Estimate of Cost to Change Spark Plug, Wires, 1 o2sensor, from a dealer.

[DaRock]

What would be the Estimate of Cost to Change Spark Plug, Wires, 1 - o2sensor, from a dealer?

Hopefully I am not getting ripped off.

Thanks.

[BLLDOGG]

500 dollars. lol...j/k but i wouldnt dought it. why not do it yourself?

[RallyRed 98]

probably charge at least 4 hours of labor at ~$70 per hour... not including parts which might amount to another 100

[FloydSummerOf68]

It will NOT be anywhere near reasonable...thats for sure.

[navyblue2000]

yeah, it was gonna be i think 190 for plugs and wires for me...i laughed and did htem myself [img]smile.gif[/img]

[memphis_raines]

If you do it yourself, here's the estimated prices you're looking at:

Hi-performance iridium spark plugs: $40-$75
Wires: $50-$100 for most brands
O2 sensor: about $66 from Advance Auto Parts

[navyblue2000]

First off, your signature is kind of inappropriate... I would suggest you change it before an admin gets on to you.

2.Iridium is just as much a rip off as "performance" +4 sparkplugs. it's just a longevity thing. I used bosch supercraps for 99 cents apiece. The reason? Copper in the same heat range has a slightly colder spark, and with the 3.8's tendency to have head gaskets hanging over the combustion chamber, it needs to be a little cooler in there to prevent that gasket from heating up and possibly causing detonation.

3. Now, this was just me, but I got the 29.99 (ended up being 24.xx for cuz i worked at AZ at the time), 8mm accel universal kit. You just cut to fit, basically make them on your own... worked AWESOME for me!! [img]smile.gif[/img]

you're right on the O2 sensor though.

THIS budget racer went mid 14's with 35 bucks invested into his ignition (with about 550 bucks in other mods of course)...

[2001_Y87]

I don't know about a dealer but I got screwed for $320 by an INDEPENDANT shop for 6 plugs (AC-Delco) and wire set (Carquest; they were not able to get AC-Delco wires on the weekend). I forgot the breakdown but the $320 was for diagnostic scan (SES light was on) and 1 hr labor for plugs + 2 hr labor for wires.

I have a related question about plug wires: the originals had a metal barrel over the boot (some kind of heat shield) and these replacements are the plain old rubber boots. Does that heat shield make any difference???

[navyblue2000]

you can actually use the heat shields on the new plugs, as long as they're not the 90* connections...just so long as they're straight like the OE's.

the 99 and below's labor charges are probably outrageous because you have to have the car either on a lift, or be double jointed in shoulder, elbow, and wrist, with to pivots on the socket to get to two of the plugs...

on my 2000 though, i changed plugs AND wires in 20 minutes.

[memphis_raines]

Oh my goodness......navyblowme said my sig is inappropriate.....when he's got "RIP" written for a car on his. I mean, really.....how much did the funeral cost? Did you put it in a plain pine box when you buried it, or did you splurge and get the solid oak casket?

Moral of the story: Shut yer weenie-washer and mind your own business.


THAT'S IT. YOU'RE DONE.

[ August 03, 2004, 11:54 PM: Message edited by: navyblue2000 ]

[RallyRed 98]

the metal boot covers are heat shields; i would leave them on unless you want your circuit to break down because of the heat.

leaving it off WILL cause a misfire too; i know for a fact.

[memphis_raines]

Rally is correct....but you can also get aftermarket heat shields. I have a set of Taylor wires made for the 93-97 models that have the 90* boot with aftermarket boot protectors. They're kind of expensive though, about $10 each.

[V6Bob]

"Copper in the same heat range has a slightly colder spark, and with the 3.8's tendency to have head gaskets hanging over the combustion chamber, it needs to be a little cooler in there to prevent that gasket from heating up and possibly causing detonation."

Could you explain that one to me? How can a sparkplug have a "colder spark"? How can the "heat" of the spark affect the temperature of the gasket?

[2001_Y87]

does the OEM AC-Delco wire set come w/the heat shields, or do you have to buy them seperate? I can't use the old ones because they threw them away! I wonder if a junk yard would have them - probably not 'cause most junked cars I would imagine have replacement wires since wires are pretty common maintenance items.

[RallyRed 98]

those would be a dealer item, but you may get lucky and find generic ones at an auto parts store.

you can also use header wrap... a method has been developed over on LS1.com (i think) and eric (mustangeater) swears by it. i just use the metal boots but it doesn't hurt to have some extra insurance.

as for the gasket, the hotter that explosion is the hotter the combustion chamber gets. if the gasket that's hanging over into the combustion chamber gets and stays hot enough it will be like having another constantly-firing spark plug inside the combustion chamber and you will be subject to premature combustion of the air-fuel mix... or detonation.