cookie Posted January 14, 2006 Share Posted January 14, 2006 I just changed the plugs and wires on my 1999 phase 2. It really was not that bad, no Chevy six, but not bad. I am sure the pros have found better ways but I took out the two 10 mm bolt that hold the washer tank and held it to the side mirror by a bungee. That gave plenty of room on the driver's side. On the passenger side I popped the top off the air cleaner and removed the hose clamp and tucked that back. I then removed the two 12 mm bolts from the bottom of the air cleaner and pulled that out of the car. This gave all kinds of room on that side. It took me longer to find plug gap (owner's manual), check it, put anti sieze on the plugs and silicon dielectric on the wires than to do the job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legacy777 Posted January 16, 2006 Share Posted January 16, 2006 Yeah, removing those two things makes changing the plugs MUCH MUCH easier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookie Posted January 16, 2006 Author Share Posted January 16, 2006 Yeah, removing those two things makes changing the plugs MUCH MUCH easier. After reading about the agonies phase 1 guys go through I thought it might be a bear. It was almost a relief. Tomorrow I plan to change my fuel filter and that looks easy on this car, it's on the fender on the driver's side. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blitz Posted January 16, 2006 Share Posted January 16, 2006 Cookie, in regards to the anti-sieze on the plug threads, I'd seen cautions against doing this on account of the compound acting like a themal dielectric causing the plug to run hot. It sounds good, but I can't verify it. Maybe it depends on the specific anti-sieze. I'd think that the copper high-temp stuff would actually aid heat-transfer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookie Posted January 16, 2006 Author Share Posted January 16, 2006 I struggled with that Blitz. Some plugs require it and some don't. It could cause early plug failure if its not needed, and plug thread failure if it is. I could not find any definitive information on it so I erred on the side of cheap. If it causes plug failure I have to spend $8.08 plus shipping and pick up the garbage. Wait, that was Arlo Guthrie so I have to spend another hour putting in a set of plugs and clean the threads. If I don't put it on and it removes the threads I have to pull the heads. I did coat the plugs very lightly, and I do wish I knew for sure wether it was necessary. By the way I changed the fuel filter today and it was not too bad. I looked for a marked fuse or relay and did not find one for the fuel pump. I let it sit for a few hours to bleed down and wrapped it with a rag. It had no pressure so I took the input line off and freed the filter. Then I was able to drain it into a container. It took twisting and muscleing the lines off with the usual pair of pliars. It was a prettty clean operation on a 99 without being under the car with fuel in your face like my BMW. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blitz Posted January 16, 2006 Share Posted January 16, 2006 The concern that I'd read about wasn't actually plug failure, but rather just high electrode & insulator temp. Basically the same symptom as installing a plug with too high a heat range or not torquing tyhe correct plugs to proper spec. Copper is supposed to have good thermal conductivity tho. If anybody knows the answer to this, please check in. I'd like to know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookie Posted January 16, 2006 Author Share Posted January 16, 2006 You are not the only one. I'll pop one out in a couple of weeks and take a look. the Color was good on the old plugs and on the oxegen sensor I replaced a bit ago. No pinging or any symptom that indicates running hotter at the moment. Perhaps CB or Richie will read this and comment to tell us what the pros are doing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookie Posted January 16, 2006 Author Share Posted January 16, 2006 And just to remind us about fuel mileage my last tank before the plugs and wires gave me 22.2 mpg. I knew it was time for plugs and wires but I was putting it off because of time around xmas. Today I filled up and the car gave me 26.7 mpg. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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