My 2004 MCS has 106K and the original spark plugs, which have never been removed. I figure it is time to replace them, and I will be going with the OE NGK. How do I best avoid problems in removing them? Should the engine be cold, warm, or hot? And, I see a divergence of opinion on whether to use anti-seize on the new ones. Thoughts? Thanks.

 

the engine must be cold and I don't recommend using anti seize. Let the car sit overnight and change them in the morning. make sure you torque them down properly. i believe it's 18-20 lbs

 

A+ info by miniblucabrio

 

why the recommendation to not use anti-seize?

 

I just did this the other day - engine was cold, but i didn't have it sit overnight... just had a few hours to cool after a short drive.

What plugs are you getting to put in? I have a JCW, and I used the NGK Iridium plugs. They've been stellar since I installed them. The original ones that I pulled out were awful - I believe they were three prong, and just weren't very effective. The Iridium ones that I threw in really made a noticeable difference right away.

 

from what I've been reading up on here it has an affect on being able to tighten the plugs properly. it seems to allow the plugs to back out. I have never used the stuff on plugs in any of my cars. some people do some don't. If you do then use it very sparingly. a little will go a long way.

 

IF you have NEVER removed the plugs...
GO TO A PRO...
They will know a few tricks to get them out...and tourque then down when you get new ones...
while it is a pretty easy thing to do when done routinely....
things can get messy fast when they have been neglected for a long time...
leaving you with a car that needs to be towed to be fixed...

things like a seized/broken plug...or stripped threads....

being a good DIY'er means knowing when to do it, and when to pass...

 

it really isn't rocket science

don't work on a HOT engine - let it cool to a comfortable temp' at least.

The one 'gotcha' to look out for the is socket you use. The plugs sit WAY DOWN in a metal hole. You need either a VERY deep socket or a socket and an extension. More importantly, BE SURE the socket's diameter is less that the hole the plug is sitting it. You do NOT want to find out the socket is too fat by getting it jammed down there! Ask me how I know! (You also want a special spark plug socket as it has provisions for holding the plug in the socket - typically via a chunk of rubber that softly grabs the tip of the plug)

Before you pull a plug, LOOK down the hole and if you see any crud you need to get the crud out first. OR, when you pull the plug the crud could fall into the cylinder and that could be bad. I made a small hose adapter for my shop vac hose that allows me to vac' out the hole.

Plugs use fine pitch threads so they should turn in VERY EASILY. If you can't turn them in up to the seal by hand ... something is wrong. Torquing can seem to take a long turn' since plugs typically have a crush washer built on.

I've used very small amount of anti-seize on my plugs for goin' on 40 years and have yet to blow a plug out... But I don't race so I'll just say it never happened to me and I continue to use it . . . But I do come back after I've run a couple of hours and check the torque again to ensure things stayed tight.

I recommend if you are changing the plugs - go the extra yard and replace the wires too. Yes they also wear out . . .

 

 

I now use antiseize carefully personally, but did it for probably 20+ other plug set changes in many cars over the years w/ out.

Fresh plugs are usually easy to screw in and torque, and advice in this thread is good. A used plug removed for some reason is trickier if you ever get there--both with the now crushed washer and often w some carbon on the ends of the threads that may gum up a reinstall. A bit of cleaning and care to retorque well has always worked for me there.

 

Lots of good advise here, I also changed mine out when I had over 90 K on my 04 S. One think you may want to do it get a rubber hose that fit snugly over the tip of the plug, when you put the new plugs in, use the rubber hose to get the plug started and you wont have to worry about cross threading it, once you have it twist the hose off and torque it down

 

for cooper s atleast, and others:

I advise you to use anti-sieze, its easier to go back and recheck the tighteness every so often, then having to replace the head or fix the head because you cross threaded trying to removed the spark plug. beside 99 cent for a bag of anti-seize sounds better than $300+ head.

take a sec. and think about it, you're under boost+higher cyl. temp+aluminum head = great potential for the aluminum to fused with the metal plug (for example: what if you over head the car, or experiencing detonation, etc.).

its one of the easiest things to mess up. everytime i remove a spark plug, i pray that it will come out easy..

 

Guys, The majority of spark plugs manufactured today, have a coating applied to the spark plug shell body (threads) at the production stage, this trivalent coating is applied to reduce the chances of fusion seizure between the metals!

And so the application of a Anti-Seize compound is a BIG NO.

There is additional information on spark plugs in the link below.

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ark-plugs.html

And just in case you don't wish to believe me, click on this link below.

http://www.ngkplugpro.ca/content/con...SparkPlugs.pdf

 

Good to know, thanks! Dissimilar metals can fuse together thru galvanic corrosion. You need something there to stop that from happening. If it is already on the threads, so much the better!

 

I changed my stock plugs at 40K miles to Denso IK20 plugs and both power and gas mileage went up. Night and day difference!

 

I for one will NEVER use NGK's again! I have had two plugs, one on each of my cars snap in half in the last month! Tightened properly to 20 pounds with a torque wrench. Its like NGK went really cheap with their metal lately, even though the price is higher than ever. Good thing is I made a little tool that makes geting the broken end out of the head, just in case it ever happens again.

