Changing Plugs and wires on a 98 SOHC

[mikeh]

I thought I'd do a little writeup on changing plugs and wires on a 98 SOHC Engine. I did mine last weekend and thought I'd write it up for others. I changed mine for the first time at 80K and was suprised to see that they were worn but not nearly as bad as I would have expected.

What you will need. I used Motorcraft parts because they have been good for the last 80K
1. New Plugs (Motorcraft platinum $4x6=$24
2. New plug wires (Motorcraft $40).
3. dielectric grease to go on and around the new spark plug boots.
4. Antiseize compound to go on the plugs.

Tools:
1. 3/8 inch drive and standard 3" and 6" extensions.
2. Sparkplug socket ( I forget the size).
3. A 4" and 12" piece of 3/8" rubber hose.
4. Pair of channel locks.
5. Pair of pliers.
6. Universal joint for the 3/8inch drive.
7. Air compressor with a blow attachment (Not neccessary but it will help)
8. Cue tips (to spread the dielectric grease in the sparkplug boots.
9. Phillips screwdriver.
10. Small set of sockets I forget the sizes I think 8mm and 5/16" were common.
11. Sparkplug gapper.
12. Jack
13. Jack stands.

Now that you have the part gathered let's start.
1. Pull all of your new plugs out and check the gap. Then take the antisieze compound and coat the threads and keep them someplace where they will stay clean. I usually just put them back in the boxes they came in.

2. Pull the new plug wires out of the box and coat the inside of each boot with the dielectric grease that usually comes with the plug wires when you buy them. Use a cue tip to spread it around really good.

3. Now let's start with the easy side first. That would be the drivers side. Pull the wires off one at a time and change the plugs out. Just leave the wires dangling until you get ready to change them out. When inserting the new plugs use the 12" piece of 3/8" rubber hose to get the plugs started in the hole and snug them up. Just insert the plug into the end of the hose. It makes it alot easier to get them snug initially and also keeps you from stripping the threads.

4. Once the plugs are in and properly torqued you can change the plug wires. The book says to change them one at a time but you will quickly learn that you have to do all three at the same time in order to get them in. Run each plug wire to make sure you don't confuse where they go and make yourself a little chart of where each one goes. DO NOT CONFUSE THE PLUG WIRES OR THE TRUCK WILL NOT RUN PROPERLY. The wires for the drivers side are the three shorter wires. Match up each wire with the closest one from the new set and replace being carful to get the wires back into all of the little holders that are on the engine.

5. Now you are ready to start on the passenger side plugs. These are the harder ones but if you read this it will make it a lot easier. First break all of your lugs free on your passenger side front wheel. Now jack up your passenger side wheel off the ground and put the axel on jackstands. Now remove the wheel.

6. You will see a wheel cover inside the wheel well which needs to be removed. Don't bother with the bottom dust cover that can be pulled free from the rest of the wheel well. The dust cover has little plastic pull things that keep it attached. Leave it attached. There are 3 phillips screws around the outside of the wheel well remove these first. There are two 5/16"?? I think screws at the top of the wheel well and these should be removed. At the very front of the well there are some 8mm or 10mm Screws that need to be removed. There are also 2 move 5/16" that don't need to be removed toward the front of the well these hold a plastic round thing on the top of the well. If anyone knows what that plastic globe it please let me know. I would be very interested in what that thing is. Anyway now you can remove the inside of the wheel well being carefull because there are still two wires attached to it that can be left attached and put the wheel well toward the front of the truck.

7. Now you have easy access to the other three plugs. Well two of three ain't bad. Remove the plug boots and remove the plugs and replace the same as before. For the back plug you will need the universal and the 4" extension on the driver. You can only get about one click at a time on this one.

8. Now you are ready to replace the wires. Make a chart in writing like you did on the first set. Now the hard part. Try to remember how each one snakes through the engine compartment. First remove all three from the output area on the drivers side. Then reach behind the engine and pull them out of that clip that is right behind everything. This is the hard part. Then start with the one in the back and replace the wires one at a time so that you can hit all of the same clips. Now run the wires back behind the engine again and plug them into the output module.

9. Once they are all hooked up try the truck out for a few seconds but don't let it run too long and heat up. If it runs fine no problem. If you can't get it to idle you probably mixed up the wires or one of the wires is not properly attached and you should go recheck all of the connections.

10. Put everything back together and pat yourself on the back for saving $230.

I hope this helps someone.
mikeh

 

[IgotTwo]

Very nice!
Its all in one place and well written.

Rubber hoses do help alot help to get the plugs started and almost theaded down in tight spots.

Can I add:?
I get a magic marker and mark the top of coil and both the old and new wires. Because when I start anything! ...you know I will be interupted...and I always come back to "where was I"

I also found an extremely short extension at sears for the passenger side. There are a few obstuction and this lets me get the socket wrench on and swing it without a swelve. The whole extention is only about 1 1/2".

Like you need more tools on the list.... a disk ratchet is also a handy little guy for changing plugs and other stuff

Very nice job!
I'm sure if anyone wants "to know," they will have it in one spot.

 

[addkev]

How long did it take you?

I did a write up very similar about a year ago or so and I put down expect a about 3 hours of cussing and screaming, quite a few folks agreed that the pass. side took them several hours and yet there were a few that said they did it in 30 minutes.

