Spark Plug replacement DIY? 2008 ISF
Spade connections. Alligator clips are going to get hit by people working on the car and snap off. There's a silver colored male spade connection pointing straight up a little toward the firewall almost in the middle of the main fuse box. I connect a battery charger to this and another connection to ground (anywhere will do, if you have a ring terminal, all the better, just remove a bolt, put the ring terminal on the bolt and reattach). I kept power on my car for two weeks while intermittently working on the valve lash inspection. It held everything just fine.
Finally picked up my TT plugs today and as promised here are some pics. Only external; difference I can see is the thinner center electrode mount. The welds are better on the TT plug than the eBay OEM plug. And the center electrodes seem better aligned on the TT Plug. The Gap, as listed in the spec sheet, is also smaller on the TT Plug. The more I look at them, the more I believe the eBay plugs are counterfeit. I guess buyer beware, especially on eBay.
The left plug is the eBay plug the right the authentic TT plug I got from Advance Auto.
Lou
The left plug is the eBay plug the right the authentic TT plug I got from Advance Auto.
Lou
Last edited by flowrider; Mar 23, 2017 at 09:24 PM.
^^^^Well, Advance Auto just made up my mind for me. I put 8 of the plugs in my shopping cart, and let them sit while I posted here. Then, I got an eMail from Advance offering me a special 20% discount good for the next 72 hours. Final cost now $41.54 for all 8 plugs. So, I bought 'em
Sadly I picked up a set of 'OEM' plugs from eBay myself a couple of years ago for around $40...only to learn now as I will soon hit the interval to change em' that these may be 'Counterfit'
... so these new ones from Advance should put me at ease.
Driver School Candidate
Joined: Mar 2016
Posts: 24
Likes: 0
From: MN
For those interested in what the dealership charges, quoted cost was approximately $350 (in Minnesota). Previous owner had it done at an independent in Texas, so not sure what his cost was but dealership quoted it to me since it wasn't in their Lexus service system.
Intermediate
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 422
Likes: 65
From: Ontario
What a PITA!
Obviously, it's not a very complicated task in and of itself. It's just very tedious & time consuming to figure out some of the access for the first time with that packed engine bay. Also, it would have helped if I'd gotten the shorter plug socket with integrated swivel extension. Craftsman makes them with a 6" or 12" extension..
Obviously, it's not a very complicated task in and of itself. It's just very tedious & time consuming to figure out some of the access for the first time with that packed engine bay. Also, it would have helped if I'd gotten the shorter plug socket with integrated swivel extension. Craftsman makes them with a 6" or 12" extension..
I'm 99% confident on my spark plug torque, although I'm not sure how much a swivel and an extension affects torque, but I know all the plugs will at least be the same. I'm 0% confident on my coil bolt torque, I don't know what kind of set up you would have to use to be able to torque these properly?
It took me about 5 hours to get this job done, BUT I am probably slower than most because I'll clean up engine parts along the way. If I had to do it again tomorrow I would say I could get it done in half the time. I changed them at 105K kms (65K mi.). I think they look pretty much the same as the others that have been done at this interval:
Last thing, I've seen some threads regarding spark plug price, "Where you can get cheap plugs etc.". If you're going to do this yourself, just buy the plugs from Toyota. Trust me, you won't care about the $40 you saved after you get this done knowing you don't have to worry about whether the plugs or the vendor you got them from was legit. I don't think this is a job you want to have to do again unnecessarily. There are lots of things in the engine bay that like to scratch, bite and poke at you.
-R
Driver School Candidate
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 45
Likes: 1
From: CA
$105
100 bucks seems to be the average price. Got my Denso FK20HBR11 Iridium for $95 plus tax with 20% off code and free next day from Auto Zone. I would never buy key components for my F on ebay. China goods. I don't know how someone got $170 change at a Lexus dealer. I bet that guy got in trouble for that lol.
Last edited by Gsxr6k6; Sep 25, 2018 at 07:09 AM. Reason: Mis worded correction
Pole Position
Joined: Jul 2017
Posts: 200
Likes: 15
From: CA
question whats the difference between
Denso Spark Plug Iridium Long-Life and the Denso Spark Plug Iridium TT
question whats the difference between
Denso Spark Plug Iridium Long-Life and the Denso Spark Plug Iridium TT
^^^^You're a lotta help
Take a gander at post #56 on the preceding page. Also look at Post #50 and the link I provided.
Lou
question whats the difference betweenDenso Spark Plug Iridium Long-Life and the Denso Spark Plug Iridium TT
Lou
Last edited by flowrider; Sep 26, 2018 at 11:12 PM.
Supply chains across many industries are becoming fraught with counterfeit crap
I don't think this is solely a "China" problem
From counterfeit batteries, shampoo, memory cards, to spark plugs, it's a major problem