 

Spark plugs should be considered as a priority, just like oil, they are the heartbeat of any gasoline engine, they can tell you so much about the condition of your engine, that when you consider a oil change then you should also consider changing the spark plugs too!

They are after all cheap enough to purchase, and if you want the best from your engine all the time, then change them regular, say, every 5-10,000 street driven miles, or if you track your car, then in an ideal situation, you should consider having a dedicated track spark plug, and change them as necessary, or every track meeting!

I see/hear about so many engine related issues, I just shake my head, and can't believe that people want to have fun on the track, but are not prepared to spend preventative money, and then moan like a ***** when their beloved street/track car fails.

At the end of the day, prevention is far cheaper than a cure! what's a few lousy $$$ for the piece of mind and enjoyment whilst on track ?

 

I agree with the above ^.

Three things make your motor work, fuel, air & SPARK...

That being said I do not change plugs that often, but more often than most. I do it at about 30,000 miles.

The reason that I do not want to run a plug to a very high mileage is two fold. Their performance deteriorates as mileage climbs & if there happens to be any carbon on the end of the plug it may pull the threads out of the head when you remove them.

If the plug feels tight coming out I use a slightly different technique. I first break the plug loose & turn a 1/4 turn or so. Then I turn it back in. I repeat this until the plug is out. Think of this method as running a die on a piece of metal. You back it up to break the chip as you are cutting. On a plug the carbon is the chip you are breaking.

It seems like too many MINIs spit their plugs out. I have no idea why that is. It is very easy to check the torque on them. Takes 5 minutes max. I had been doing that at every oil change, but have backed off to every other oil change. That's about 10,000 miles for me. To date I have not found a loose plug.

I run NGK plugs & have in many cars for years without problems. Like many things they may be made differently now to save money, who knows? From looking at them I can see no difference, but I'm not a plug expert.

I'm a believer in anti-seize. Just a small touch is all you need. In 45 years of changing plugs I have never had one back out. Nice to know there is a coating on plugs to help with that issue. This is the fist time I've ever heard that.

 

I've encountered many loose plugs, Denso as a brand most frequently, and have had to repair heads from ejected spark plugs on the first gen MINI. From that experience I would add, verify torque after several heat cycles, and any convenient interval after that. Torque to the high end of the specification, 22 ft-lb, and don't rely on the uncalibrated feel of the crush washer plus a quarter turn in lieu of using a torque wrench.

The MINI TIS specifies copper anti-seize for the plug threads, BTW. I'm pleased to hear of the Trivalent coating on NGK plugs.

The FI MCS is a high performance vehicle, because of that even high mileage plugs made from Iridium etc, should be changed at less than 20k miles to maintain high performance. I also use a low-tech copper plug in one colder range (Autolite 3922) for some applications. Copper is an excellent conductor, but is not long lived. For those plugs, the change interval is around 7.5k miles, and anti-seize is definitely appropriate for the threads.

 

Agreed on changing plugs every 30K, sooner is better especially if you drive the car hard.

As for my NGK problem, I was using IRIDIUM IX's on both cars. One broken plug isn't enough to cause major concerns, Two broken plugs in the same cylinder in the same car, might say that maby its a problem with the head, but two broken plugs (of the same manufacturer and type) in different cars, that suggests a manufacturering issue. NGK has made great plugs for years, but they might be cutting back like everyone else in the current economy.

 

I have never used the NGK Iridium plugs. I'm using the NGK Laser Platinum, same as oem. That may be the difference.

 

The spark plugs obviously can tell you what kind of combustion the engine has. Lean-normal-rich depending on the color of the tips. They can show whether there are combustion residues, air gaps differences and more.

But what if there is colour difference between the spark plugs indicating that, let's say, 3 of them are lean and 1 normal?
Is that leading to the conclusion that there is a problem with the fueling system? Fuel injectors maybe or HPFP?
How would you approach this?

Also a guide for spark plug interpretation and engine health would be very useful.

 

Although I am HUGE proponent of anti-seize, it's great stuff, I would not use it for spark plugs. First, there is no need for it if you change plugs when the car is cold especially in cars like MINI's where the plugs are protected from moisture. I changed mine @ ~ 75K with no issues. I also recently changed plugs on my sons 4 cyl. Acura that has the same protected plug, aluminum head set up. At 160K it still had the original NGK's in it. Plug gap had eroded to .100" (should be .045") and the car still ran well except gas mileage was a little low. Also I'm not sure what happens to anti-seize when in contact with the high heat spark plugs see, it may degrade and do more harm than good.

 

I began the plug changing process today and was concerned about the degree of force required to unseat the old plugs. But the real problem I have encountered upon installation of the new ones is this: my plug socket has a rubber insert that cushions the ceramic portion of the plug and grabs it so that the loosened plug can be withdrawn. Problem: once torqued down the grabbing force of the rubber insert is greater than that which connects my extension to the socket; hence, the socket gets left in the well. Suggestions?

 

Same problem here! (CRAFTSMAN TOOLS) Just shoot a little WD40 into the rubber and work it in with a small finger (child labor works great here) or use one of the old plugs to do the same thing.