Friday, June 3, 2011

Changing spark plugs in 2001 pontiac bonneville?

i decided to change the spark plugs in my bonneville this week. ive taken off the front four and one of the back ones. they are so difficult to take off by themselves and the last two are very hard to reach too. i spent over an hour on the back one. the front took a long time also. is this normal. the plug wires are like a thick rubber and have a metal shield around them. the engines is a 3800 V6 not supercharged. how can i get these wires off more easily?


thanks|||I%26#039;ve had to change many of thoes (I work in a garage) and they still cause problems. Are you just pulling the wires off with your hands or a spark plug wire puller? by pulling them by hand you have a chance of breaking the wires inside and damaging the wires. Also the wires should be looked at and replaced if needed. Same with the cap and rotor (if not and electric distributor, I can%26#039;t remember on that engine) as for the last two plugs, take spark plug puller pliers and bend the end to a 90 degree angle, I did that to the ones in my tool box, and it works a lot better. and that metal shield is a heat shield, so when you get them off, make sure you put them back on, or else you can damage with wires with the heat of the exhause manifold. Also, there should be 3 plugs in the front, and 3 in the back, so the front four?|||like most newer cars im sure its a front wheel drive so the motor is sideways,this sucks...i have a galant and they ended up having to remove the intake manifold to get to the back plugs.have you tried coming up from under the car?get it on jack stands in the front, but leave the floor jack for extra support,try to get it high enough to where you body fits under the car,make sure IT IS FIRM.shake it to make sure its stable.once i did this to my pontiac grand am, and bam.i had acess to the plugs.good luck|||OK are you ready? There is a solid engine strut mounted from the engine to a front mount. Get a coat hanger ready, remove the nut and bolts on the BOth sides of the mount and remove the strut. You will need a pry bar or something close to it to now pull the motor to the front of the car, engine will move a good 3 -4 inches. I think at this point yo will understand what the hanger is for, if you have help would nice for them to loop the hanger through the mount holes that you just moved to hold the engine forward. this will give you as much room as you can get. Good Luck to you. Dennis|||patience is a virtue - or take it to your nearest gm dealer for $100/hour|||Wow, if its so hard maybe some moisture got into the boot of the wire. Well, either way, you should get a good set of automotive socket wrenches with an extension and a socket made specically for removing spark plugs. You could get a breaker bar too, but you prolly shouldn%26#039;t need it for spark plugs.|||amigo,. you must remove front engine mounts. in park push car back wards, engine will flip forward,. this Will make it a breeze to change,. i recommend to replace your wire too,.after wires are pullout they get damage.this will save you a lot of trouble..|||I didn%26#039;t any plugs could get off themselves, but if you talk to the others real sweet , maybe they will too...|||When you change your spark plugs, invest in the wires also... they may be replacement plugs (hopefully), and sometimes, different vehicles will have the wire size precise with the plugs that are installed by the manufacturer. Sounds really dumb, it is true.