amen to that. I went out and bought one with an extention a long time ago and now, it takes me longer to get the car ready than it does to actually take out the plugs. Just remember the antisieze on the threads and it will be a piece of cake every time....that and a tq wrench to ensure you do not over tighten them and mess up the threads down the road.

 

second the wobble extensions and you really only need them for the rear ones.

 

Granted this thread is now 15 pages long, but universal/wobble joint sockets were discussed and pictured early on. Interesting how some things have to be relearned, even in the same thread!

I guess to "Search" we should also append "Read."

 

it's starting over, that's all.

Getting to them from the top is like fighting in a phone booth. Don't bother there's not enough room.

You can get the rears out easily from under the car though.

 

Dear all, Im a noob and I searched most of the S.Plugs DIY threads and ppl suggested to use anti seize when changing plugs. I was about to change them this weekend too but found something very interesting from NGK.

It's a tech. bulletin telling us NGK plugs are special coated and not recommend to have anti seize put onto the threads......

http://www.ngkplugpro.ca/content/con...SparkPlugs.pdf

I sent an email and try to further confirm with some expert there, and below is the reply.

I am not trying to be a smart Axx but like oil discussion its your car and do it however you like. Just want to share the information with you

Cheers KY


*****

Hello Ken

Please do not apply that to our plugs, they come with a plating that acts as the release agent and require no anti-seize. This will also skew torque readings when torqueing plugs.

Thanks and have a nice day

Jason Norwood
NGK Spark Plugs ( USA) Inc.
Technical and Training Specialist - Aftermarket Division
46929 Magellan Drive
Wixom, MI 48393
Office: (248)-926-7107
Fax: (248)-926-6938
Email: jnorwood@ngksparkplugs.com
ASE Certified




-----Original Message-----
From:
Sent: Tuesday, August 30, 2011 1:35 PM
To: Info
Subject: NGK Form Mail

**** Contact Form & Tech Info Feedback ****

Email From:
VehicleType: car
Make: Mazda
Model: RX-8 6MT GT
Year: 2004
Engine Type: Genesis Rotory
Comments: Hello there, I ordered a set of plugs (2x6700, 2x6701)and about to change it this weekend. Before I do this I would like to confirm with you if i should put copper base anti seize onto the thread? I read an article and NGK NOT suggesting to do so.

http://www.ngkplugpro.ca/content/con...SparkPlugs.pdf

Please kindly advise, thank you.

Regards
Ken
When: 8/30/2011 1:34:34 PM

END OF REPORT

*****

 

^ Good info. About time they started doing so. And it's true that various greases do skew torque settings. More so in other engine components, some greases are actually formulated for accurate first torque and others to facilitate re-torquing.

 

Some of my oem plugs were not the easiest to remove and I doubt they used any anti seize. Iused it when I changed my plugs and have had no issues at all. I will continue to use it because I dont want to be one of the people who has a extremely hard to get out spark plug when I change them again.

 

My original factory plugs came out easily at 35,000 miles, and I'm sure the factory doesn't use any anti-seize when assembling new engines (there would be no need). I've always followed the NGK recommendation on this, and never had any problems with plug removal. I would be more concerned about over-torquing the plugs because of the extra lubrication.

 

I guess you got lucky with your plugs but most of mine did not come out smoothly at all. I'm not really concerned about over torquing you can feel when it begins to tighten down on the washer thats on them and then just go a little bit past that. I've only driven maybe 2500 miles since I put my plugs in but they are working fine.

 

Thank you Tony! with your instruction i changed the plugs, coils and wires and baby is running like new again!

I am following NGK's instruction and did not put anti seize onto the thread. Lets see what is the result when i change my plugs 30000 miles later.

Thank you again Tony :>

 

Just bought an Rx8 2004 with 72k miles. Love the car. Interior and exterior great. It drove awesome for about a week and then it started choking when I try to give it the gas. As I wait for someone to bring me a bigger wrench I wanted to post what I found during the spark plug change that I'm in the middle of.


The back end tips are rusted very badly. The 2nd spark plug wire I pulled off pulled the entire metal connector tip OFF of the spark plug. I'm not sure yet whether the spark plugs were causing my issue but I'm feeling ALOT more confident now that I see the plugs are completely destroyed.

