big uh-oh

[Colin]

Well I set out to change my plugs this morning and all was goin' good, 'till I broke a plug off at the porcelain insulator. No big whoop, I got it out and replaced it with a good one, BUT it happened again! This time with the one on the far back passenger side (near the A/C condenser) and the sucker's like melted in there. I put all I had against it and couldn't shake the remainder of it loose. So I called someone at our local Firestone here (it's Saturday, and everyone's closed) and he said I'd have to take the head off!!! I can't see why I'd have to take the head off 'cuz I can still get a wratchet head around it, I just can't bust it loose. I'm kinda' thinkin' there's no anti-sieze compound around it. Am I seriously f'd up here??

[96RS Alex]

Rule #1: Always apply anti-seize compound on new spark plug threads. This prevents problems on the next plug change.

You probably cross-threaded ( stripped )#6 but I think there was a pre-existing condition of its threads being quite dirty and needed to be cleaned out thoroughly.
Threads in the cylinder head should always be cleaned out so you can avoid problems screwing in the new plugs.

I'd try soaking the busted plug area with a massive amount of penetrant like WD-40, Liquid Wrench or Deep Creep which I use and wait a while to wrench out the affected plug.

I hope this works for you, if not then chances are you may need to repair your new problem by ripping out the AC condenser & other parts ( EGR, Coil ) out of the way to get a better handle of the situation before starting cylinder head teardown.

And another thing I should point out here...
If your spark plug socket doesn't have the internal rubber insulator inside, you will definitely bust the plug a 3rd time. Check for that or buy a quality one next time around.

[ September 18, 2005, 11:17 AM: Message edited by: 96RS Alex ]

[Colin]

Well, I did that this morning and I got it out, but I definitely discovered that this is the one giving me the problem. The insulator around the electrode was chipped. To my knowledge, the chipped piece did not come out with the rest of the plug. The mighty Haynes manual showed it to be a detonation problem, but didn't recommend anything related to the chipped insulator piece. It just said to "take care when gapping and installing the new plug". Should the chip be something to worry about?

[96RS Alex]

I was talking about the rubber insulator inside your spark plug socket tool to make sure it's still intact but the chipped piece you are talking about from within the electrode shouldnt affect anything. It should blow out through the exhaust valve during the combustion process.

Im curious, what type of plugs are you installing?

[Colin]

I'm putting AC Delco's in and I forgot what brand the wires are, but they're not Borg-Warner, I know that. The mechanic that did the plugs before me used Autolite (Wal-Mart brand) plugs. I do have and did use a spark plug socket to get them out. I fired it up after I got it all hooked up and other than all the sensors trying to reset themselves, it's runnin' pretty good - much better than before anyways.

[96RS Alex]

These are 2 pics of my Firebird taken last winter. Seems we can share info on these cars as well.



[ September 18, 2005, 09:12 PM: Message edited by: 96RS Alex ]

[Colin]

That's a nice car. I wish mine had the ground effects and t-tops. It's a good car though, so I'm not complaining too much. I noticed in your sig that you have a '96 Camaro as well?

[96RS Alex]

Yes I do own a 96 Camaro however it's been trouble free since I purchased it back in May '04.

All my recent expenses have been towards the maintenance on the Firebird.
With over 262,000 miles on it, I keep a sharp eye on basic fluid change intervals and the condition of its mechanics to have it run so long. I've seen & heard these cars run way past 300K miles.

I live in the Northeast where rust is my "friend", I noticed you reside in TX. I bet the climate there provides longer lasting cars!

[Colin]

Yeah, for the most part, it's pretty dry down here, but we do have some humid, wet days. We've had a pretty wet year the last 2 years though, but at least we don't have to worry about sea-spray and salt in the air and stuff like that on the Gulf Coast. We just have to worry about road-salt when it ices over.