Thx for the pics Hoss, probably will give it a go this week sometime.

Appreciate the assist,

Mark

Use a little anti-seize compound on the threads, it has nothing to do with sealing. It will make it real easy to remove the plugs after many years. It makes a BIG difference. You would also want to use it on all aftermarket exhaust flange and clamp bolts/nuts.

Koz

Update... did the 2004 V6 plug change last night, took about an hour total for everything. Plugs came out easily.

Took off the big plastic engine cover thing. Right bank (from drivers position) went fine and fast. Left bank, rear two plugs were tight, removed that hose in the way, no probs, done deal.

For the mechanically challenged who are considering, go for it. Gap plugs & get all tools ready the night before. I'm fair with tools, etc, but much better at pre-prep, reading this thread, etc LOL.


Next on the 30k list, diff & xcase fluid changes. Whoohoo, more money saved for gas instead of dealer!

Thank you all who took the time to post tips. I am not mechanically inclined and normally hate dong it, but spending $200 at the stealer when the plugs are only $35 or so just was beyond me.

I did it. It took less than 60 minutes. I did not break anything. Not even a 4 letter word was uttered.

Anyone can do it!

In case anybody is looking for some more tips from a different perspective

I just did my wife's 2005 V6 last night.. I waited until 42k miles because I just assumed they were 100k mile plugs until I read otherwise on this board!

They still looked OK to me but definitely not pretty.

I got NKG Laser Platinum plus... should be good for 100k miles or more.

Part number was PLFR6A-11. They're $14/each at NAPA or $13/each on Amazon. Yes $80 is pricey but what are you going to pay if you get 30k mile plugs? $30+ right? So in terms of price per mileage the platinum plugs are actually a bit better and that's before attributing any value to your time and effort in changing them.

And on that note I have to say that this job took me more like 3 hours but that's because I read this thread after getting started and didn't realize I didn't have some parts I'd need. Now that I have the right parts and have a better developed feel for the clips on the coil packs, I think I could do it in an hour flat start to finish if I was pushing it.


-You don't need a flexible ratchet extension for any of the plugs though the front most driver's side plug almost needed one.

-I found no reason for the fuel line to thread the plugs... I was able to just put the plug in the plug socket, stick that on the extension without the ratchet itself and just hand tighten the plug... it was plenty obvious if it was misthreaded and I was at no risk of damaging anything when I was only using my hands to tighten... once the plug could no longer be hand tightened I turned them for about 1/2 to 2/3rds of a turn or about 14 ft-lb.

-You DO need a ratchet extension for your spark plug socket that will lock, otherwise good luck pulling your spark plug socket out once you've got the plug inserted. Then again maybe my plug socket was just much grabbier than most but I had no chance of getting it back out without the locking extension I had to go and buy. For some reason this wasn't an issue on my wife's old 99 Accord 4-cyl. Different sized plugs maybe?

-Parts to remove or move out of the way include the airbox from the filter back, the black metal bracket on the driver's side between the middle and rear plug (I was able to remove the top 12mm bolt and leave in the bottom one loosened and just move it out of the way. Also go ahead and just remove the engine cover, it's just two 10mm caps. Also pull the PCV hose on the driver's side out of the way... it's the black rubber black insulated hose with a metal clip that's near the fuel lines that goes from a cast black plastic outlet up low into the block down low. These two things makes clearance on driver's side about 10x more comfortable and will take you an extra 1-2 minutes total to remove and put back.


Issues I had:
Those coil pack plug clips were a PAIN to get off in some cases... especially on the driver's side front-most plug. The best method I figured out was using a very small screw driver to hold the clip retainer up and prying the clip out with a larger screw driver, then once I got the clip back just an 1/8th of an inch or so pull it the rest of the way back with my hand. I was really nervous I was going to crack the plastic with one of the screw drivers though, but I didn't. I wish Toyota had made the coil pack wires attach with something more straightforward, like a screw.

I dropped one of the coil pack 10mm bolts accidentally and wouldn't you know it, it managed to bounce INSIDE the frame cross member running under the motor. I had to remove the mid front skid plate and fish around with one of those magnet wands to find it. Man that was frustrating.

I also forgot to get anti-seize, so I really hope that's not going to be an issue at 140k miles.

I just did mine on Saturday. I have a 99 Limited and it was very easy. Took about an hour because I dropped a socket and had to dig it out.

I used to own a Mitsubishi Montero Sport and a spark plug change was crazy in that. I had to take the top half of the engine apart to do it. It would take about 5-6 hours to do and 35ish bolts that had to come off.

I also read here that only three wires come when changing the spark plug wires. So I wasn't freaked out when I paid $50 for just three wires. Plugs were $25. Engine runs smoother too.

Just wanted to update you guys... I talked to NGK's tech support line and they specifically recommend AGAINST using anti-seize of any sort on their plugs (or, at least on the laser platinum plugs and I think on any of the other ones too... might want to double check with them).

They use a special metal coating which will not bond with aluminum and they say using anti-seize is not only unnecessary but can make the bolt threads too slick and cause you to actually over-torque the plug when applying the correct amount of pressure.

This is just a follow up since I forgot to use anti-seize and wanted to be sure that I needed to before pulling them back out.

Turns out I'm in the clear, but I wanted to give you guys a heads up.

Here is a pic for the V8 type

As far as I can see that looks identical to the V6.

FYI, the plug torque is 13 ft-lb, and the coil bolt and engine cover bolt torque is 66 in-lb. Also, a drop of synthetic engine oil is recommended instead of anti-seize - my Corvette manual mandates this with aluminum heads.

Take the engine cover off, it is two simple 10mm cap nuts. You actually do not have to remove the one bracket. I took out the top bolt, and loosened the bottom so that it swung down out of the way as posted above. The hoses I removed at one end, and pulled them out of the way. Pretty straightforward. You can actually work around the hoses, but they are simple to remove if needed.

Are there additional issues with replacing plugs on the V8?

wow , i didnt know the dealership cost that much to change spark plugs, anyhow i did this about a month ago, if its not cold out , i suggest doing it yourself, even if it is the first time. b/c its simple, just follow the write-ups posted here or on internet and you should do fine, and save yourself money too, and while the intake manifold is off, you might as well do a TB clean and MAF sensor clean, then u can really see some gain in gas mileage. and both of thsoe cleaning writeups are posted here on the website, very cheap and easy too

I have had my 6 new NGK iridiums ($75 CDN) sitting for two weeks, as I did not have the time and was worried a tad about the drivers side. Seeing that everyone before this post has had success, I will attempt this on Sunday evening. There are mentions of gapping as well, but NGK frowns as this as they say improperly gapped iridiums will not impact performance of the plug (so leave them alone!), and that there is a big risk of damaging the electrode if you attempt a gap. Is this true? I am at 85000km (52000 miles), and don't believe the previous owner has replaced these.

Changed the plugs in my 03 at 130k. The gas milage got better by 3 mpg by the computer over 50 mi.