 

Good luck getting the plugs out. Hope they aren't seized. I assume you're replacing the wires as well? What about coils?
If plugs, wires and coils don't resolve your issue (if they are that bad, they should,) next to look at would be the cat. Similar symptoms from a clogged one (power dies under at all heavy throttle, massive gas mileage hit.)

 

The plugs were all fouled up so badly. One of them was rusted so badly the tip broke off with no force applied. I went to advanced auto and bought a Spark plug socket that fits these plugs and a 9" extension. Was able to get the plugs in and out without going under the car (Since I had the driver wheel off). I will be changing the coils and plug wires next week but low and behold I cranked her up after just changing the plugs and she runs great! Problem solved!

 

Changed my plugs today, idle is much smoother. I was having a little trouble starting and the plugs seemed to help on that front too. They were pretty nasty...Thanks for the write-up.

 

I did plugs and coils a few weeks ago, had no issues doing the plugs but had more of a issue getting the intake tube off. The cat felt much smoother through the revs and more power down low except for the past 2 weeks power seems down over all. Still need to do wires and airfilter, I just hope the cat isnt failing.

I have no idea how many miles were on the plugs.

 

Wow that is amazing pictures...

 

So now i have enough for the rest of my life with this bottle...

But wow read the label... Its some good stuff.

Im sure the RX8 will not get that hot to test this stuff out...

 

I just finished replacing my plugs. It took me about an hour. I did use antisieze because of what I read here. I just read that post about NGK saying not to use it. I hope it will be alright. Also the torque wrench I bought did not fit my spark plug socket so I hand tightened as much as I could and then used a 1/2 turn of the wrench. That was a technique that I read somewhere on this thread and that person said they had no problem in 90,000 miles. I took it for a test drive and everything seemed fine. It definitely felt smoother.

What should watch out for regarding the torquing of the spark plugs.

 

I was able to replace all of them except the first leading it's really stuck in there is there anything I can use to loosen it without breaking or stripping it?

 

A couple of mine were really stuck. What worked for me was to actually alternate between loosening and tightening. You don't want to put too much force or you risk breaking the threads. I went back and forth, back and forth, putting max force for just a brief second. I thought one of them would never loosen. It took probably 30 or so tries but then it finally came loose all of a sudden. I learned that trick from Pat Goss from Motorweek on Velocity.

 

Just for record's sake, here are NGK's own documents on when/where to use anti-seize. Apparently, only if you remove the plugs after initial installation, should you ever use anti-seize on our plugs (NGK Laser Iridium). I suppose the "5 points" PDF would be good for noobs, or anyone who hasn't changed plugs before.

 

Changed my plugs and wires today with NGK Iridium and NGK spark plug wire set. As in the original DIY portion of this thread, I jacked the car up - placed on jack stands - removed drivers-side front wheel - and unhooked rubber slash guard.

At this point access was no issue, but despite what they may say about their plug coating...two of the old NGK Iridium plugs were a bit of a challenge and was unable to loosen with regular socket handle...wound up running out to get a 17" breaker bar with swivel head and the extra torque did the trick.

Plug and wire replacement went great. I did use a small coat of anti-seize on plug threads before install/hand tighten followed by an extra 1/3 to 1/2 turn being careful not to over tighten (no torque wrench available and unsure on accuracy with anti-seize).

Plugs were definitely due to be changed and car is running great (like a "scalded dog") following same.

This was my first time wrenching in a long time and I had forgotten how much I enjoy it....had dealer do all the work while under warranty. Also changed my engine mounts while up on jack stands.

I have the bug again...looking forward to more DIY projects to follow...

 

Changed plugs to day and believe they are orig. 80k miles old. Almost no electrode left. I dont know how the car even ran with plugs like that. Also almost completely plugged over with carbon. Also changed coils and wires...runs super smooth now, and exhaust dosnt smell rich anymore. Thanks for the great diy's

 

My experience:

- You DONT need wobble extension or universal adapter.
- L1 will give you the most problem
- I'm a small dude, so maybe other dudes need the wobble but if you just take off the wheel, that takes care of all the issues.

I did this and installed the BHR ignition.

After 36k miles, plugs did need a change. I did it just in time, they are fried.

 

Hi,
Just thought i would say i have removed the plugs many times and never had to remove anything! Except unplugging the leads of course. Also changing bulbs i can do without removing the wheel. Dont know why everyone insists on removing things all the time lol i will say im not the smallest of people, Shovel size hands, Arms are long and gangly and if theres anything i cant get my hands to i call in my Patch (Little size man) to get to it