Clean the area around the plug with compressed air or a wet/dry vacuum. This helps prevent anything from falling into the cylinder once you get started.
If you are going to remove all the spark plugs at once, label each wire using a marker and masking tape. Before starting the job, clean the spark plug area with compressed air, this prevents dirt from falling into the cylinder area. Dirt can do a lot of damage if it falls into a cylinder.
Often mechanics applied copper grease or an aluminum or copper anti seize to prevent galling and galvanic corrosion and improve corrosion resistance. However, today, almost every major automotive spark plug manufacturer applies zinc or nickel plating to improve corrosion resistance and protect against galling.
Ideally, you should clean around the opening of the hole with canned air and a cloth whenever you change a plug. That should prevent oil or debris from getting in there in the first place.
Burned. Blisters on the insulator tip, melted electrodes, or white deposits are signs of a burned spark plug that is running too hot. Causes can include the engine overheating, incorrect spark plug heat range, a loose spark plug, incorrect ignition timing or too lean of an air/fuel mixture.
NGK does not recommend the application of lubricant such as copper grease to spark plug threads as the result is a reduction of frictional forces at the thread faces. This will render the torque readings inaccurate and over tightening could occur by up to 20 percent!
The simple answer is no—you should not change spark plugs while the engine is hot. The spark plug and the head it plugs into will expand and contract as they heat up and cool down.
Using WD-40 to repel water is a good way to prevent corrosion and keep moisture away. You can also use it to ease the removal of spark plugs, especially if there is any rust or corrosion.
Can I Spray Carb Cleaner Inside the Spark Plug Hole? Yes, you can spray carb cleaner (or carburetor cleaner) inside the spark plug hole. This'll help dissolve the hardened debris and loose materials in the spark plug well. After that, you can remove the filth with a compressed air can.
Tighten the spark plug finger-tight until the gasket reaches the cylinder head, then tighten about ½ – ⅔ turn more with a spark plug wrench.
Leaky O-rings (spark plug tube seals) are probably the number one cause of oil on spark plugs. Spark plug tube seals keep engine oil, coolant, and everything else on one side of your spark plugs, so they remain dry. If these rings fail, engine oil can leak into your spark plug well and onto your spark plugs.
A wet spark plug likely means that it hasn't been firing due to engine flooding or a bad ignition cable. Dirt or moisture on the outside of the spark plug that provides a conductive path to ground, or an internal crack in the spark plug's ceramic insulator that shorts the plug to ground also can be the culprit.
Dielectric grease is a simple compound of oil and silica filler that's very hydrophobic and is excellent at sealing out moisture and preventing corrosion.
Do not use anti-seize or lubricant on NGK spark plugs. It is completely unnecessary and can be detrimental. Corona stain is a light brown or tan discoloration on the outside of the ceramic insulator above the metal shell/hex.
These plugs are pre-gapped at . 044".
Always replace the used 18mm copper gaskets because, in time, old gaskets become flattened and hardened and may not seal properly. If a thermocouple gasket is to be installed for a cylinder head temperature gauge, do not install the regular copper gasket under that plug.
If the engine is running to rich the spark plug will look black, sometimes a glossy black if it's really rich. The goal is to get a good dark coffee brown color on the spark plug, which represents the correct color on the spark plug itself, and assures you that the Fuel to Air mixture on your carb is set correctly.
After periods of wet and windy weather, condensation and moisture can develop on your car's spark plugs, and other areas of the engine. If this moisture is ignored, permanent damage can occur to your car – leading to expensive repairs.