salimshah

Its been a while ,,, going by memory you have to unbolt the coil-pack from the top of the plug . If you want to change/swap than you unclip it the coilpack from the harness. Its not a biggie to unclip the coilpack.

Just be careful in removing the plug down hole connector. I went around the seal/boot to break the bond and then pulled on it. If you try simply yank it would not budge and do not, do not use a pliers to hold and pull.

Salim

rosen71

This post is great. I manage to change my plugs, and even for first time, it took me half an hour to do it.
Thanx guys.

budman21

Got it done in about an hr. Just be patient and body part flexible! Great tutorial and words of encouragement in this thread. Toughest part was getting those connector clips to release. Used different sized screwdrivers to gently help lift the tabs some and pry and twist the blade to help push the connectors off. Just pushing the tabs down with fingers wasn't cutting it and is painful.

My 'special' tools that really made the job easy were a ratchet box wrench for the coil bolts, a short extension pipe on my ratchet handle for more leverage to get the driver side plug removal started, multiple short extension bars to address clearance for plug access, stubby adjustable head ratchets, and a piece of fuel line to push over the head of the spark plug for removal and installation. Lastly, get both hands in there working. One on each side, obviously. Power restored and mileage is way up. They didn't look that bad but 158K and don't know if previous owner had replaced them. Used the Denso Iridium and Denso coils.

raw9658

Lexmex you saved me over $400.00 with this info. I don't drink but if I did I would be celebrating right now. Thank You Thank You Thank You!!!

fstepanov

Thanks to the OP and others for the instructions and the encouragement. I was able to do it rather quickly on the ES300, only had to remove the PCV valve and was able to get the torque wrench on all but the rear center plug. Interestingly, the original plugs looked great after 120K, the gap was spot on.

hsmac

since it seems like i won't be able to torque parts down, about how much of a turn/how many turns is 13 ft/lb and 69 in/lb after finger tightening?

also does this take roughly an hour? i think someone said it took him 4 but also mentioned some sort of disability.

salimshah

If you are going to go by feel then you have to develop your own sense/feel.

For me with the small ratchet I fold my fingers in U shape and bring the ratchet on to my fingers 1/3 near the base of the palm. Then apply a gentle continues force and as soon as I feel the ratchet bite into my flesh I stop.

Train yourself by playing with exposed 3 plugs.

Salim

hsmac

changed rear plugs today. gearwrench swivel spark plug tool is amazing. i originally had a tough time removing connector from right coil, but reached around the intake from the left side with pliers and it came right off. it's easier to do this job blindly (you sort of have no choice regardless) and attempting to get light on what I was working on was more difficult than the job itself.

hsmac

one of my plugs came out a little dirty. maybe even a little oily, but i stuck my finger and some paper towel around the top of the cylinder and they came out clean, leading me to assume oil was no leaking from the gasket. the other two were clean. how does it even get dirty and do i need to be concerned or address anything?

salimshah

What was dirty/oily ... tip, portion of plug that is inside the cylinder or the portion that is inside the tube (coil-pack stick down)?

Next time dont use anything other than vacuum down the the hole. Dirt grime etc can get in the cylinder.

Salim

hsmac

i should have been more specific. electrode side. the opposite tip side was clean.

river

I am getting very low milage, but I dont have time to change the rear plugs can I just goahead and change the front one and do the rear one later?

salimshah

Is any in the front bad? What is the urgency?

Salim

Harrellsm

Question about the plenum. If I remove the wiper cowl would it be possible to just loosen the plenum and throttle body to maybe raise it 1/4 to 1/2 inch? My hands are getting chewed up trying to do this.

Thanks,
Sean

danno52