OK...I'm doing the usual tuneup and I get to the infamous number 1 spark plug.I can't get the boot off without breaking it so I leave it on and decide to change out the rest of the plugs.It's kinda irritating to leave that one in.Is there an easier way to do it without taking the alternator bracket and stuff off?

-Ken

 

just yank the boot and go nuts with a ratchet, i've never had a problem getting to any plugs on my v6

 

Hwy is this #1 plug so hard for you guys? Is it because maybe the smog pump is in the way?

Reason I ask is because it the easiest one for me to get to, but I don't have a smog pump on my year.

 

i have everything on my car, and i still have no problems

 

This is why I end up replacing my wires along with my plugs wether they need it or not. If the boot is stuck on the plug just yank on the wire. It will normaly pull out of the boot. Then use needle nose pliars to grab the boot and pull it off. Next the conector will normaly stay behind as well. Once again use the needle nose pliars to get it off.

I have found that if I put some dielectric gresse in the boots before putting the new wires on it will help prevent the boot from sealing permently to the plug. Once you have the plug out look at the white part you will see how a layer of rubber from the boot is left on it. This is what is causing the problem.

Also I found that a pair of slim line plug wire pliars helps as well. They coast about $5, but are well worth it.

Hope this helps!

 

i think getting plugs off in my car is the easiest thing to do, especially number 1, just rip the thing off and get new cables

 

They make a spark plug wire boote remover tool to keep this from happening. I think its fairly cheap and you can get it from a parts staore or summitracing.com Also at summit I have seen wires that are guarenteed to never pull the boot off the wire for 5 years or they will replace them for you. I have a set, MSD makes them.

 

persoanly i never buy anything for my car unless it has a lifetime warranty, and with wires they better be atleast 5 years.


don't skimp on your car and it'll treat you good

 

i have a 3.1 and i use needle nose pliars to pull the plug off the use an extension on a ratchet and have someone hold a flashlight then when i put the boot back on i get the boot so its sitting in place just barely on the spark plug then use the needle nose pliars to put it on and

 

take a mallet/peice of wood & whak the wire boot where it connects to the plug. This will let you move that out of the way, since the plug's getting replaced anyway, and lets you move in w/a regular socket to the nub of plug that's left.

I have to break the middle driver's side plug like this on my 95 Blazer

 

I've never had a problem getting to the #1 plug either; I guess it's because I'm an '86 2.8 that doesn't have a serpentine belt? That's an outstanding tip, by the way, Project '85! I like it!

 

i have the serp setup and have never had a problem getting to a single plug in my car

 

Along with others, I don't see why everyone has such trouble with the #1 plug. I usually have probs with the number 5 plug...

Anyways, I just pull the wire off by the boot (and I don't have small hands either... I'm just not afraid to beat on them and bend them a little... ) and then use a 3/8 universal joint (AKA swivel) attached to my plug socket to get the plug out...

BTW, I now have all of the options except for the smog pump, but I have the smog pipe running to the manifold on that side...

 

K-D auto speciality tools has a neat spark plug boot puller for $2.49. You can order on line at www.mytoolstore.com/kd It makes getting the boot off number 1 easy. Once the boot is off, use a socket with an extension and an articulating joint to loosen the plug. Once the plug is loose but still in the head, cut a length of hose, six inches or so, and push it on the terminal end of the plug and finish unscrewing it from the head. The hose acts as a flexible extension, and allows you to remove the plug without dropping it. The same trick with the hose can be used to install a new plug in number 1.

 

why not just buy a spark plug socket? i got 2 of them in my mastercraft 200 peice kit. its got rubber in it so it locks the plug inside the socket

 

Well, of course you have to use a spark plug socket to loosen the plug, given the length of the of the plug. In most spark plug sockets the rubber insert is just there to keep you from accidentlly breaking the porcelain insulator. Sometimes the plug will stay in the socket, often it will fall out. A piece of fuel line hose pushed on the plug terminal comes in handy removing or threading a plug in a tight place where you can't get your hand in, especially for those who don't have a 200 piece socket set.

 

Hey, now, I didn't have a 200 pc. tool set until TODAY and still had the plug socket...

 

You just bought a 200 pc set? Cool! I always wanted one... but by the time I could afford one, I already have all the tools that would come in one.

I actually pull that rubber insert out of my spark plug sockets. For me, it's more of a pain in the butt. Like oldschool said, after I loosen the plug, I use an old piece of fuel line if I need to get to the plug. (And that usually only happens on DOHC motors where the plug is too deep inside the valve cover to reach it with fingers.)

I'm curious as hell- Can someone who has trouble with their #1 plug take a picture of the situation and put it up here?

 

I will see if I can get you a pic tonight when I get home.

It's not really a prob getting to the plug, it's getting a hold of the frigging boot so you don't destroy a perfectly good wire.

 

Here's a pic of the offending sparkplug access if this works.
[IMG]sparkplug.jpg[/IMG]

 

the spark plug boot pliers is a good thing to use. a.k.a. chicken pliers. just grab ahold, and twist the boot, itll pop loose and USUALLY the whole thing will come loose. sometimes the connector will stay behind and you need a new wire.