Questions and Answers

Intrepid Spark Plugs Q. Both our cars need spark plugs and wires but when I look under the hood, all but two plugs are buried under a massive intake manifold (I think). Can the plugs and wires be replaced without removing the aforesaid manifold? How? The spark plug wire ends are about 4.75" long so there needs to be a lot of wire slack to lift them out and there doesn't appear to be any slack.

1997 Dodge Intrepid, standard (not ES)
3.5 liter
Automatic transmission
85,000 and 100,500 ( we have two of them)
Fuel Injection

Thanks,
Ron

A. No, you do not need to remove anything in particular to replace the spark plugs. It's a bit of a PITA to do it, but it is fairly straightforward. To remove them:

1. Spray compressed air around spark plug to prevent foreign material from entering combustion chamber.

2. Remove spark plug wire by grasping boot and turning ½ turn back and forth while pulling boot back in a steady motion.

3. Remove spark plug using socket with foam insert. The foam or rubber insert will hold the spark plug in the socket while you lift it out.

To install them, start plug in cylinder head by hand, to prevent cross threading. What I do is use a piece of hose that fits over the porcelain portion of the spark plug and about a foot long. This way I can feel the spark plug thread into the head. Once it's started I turn it in as far as I can by hand and tighten them with my socket.

Some things to be careful of:

• Always keep plugs in the order they were removed. Any plug that looks different from other plugs indicates a problem in that cylinder.

• Note routing of secondary ignition cables before removing. Failure to route cables properly may result in radio interference, ignition cross fire, or ignition short to ground.

• Always tighten spark plugs to the specified torque, 20 ft-lbs. Over tightening can distort the plug changing the plug gap. Over tightening can also damage the cylinder head.

• When replacing spark plugs because of a high speed miss condition; avoid wide open throttle operation for approximately 850 miles after installation of new plugs. This will allow deposit shifting in the combustion chamber to take place gradually and avoid splash fouling shortly after the plug change.

Additional Information provided courtesy of ALLDATA