spark plug removal

A friend of mine has a '98 Chev. p/u with a 350 engine. He is going to get it running for his kid to drive to High School - thing has never been tuned, he bought it in '99 - any hints on removing the spark plugs - it has about 200,000 miles

A week of spraying PB-Blaster onto the threads before trying to wrench them. Have a broken sparkplug remover on hand before starting.
I broke one off on the Sunday afternoon of a long weekend just before going on a trip...............
If his kid is driving the truck to high school. I would recommend removing the pushrods from the intakes of four cylinders.

Spark plugs don't normally get seized in these engines.Wrench 'em out & put new AC Delco back in.

If the plugs are in tight,run the engine up to operating tempature then carefully remove them. Watch the manifolds, they will be hot!
Use a 5/8 deepwell 1/2 inch drive socket, extensions, swivel and ratchet to get them out, dont worry about breaking the insulaters off, you wont be re-using them! HOWEVER make sure your socket is square on the hex portion of the sparkplug body as you can twist off the hexed part of the plug leaving the threaded part stuck in the head if you place a lot of side load on a firmly stuck plug. I had that recently happen on a '92 chevy 350 truck and spent an extra hour using torches to affect a heat and cool cycle on the plug remnants until I was able to slowly extract it with an E-Z out(which beat the alternative- removing the head...). All the plugs on this engine are easily accessible, only the back 2 plugs are somewhat difficult to reach but shouldnt pose much of a problem. Get some new plugs(put them in with a 5/8 sparkplug socket- the one with the rubber donut inside to keep you from breaking the new plugs porcliean- in 3/8 drive- no sense in overtorquing them in)and use anti-seize goop on the threads! Put on some new wires, a cap & rotor and a new air filter on and you should be good for another 50K!!

Forgot, port fuel injection. Find some way to only let the throttle go 1/3 open.

Using an air impact wrench, on a low air pressure setting helps loosen hard to remove plugs. Leave air pressure low enough the wrench just rattles the plugs and doesn't use a lot of force. It doesn't hurt to use a good soaking with penetrating oil before using the impact wrench.

Welp, I've seen it all when it comes to plug removal...remove the plug wires with a proper plug wire tool so you do not pull the ends off of the wires,rotate the wire on the plug a few times before pulling on it. Once the wires are all off spray some good penetrant around the plugs.."Move It" PB Blaster, some kind of penetrating fluid..then go have a nice day. Next day put the proper wrench on them and the suggestion of impact wrench is good..they should come out. We always used to put anti sieze on the threads of the new plugs..never had problems with them when the customer came back in a few years for another tune up. I have seen plugs rust to the point the walls were paper thin. We had an old Buick Grand national come in that a guy was retoring..seven of eight plugs broke off with the slightest of effort.
We removed the broken plugs by heating what was left red hot with the brazing tip, then doused it with cold water from a hose...you could then turn them out with pliers.. blow the cylinder out with the air hose and job done.I have taken broken ones out with a big square shaft easy out....breaking off a plug is nasty and you can avoid it with the penetrate and lots of patience.

I set here and am trying to understand the use of penetrating oils on spark plugs.

If you buy penetrating oils in a can with a lid how can you keep it in the can.

Spark plugs have a gasket that causes a seal between the head and plug base. If penetrating oil can get by a steel gasket to free up the threads what keeps it from penetrating the can.

Just seems to fall into the same catagory as putting tefflon tape on threads of a flare fitting.

Just thinking and for some reason things do not compute. Probly shouldn't be thinking.

I took my, new to me, truck to Walmart to have the oil changed because they were only charging $12.97 at the time. It took forever. I finally found out why. Seems the drain plug was really tight and the guy had to use a chisel to loosen it. They did have a new plug to put in. After I paid for it and was walking out, the guy that did the oil change comes out and tells me how he did such a great service for me getting the drain plug out. He says he sprayed penetrating oil all around it and finally got it out. How is penetrating oil supposed to soak upwards into the the threads of a tight drain plug? Later on I looked at the sheet they give you and it said all the tires were at 35 psi. I knew they weren't that low because they would have been half flat. I have a 3/4 ton truck that takes 65 to 80 psi in the tires. Now their price is up around $34 but I don't go there. Funny thing is, they could have charged me for a new drain plug and didn't. On the other end of the spectrum, I went to Mr. lube for an oil change and air filter and got soaked for $80. It's more convenient for me to have a place change my oil, Thankfully I found a one bay oil change place that charges about the same as Walmart but has knowledgable people working there and usually I can get right in, so I'm happy. Dave

Dick, you think too much, but I agree with you. Might help loosen the gasket, but no way can it get to the threads. Now if the plugh comes part way out and then sticks..soak it then.

Even worse yet GM's use tapered seat plugs ! Nothing is getting past them.

I recently read in March 2009 Popular Mechanics magazine Car Clinic page 98 the way Ford suggests for aluminum heads.(would help on iron head to).Technical service bulletin no.08-7-6.
Crack the plug loose then spray carb cleaner around plug.Let set for a few minutes.This will help dissolve the carbon around the bottom of the threads.Work the plug out slowly in a back and forth rotation.
Mark

I was "thinking" of why would you use pen-oil. I bought a 72 3/4 tree pullin 4x4. Wanted to change plugs give it a tune up..plugs were stuck...so...i ran it and got the block hot and they came right out..Heat..does threads good. ha I learned this lesson the hard way on my 3020 when I was taking the exhaust man off to replace and took...or tried to take the bolts off cold. Broke one off. Drilled out broke drill bit off inside bolt inside hole on block. Old fart from done the road came by said..if you'd only started the thing and got it hot wouldnt of been in this mess..I didnt forget that..

The engine has taper seat plugs, no gasket. Mark said to “crack the plug” and use carb solvent. Penetrate is more effective in IMHO.

Same thing as loosening a bolt and spraying with penetrate. Penetrate will capillary down the thread.

My trucks have aluminum heads and I do that as a precaution. Helps lubricate the threads also. Antisieze on reinstallation.

Joe

and you will end up with broken porcelain in the cylinder.

Does that engine have cast iron heads? Then just put a good spark plug socket on the plugs and turn. I would be very surprised if they don't come right out.

Aluminum heads are a whole 'nother thing. The plugs can seize up in the hole, meaning that although you may be able to turn them out, the threads in the head just might come with them. My rule for aluminum is this: If I have any reason to believe the fastener is seized, I apply heat first. You can use a brazing tip to apply heat directly to the metal portion of the plug; it shouldn't take must to loosen any seized threads.

As for penetrating oil on spark plugs, particularly the tapered GM plugs, fugetaboutit!

The idea is good but does it penetrate the plug???

Penetrating oil is only used on plugs that turn hard.No need to use it on plugs that turn easy.By the time you have turned a plug out enough to know its going to be a stinker the gasket or taper wont keep the oil out.Just had a problem with a furnace inspection door,PB didnt help a week later I found my spout can of Kroil.A few drops on the stud,came back the next day and turned the nut off.You can put Kroil on rust and see the rust start to disolve.