alchemist

iTrader: (1)

Overall, it wasn't too bad. The spark plug on the driver's side closest to the headlight was a B-I-T-C-H - basically no room, intake and harness are in the way. That plug alone took me 1 hour. My car has 76000 miles. Pics below show old versus new. I used Denso FK20HBR11 iridium.




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XxGoKoUxX

Different for every car, but yes.... they are a PITA, the ones on the GS430 are a bigger PITA, something that usually takes me 15 minutes to change took me a good hour and a half.... With my uncle doing it and me watching hahahaha..... This is a guy who can slip a clotheshanger with a 1-2mm gap from the window and unlock a door in LITERALLY 15 seconds, so he's pretty nimble with his hands.

BTW, did you go with the long life or the high performance ones? IMO, they make NO difference in power or responsiveness. Next set will be the long life for me... 40c more expensive than the performance, but they last 2x longer.

alchemist

iTrader: (1)

I went with performance which are the hbr11 part number. I think the long life are the hr11. Toyota dealer only had these and not the hbr11 so i went to autozene.

geester

So whats the result?? any noticeable difference felt? After 76k, those plugs look pretty beat.

alchemist

iTrader: (1)

Definitely. Smoother. Such a big difference it turned my CEL on

XxGoKoUxX

not to make fun of you or anything, but did you regap to spec? If you did and everything's right, did you accidentally tap the head onto the car's engine, putting the gap out of place again? I ask because it's happened to me on another car, CEL didn't turn on but it was a head scratcher that my car acted funny (this was when my car had quite a bit of power for what it was in that engine, so every little move counted).

Could have happened when you were taking that 1 hour to install that one side of the spark plugs LOL! I know we didn't have much fun changing mine's, my uncle gave me this glare like " NEVAR AGAIN"

alchemist

iTrader: (1)

That was one thing i watched out for so i dont think it is the issue. I may have forgotten to reconnect something associated with harness. It didnt start first time I tried then it fired right up. I'll check tomorrow.

imadesign

i changed my spark plug
wanted to clean the intake but it was late and decided just to clean throttle body..
look at the intake side--

Boron

Lovely!

BG Products Throttle body & Intake Cleaner to the rescue.

XxGoKoUxX

I know this is a dumb question, but did you disconnect battery upon disassembling the car for spark plug change? If not you might just need to reset the battery to sort of like, let the car get back into calibration

Other than that, check your MAF connections, I forgot that and it ran like horse butt hahahaha... Alongside that VSC and CEL went off though.

Yikes.... I guess it's time for me to consider doing a full throttle body/intake manifold cleaning then, almost 90k miles!

Can't you just use brake parts cleaner? That's what I usually do, they've been having this 2 for $4 deal too lately lol

Boron

"Safely and rapidly removes accumulated deposits from the butterfly/throttle valve, throttle body and idle air control valves of the air induction system. Contains lubricants and anti-corrosion ingredients. Safe on oxygen sensors and catalytic converters."

"Improves efficiency of braking systems, aids in elimination of brake squeal and chatter. Fast-acting solvents quickly remove brake fluid, grease, oil, moisture and other residue from both drum and disc type assemblies. Cleans and dries distributor parts, spark plugs, magnetos, electrical contacts and relays."

Judging from those descriptions, I'd be fairly confident in saying the chemistry is quite different between brake cleaner and TB&I cleaner, at least from BG.
As I trust their 44K and engine flush, I have no hesitation in recommending the cleaner linked to above - not least because I also used it when giving the Accord its 100K service.
There are instructions on the can to spray with the pipe off, whilst running the engine (someone needs to prod the throttle pedal to prevent it from dying).

I'd also suggest doing it annually or every other year, depending on the mileage you do, if it shows signs of needing done - a quick check will ascertain that.
So for the $12 or so that it costs, you'll get 2-3 uses from it.

XxGoKoUxX

Thanks for the clarification Boron! So for a fact, you DON'T need to take the TB butterfly apart, right using the product out reccomended, right?

I was thinking of doing it with it taken apart and off, then dropping in some lube wherever applicable/needed.

Boron

Entirely up to you, but there's the option of leaving in situ, and with the attachable "straw" on the TB&I nozzle, you can direct the spray into wherever you want it.
With a clean cotton cloth (dish drying/tea towel or old t-shirt), you can carefully clean the flap.
With the flap open, spray onto the sensor inside, but avoid wiping it. Wipe everywhere else, but just avoid the sensor - it's delicate and non-replaceable, iirc, resulting in a new TB having to be purchased and fitted.

XxGoKoUxX

Thanks dude! Will definitely do just that! And I plan to probably purchase some quality TB cleaner for that sensor, since you said it's sensor friendly, as for the rest i'm just gonna clean it in a tub with a microfiber cloth. Picked a whole 60-pack a few weeks ago for only $30!

alchemist

iTrader: (1)

Just drove the car today for a good distance as opposed to just around the block like I did when I first changed the plugs. There is a noticeable difference - specifically in throttle response. I feel like it idles smoother now as well. I had an issue prior to the spark plug change with a hesitation ad idle, most likely when I come to a complete stop at a stop-light. This seems to be gone for the time being. I'll report back if my mpg changes at all as I drive pretty consistently and get on average 26mpg.