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My 2004 Chevrolet Astro has been idling rough the last few weeks. Its been at least 3 yrs since I had any kind of tuning done on it, so I figured the plugs & plug wires were due to be changed. I have dreaded this chore for a while.
Nothing is accessible from atop the engine via the hood. You can open it to let in light, but that's about it. This job is best attempted by having the vehicle raised on a lift with the front wheels removed. I had to make due with driving it up onto a pair of ramps. To keep the ramps from sliding I had to hammer wooden stakes deep into the ground, to act as stops.
Since I only had the ramps I had to make due with having the front wheels on. The front two plugs are accessible through the wheelwell if you have the proper extensions (I didn't figure this out until cylinder #2).
I had a work light & all the tools needed, so I began with the easiest plug since the engine was still hot (I had to drive it to a friend's to work on it, can't do it here, hence hot motor). The easiest plug was the #5, which is driver's side rearmost on the 4.3 V-6. Next I moved forward to the #3 plug. After that, my nightmare began. Plug #1 has a straight boot & is closely enclosed by a heat shield, hardly accessible. I managed to break the wire, which didn't bother me since I wasn't keeping the old ones. Then it took 30-45 minutes to get that boot off, using screwdrivers to pry & jockeying with various pliers & channellocks trying to get a tug. Colorful language comes into play about now. Please realize I am laying on top of some cardboard, placed over the gravel ground. If I could have gotten an open end wrench onto the plug I would have taken it out with the boot still on it, but no wrench would go into that area. Finally I got a good bite with the screwdriver & got the boot off. Now to remove the plug.
When I put my 5/8" plug socket onto the plug I couldn't get the ratchet extension to enter the socket. The reason being was part of the wire core was still attached to the plug. This meant finding an even DEEPER 5/8" socket, which I did. But this deeper socket was 1/2" drive, not the 3/8" I had been using. The problem now is I don't have a working 1/2" ratchet. So I had to make do with a breakover bar. Ever try to fit a foot & half breakever bar up under an exhaust manifold? With more struggling I break the plug loose. I can only turn it about 3 degrees which each turn. I should mention that these spark plugs have about 17 inches of thread & need to be turned 9000 times to get them out. Or so it seems.
Eventually I succeed.
The passenger's bank went much better. I got to #2 via the wheelwell by utilizing various extension & a swivel. Plugs #4 & #6 weren't too bad either (watch out for the hot cable going to the starter!!!), but the straight boot on #6 tried to give me the same fits as the #1 did. The other 4 boots are 90 degrees.
After I got the plugs changed (they went in remarkably easy, NO crossthreading whatsoever) I did the wires. These are done by removing the console & engine cover, itself a painful task that I had done several days ago & have been driving with this hot motor beside my right leg. The new wires were an exact fit to the old ones, something I was glad of. The wires didn't take but about 20 minutes, me being tired, aggravated & growing sore.
Wrestling the engine cover back on was another 30 minutes. Took some doing to get past the seat, then the bolt holes wouldn't line up.
All in all this plug & wire change took almost three hours. I have pulled engines in less time.
Sadly, the stupid thing doesn't idle any smoother than before. I now suspect injector problems, probably enhanced or accelerated by my no longer having access to NON-ethanol laced gasoline.
Bucky
Nothing is accessible from atop the engine via the hood. You can open it to let in light, but that's about it. This job is best attempted by having the vehicle raised on a lift with the front wheels removed. I had to make due with driving it up onto a pair of ramps. To keep the ramps from sliding I had to hammer wooden stakes deep into the ground, to act as stops.
Since I only had the ramps I had to make due with having the front wheels on. The front two plugs are accessible through the wheelwell if you have the proper extensions (I didn't figure this out until cylinder #2).
I had a work light & all the tools needed, so I began with the easiest plug since the engine was still hot (I had to drive it to a friend's to work on it, can't do it here, hence hot motor). The easiest plug was the #5, which is driver's side rearmost on the 4.3 V-6. Next I moved forward to the #3 plug. After that, my nightmare began. Plug #1 has a straight boot & is closely enclosed by a heat shield, hardly accessible. I managed to break the wire, which didn't bother me since I wasn't keeping the old ones. Then it took 30-45 minutes to get that boot off, using screwdrivers to pry & jockeying with various pliers & channellocks trying to get a tug. Colorful language comes into play about now. Please realize I am laying on top of some cardboard, placed over the gravel ground. If I could have gotten an open end wrench onto the plug I would have taken it out with the boot still on it, but no wrench would go into that area. Finally I got a good bite with the screwdriver & got the boot off. Now to remove the plug.
When I put my 5/8" plug socket onto the plug I couldn't get the ratchet extension to enter the socket. The reason being was part of the wire core was still attached to the plug. This meant finding an even DEEPER 5/8" socket, which I did. But this deeper socket was 1/2" drive, not the 3/8" I had been using. The problem now is I don't have a working 1/2" ratchet. So I had to make do with a breakover bar. Ever try to fit a foot & half breakever bar up under an exhaust manifold? With more struggling I break the plug loose. I can only turn it about 3 degrees which each turn. I should mention that these spark plugs have about 17 inches of thread & need to be turned 9000 times to get them out. Or so it seems.
Eventually I succeed.
The passenger's bank went much better. I got to #2 via the wheelwell by utilizing various extension & a swivel. Plugs #4 & #6 weren't too bad either (watch out for the hot cable going to the starter!!!), but the straight boot on #6 tried to give me the same fits as the #1 did. The other 4 boots are 90 degrees.
After I got the plugs changed (they went in remarkably easy, NO crossthreading whatsoever) I did the wires. These are done by removing the console & engine cover, itself a painful task that I had done several days ago & have been driving with this hot motor beside my right leg. The new wires were an exact fit to the old ones, something I was glad of. The wires didn't take but about 20 minutes, me being tired, aggravated & growing sore.
Wrestling the engine cover back on was another 30 minutes. Took some doing to get past the seat, then the bolt holes wouldn't line up.
All in all this plug & wire change took almost three hours. I have pulled engines in less time.
Sadly, the stupid thing doesn't idle any smoother than before. I now suspect injector problems, probably enhanced or accelerated by my no longer having access to NON-ethanol laced gasoline.
Bucky
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