So I just did my spark plugs last night. Im a few hundred miles shy of 60k. I did a Seafoaming about 3 weeks ago and never did the spark plug change. I didnt notice any missfires or of the sort so I didnt worry about it.

I will say it was a pain in the ass getting these old ones out. lol. They felt siezed in there and they definately felt like they were torqued down to like 50 ft-Ibs. lol.

Heres the photos. Tell me what you think.
OLD vs NEW plugs. (AC Delco OEM plugs with factory gap.)


Cylinder 1 - pretty decent


Cylinder 2 - Whats that coating on the hex nut!?!? different vintage plugs?


Cylinder 3 - Looks pretty good.


Cylinder 4 - OFMGWTFBBQsauz, strange coating on Hex nut again... also corroded like its been sitting in a pond for a week. This guy was a tough guy to get out. I was worried about damaging the threads because I hear thats an issue with a hot motor. I waited till it was dark before doing this change out but the motor was still alittle warm.


I also noticed that the white porcelin part with the part number stamped on it started turing orange... Is this a bad? Is this a sign that one step colder should be used with the tune? I dont run the tune ALL the time. I keep it on the factory settings pretty much through out winter and only switch it on for car events.

Do these plugs look bad?

 

The coating is water buildup and ect.... That's what it looks like to me..

 

Plugs look used, they do loook like theyve seen some type of higher octane..... Octane booster, ethanol, or higher octane fuel.

 

Really? I bought the car with 400 miles on it "new" Ive been the only owner I know. I never ran anything more than 93 octane. And the coating really looks like paint on the hex. its strange...

Pretty sure 400 miles on a "new" car is a demo car.

OH I have used seafoam once just before hitting the 60k. I also used a fuel injector cleaner twice now, and Ive used Isoheat like two months ago to remove water in the gas tank.... frozen lines.

Oh and the order you see them in, in that first pic, is how they are located in the motor if you you lifted the hood and were looking at the motor.

 

Yeah any type of fuel adders will show along with seafoam lol ..

 

If you dont mind me asking, what gives it away that a fuel adder was used? Black cabon build up? What should the plugs look like if I had never used any of that stuff?

 

Grounding strap and electrode have a red/ brownish color. Usually only comes with water of some type of fuel adder

 

ahh gotcha. Okay, so I torqued them down to 15 ft-Ibs and gave them alittle extra tug so they are probably more like 16-17 ft-Ibs. 15 seemed alittle loose based on what the factory ones felt like. I could literally use a screwdriver with a hex attachment and unbolt the ones I put in. I know 15 ft-Ibs is just beyond hand tight, thus I made them just alittle bit snug.

 

interesting poster

 

Another good chart


I think mine are normal

 

Your plugs look fine for 60k.

 

I had the same corrosion/white buildup on cylinders 1 and 4. I attributed it to seafoaming and not changing plugs immediately.

 

They look fine for 60k, mine were burnt on the porcelain up higher after 10k miles.

 

The white crap on the metal is corrosion from water from the look of it. Otherwise they just look like dirty ass plugs.

 

subd fer later

 

Those look great for 60K miles, the electrodes still look new, the insulators show no wear and there is next to nothing in the way of deposits (on the part of the plug that matters). I bet you could use those for another 20K and not have a problem. Notice the "normal" (which your old plugs are) in the chart you posted doesn't say to replace, it just says to use the same type of plug when it is time to replace them.

The light discoloring on the insulators and grounding strap is normal plug wear, sea foam and any fuel additives are all petroleum based but leave behind a slightly darker residue than plain old gasoline does because they contain other additives. Still nothing to worry about.

The rust near the plug nut is likely from condensation. Also pretty common depending on where you're located.

Nothing to worry about!

 

They look good to me. Just time for a replacement.

 

hah thanks guys! I was considered about the coating on those hex nuts but everyones saying the same thing. Condensation. Its wierd its only on plug 2 and 4. these next set of plugs I wont even pay attention to until 80k miles then.

 

Who cares what your plugs look like. Thats something that was done on old carb engines when data scanners were non existent.
also should mention that plugs are only supposed to be installed and removed once. The collars collapse when they are torqued down and will not properly torque the second time around installing them.

 

Ah crap. I double checked the tighteness by seeing if I could unscrew it with a screwdriver + attachment and I could, hense why I torqued it a little more than 15 ftIbs.

 

Alot of people care actually, which is more then likely why this thread was made.

Also I change my plugs every oil change now which is needed for my car. I also change my oil about every month now so i go through alot of plugs lol. I feel safer this way and get to see what my plugs look like every month.

 

Are you running the car without a coil pack cover? Only way water should get in is around the coil pack boot, unless there is a lot of direct water exposure there shouldn't be enough to sit there and corrode the plugs, as most would evaporate while running the engine.

 

yeah of course I have a coil pack + that rubber boot thing. Maybe from hosing the engine down when cleaning it?

 

That could do it.

I never spray my engine down.

I always hand wash it.

This.

I check my plugs every year.

 

Very ignorant first part there, even with all kinds of electronic management there are things you can see on a plug (like contamination) that will barely show up anywhere else. Water in fuel is evident on plugs at much lower concentrations than what it takes to trigger a CEL.

Second section is correct, crush gasket plugs are just that, they are designed to crush when installed for a proper seal and only work correctly the first time. The plugs pictured are tapered seat however, which are not like that, and as long as the sealing surface is clean they are re-usable just fine.