanks Dave and totally agree with you. These plugs and boots will be all changed out again in 40 or 50k miles. I don't want a repeat of having these boots crumble and break off. What I experienced yesterday was a total pain and something I'd like to avoid in future.

To be honest, when I discovered all boots breaking off inside the head, I started to panic. My truck is out of commission due to a dead battery and I'm also in the process of replacing the AC compressor so there are various bits and bobs laying on my garage floor. The Merc is my only working car so it was imperative I got it fixed before Monday.

I was very relieved yesterday afternoon when I put everything back together with new plugs and boots and the engine fired right up. Before that moment though, I was dreading some new issue... we all know that these coil cassettes are easily damaged, especially during removal or reassembly. All my fingers and toes were crossed as I pressed the starter button.

Best,
James

 

[Dave2302]

Cheers James,

Yeah. I know only too well how it is when you're down to the last working car :laugh

Glad you got it all sorted,

Cheers Dave

 

[nhzruthless818]

Yeah its better to replace maintenance items sooner then recommended intervals. Mb recommends spark plugs at 100k but i personally cannot understand how a spark plug will last that long. On m119 engines i replace plugs every year since they are only $25 for parts at the dealership and it takes me no time to change. On the m113 i would change them every 3 years. I know technology advances but i still cant drive more the 4000miles without an oil change. I literally change it every 6 months esspecially on how cheap it is to change it. Mobil 1. 0w40 $60 filter another $15 which makes it $150 a year which is totally reasonable if you guys look in my storage unit you guys will think im paronid (i stock ply new maintance items for my cars).

 

[amstel78]

On the S65, the maintenance schedule calls for replacement of the iridium plugs at 60k miles, not 100k. Just wanted to clarify that because someone else mentioned the same in the past.

I think at 100k, the plugs in my car would have started disintegrating.

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[Digmenow]

Yeah its better to replace maintenance items sooner then recommended intervals. Mb recommends spark plugs at 100k but i personally cannot understand how a spark plug will last that long. On m119 engines i replace plugs every year since they are only $25 for parts at the dealership and it takes me no time to change. On the m113 i would change them every 3 years. I know technology advances but i still cant drive more the 4000miles without an oil change. I literally change it every 6 months esspecially on how cheap it is to change it. Mobil 1. 0w40 $60 filter another $15 which makes it $150 a year which is totally reasonable if you guys look in my storage unit you guys will think im paronid (i stock ply new maintance items for my cars).

Not to start another oil discussion but there's a gent in the 210/211 sections who advances the argument that the oil is designed to stay in the engine for 10k miles by meeting an average standard over that period. Since the ingredients in the oil degrade over time, the manufacturers front load the additives at a maximum level so that at the end of the oil's life, it won't drop below a minimum level. His claim is that changing the oil too soon never allows the oil protection to "even out" as designed and may cause potential issues since the engine only ever sees the "strong side" of the oil with more frequent changes.

Maybe he's full of crap but he claims that he sends samples to an analysis company after every 10K oil change and gets favorable results. :dunno: Sounds legit, tho.

 

[Dave2302]

Hi,

Oil Debate started :devil

I think he's talking [email protected] :wink

The MB Engines on the fleets I have looked after over the years all have regular early Oil & Filter changes, around 5 - 6000 miles........
All are original Engines, the newest is 2007 MY Vitos with 275k miles, and the oldest is 2003 Sprinter with 380k miles, all run superbly and don't use significant amounts of Oil.

Further to this, the 2 x 2007 Vito's both had Auto Boxes Rebuilt by me last year at @ 250k miles and these were still driving OK, just had Converter shudder :wink The Trannys were in good shape internally, and these Trans had Fluid /Filters done every 50k Miles :wink

There is no substitute for Clean Oil and free flowing Filters, also stops harmful deposits building up inside the Engines, which can clog Piston Rings, Oil Galleries, Pump Strainer, Piston Skirt Spray Jets etc etc etc

Similarly on Auto Boxes, stops Gumming of Valves, Filter flows freer keeping supply of Oil Pressure up on demand etc etc

HTH,

Cheers Dave

 

[amstel78]

FWIW, I went to 10k oil change intervals on my Golf TDI. Granted, 90 percent of it's 135k miles were highway miles. I used Rotella T6 and after switching to extended change intervals, sent several oil samples to Blackstone labs. The results were always good; minimal wear with low amounts of steel, silica, and aluminum in suspension. The difference between 5k and 10k intervals was negligible and did not justify switching back to a 5k mile schedule.

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[nhzruthless818]

My friend had a e500 that he would literally change the oil every 15,000miles we took off the valve covers to look inside and it was spot less at 85k miles and he was the original owner. But did that mean his engine was good i cannot say for sure but it had an annoying tick sort of like a piston slap. At the shop we see alot of 10k mile oil changes but when you see the oil turning into sludge and slowly clumping out of the pan i cannot say that oil was in there for thw right amount of time. There have been so many bmw and honda engines replaced at the shop due to sludge issues. Even a fairly new audi s4 (or is it rs4 i am not sure on audis it was a 2012 model) after so many heat cycles the engine starts to break up the oil. So for me i would change my oil at a maximum of 5000miles. Go to walmart right now its like $24 for a 5qt jug of 0w40 and mobil 1 gives you a $10 rebate for up to 2 jugs. That will literally be a $50 oem oil change.

 

[amstel78]

Well in my Golf, I used to average roughly 1000 miles a week. So oil changes every 10 weeks. The Rotella never broke down as evidenced by the UOA performed by Blackstone. Granted, I don't put that kind of mileage on my S65. In 8 months, I've only managed to put 4k miles on, so chances of sludge are higher unless changed more frequently.

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