• Can't get the spark plugs out
    2 replies, posted
After blowing the pump hose on my Geo Tracker in august and overheating the engine (for the third time) to the point it was knocking I did an inspection of the engine after I get home to see if this was it. Aside from a slightly rough idle (start the car warm and it has a totally awful idle for about five to seven seconds. Sometimes you even ahve to pump the gas to prevent it from stalling. Then the ECM does something and the idle remains stable at 1000rpm) I seem to have gotten away with not even a warped head. As part of finding out why my warm idle sucks I decided to see if the plugs were alright. The first was really stiff. Only after assuring myself that it WAS threading out did I continue and the partial reason for the ass idle is in the fact that the last guy who replaced the plugs didn't gap them. The plug was almost twice what it should be. Anyways, I regapped the plug, checked the cylinder pressure (a hairline low but still acceptable) and then screwed the plug back in. I could not however screw it all the way back in. It eventually started binding up and I decided to just leave it where it was as the torque guage was saying it was fine. The second plug was a little easier to remove. Again the gap was wrong and after regapping and pressure testing (it was better than the previous one) I put it back in with no hassle. The third plug was way too bound in. I gave up on it in fear I'd rip the threads out of the head. It would be nice if I didn't have to take the head off. The fourth plug was as stubborn as the first and after a few rotations I was getting the sounds of metal-on-metal squeaking. Again I decided to screw it back in and leave it alone. So how am I going to get those last two plugs out? There is a pretty damn good chance they don't have proper gaps either and I still need to pressure check them as well.
Why not just put in new plugs while you're at it.. they're like 2.50 a pop?? Soak them with penetrating oil a whole bunch.. try that. Do it with the engine hot if needed.
Plugs were replaced before I bought the car last year. They didn't look too worn either.
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