Also it is a good idea, since you changed the plugs and wires to go ahead and reset the computer by disconnecting the battery while you are working and re-connecting when done and letting it do it's reprogram cycle while warming up.

Good job.

Kevin

 

[redx98]

Yeah, I just finished changing plugs on mine. It was my first time, took me about 3 and a half hours. Got the bruised knuckes to prove it! Did exactly as you said. Oh well, I think I can do it faster the second time around

 

[Haggard]

I just did the plugs on my '99 today. The drivers side is a snap took about 15 minutes. The passenger side wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be after reading all the horror stories. I pulled the wheel off, then pulled off the plastic flap piece that is above the upper control arm. 25 minutes later she was back together and good as new

 

[yob_yeknom]

Originally posted by mikeh
7. Air compressor with a blow attachment (Not neccessary but it will help)

If you have access to this, remember to blow all of the crap out from around the spark plugs before you remove them. If not, try to wipe it all out and be careful not to let anything fall into the spark plug hole.

 

[Magicfan25]

Good write up

If you dont have a compressor go get a pack of those cans of compressed air you find for computers. I think that should get most of the crap outta there

 

[IgotTwo]

For those who do not have a compressor:

a vacuum cleaner (hopefully, not your old lady's good one .... cause she'll s^%)l ike a little shop vac type can work.

If you want to be slick..get a hold of one that you can put the hose on the exhaust side. You might want to clean the bag first and point it in another direction for the first few seconds to avoid any surprises left over in the hose.

After that you can blow things around to your heart's content. ....also as in, all the crap on garage floor from your handy work. This avoids all that greasey crud getting stepped on and crushed by your creeper wheels, turning it into a permanment part of the floor
(use all the nice pointy vacumm attachments at your option)

 

[Howard]

Nice write up.
As to your question the round plastic ball on top of the wing liner. It is a vacuum reservior for the heater controls and the two wires are vacuum tubes in and out there are no markings on the ball for in or out and the pipes are the same (they just pull off). I know this because when I first got my x the heater controls didn't work. After much ^&%$$$%^ and research I found that the pipes were on the wrong way round. Swapped them over and all is now honky

 

[mikeh]

Thankyou Howard

I think I'm a pretty smart guy but I just couldn't figure that globe thing out. Those wire like things are actually tiny vacum tubes. Amazing.

And to answer addkev's question as to how long it took me. I'm completely embarrased to say 5 hours from the time I walked into my garage until I walked out all cleaned up. I know because I had someplace to be that night and started getting pressed for time.

The hardest part about the whole job is getting the old sparkplug boots off. I would suggest not taking the subtle approach. Just jump in there with the pliers and get them off. I had luck with taking one twist back and forth to loosen them and them make sure you have the pliers down on the boot and a steady pull. I probably wasted an hour trying to pull them off with my bare hands.

I'll bet if I did it again it would be less than an hour.

Also the mention of reseting the computer by removing the negative battery terminal was good. I did that but forgot to mention it in the write up. I removed the negative terminal before I started the job.

mikeh

 

[Vozar]

what happens if something like dirt accidentally falls in. Will it dicintigrate or what?:

 

[mikeh]

Dirt will get burned up and spit out your exhaust or will end up in the bottom of your oil pan. It's generally not good for your engine's cylinder walls to get dirt in your cylinders. If you drop a screw or something then you are completely hosed and have to pull the head probably. I might try to fish it out with a magnet first.

mikeh

 

[IgotTwo]

Well... not to be redundant
If you can't fish whatever you think is in there with a magnet:

a vacuum cleaner with a "make shift" adapter to reduce the hose size down so you can get it in the spark plug hole could be worth trying...... probe around in there?

If whatever is in there is bigger than the hose, maybe the suction will hold it and you can get it out.

After a first try:
See if you can "hand spin" the crank to raise the piston on the problem cylinder.

Put a piece of cloth or get a clean bag so you can what comes out.

 

[bladerunner]

Wow...that's a great post, I might give that a try. Friend of mine just told me his mechanic will do it for 200. I might go that rte...

 

[cmayna]

Based upon what I've read in this post I'm going to attempt to do my plugs and wires on my 96 EB. It's not so much of a money saving issue, but more of completing a challenge. Similar to when I had to replace the intake manifold gaskets on my 91 EB. A lot of work but I learn a lot. Think I'll have my engine steam cleaned first. Any other words of advise would be appreciated. What's the proper gap for the plugs ?

 

[IgotTwo]

There is nothing like working on a clean engine....also to see what the H$#$ is going on.

Steam clean?….. sure why not!....I use a little simple green, (and maybe a little engine degreaser) a brush for the tuff spots, and garden hose will work. If you do it every so often, it easier to keep up with it.

Watch out for electrical connections. I always keep die electric silicone grease handy to smear on any and all connectors in sight. Remember the silicone doesn't conduct electricity, it helps cut down on the contact corrosion and makes it less friendly for water.. so don't get carried away with the stuff.

Call me silly but…the best think I found to make my life easy when diving under a car are cheapo coveralls. If you get interrupted or when its quitting time…. just rip those bad boys off and you don’t have such a ritual cleaning yourself up. Saves on “wrecked" clothes too.