I just bought a 2000 Pontiac Sunfire 2.2L, had to replace the fuel pump as soon as I got it now I was thing of running some seafoam through it and replacing the resistive wires and sparkplug...but i realize of these cars its isnt just a unplug wries and take out spark plugs kinda job. How the hell do you get to the aprk plugs, do you have to take off the engine cover? And if you do is it easy to screw @!#$ up ? ANy torque settings?
if its a 2000 2.2 I dont think its a ecotec if it is though you have to remove the cover thats says ecotec 2.2 and if its a regular 2.2 there right in front of the engine
Its easy, the plugs are in the front. Not to be rude, but if you cant find those, buy a Haynes Manual, or take the car somewhere.
well obviously they are infront but I cant get to them by just pulling out the boot like on most cars
-Pull off the boots from the sparkplugs one by one so you dont mix them up.
-get a 5/8 spark plug socket a ratchet and extension
- now you can get at the plugs just take your time so you dont end up stripping it or something
How can you tell if it has been crossthreaded already? Maybe I'm being overly cautious, but I loosened one of my plugs over half a turn and they are still tight. It also feels like it is grinding a bit. Could it just be corroded? I am new to aluminum heads and am worried about stripping or crossthreading. I can't afford any down time. Thank you.
By the way, I have a '99 2.2L.
Most likely the last time they were changed the mechanic (I use that term loosely) didn't use anti-seaze on the threads, so they hang up a bit. Just remove the plugs and replace them. Use anti-seaze and when you reinstall them, here's a trick a buddy taught me a long time ago -- before you try to thread the plug in, set it down in the port and turn it counterclockwise until you feel the plug sort of drop (it'll be a tiny, tiny bit, maybe feel more like a slight pop). At that point the start of the threads should be perfectly lined up and they'll go back in a lot easier and won't crossthread.
Thank you. That's what I thought (hoped), but I didn't want to screw up my only car.
Okay, that didn't work. They will not budge. I stopped short of putting an extension-pipe over my ratchet. If I can't get it to move with a standard size ratchet, there's something wrong. It doesn't seem to have been kept in the best condition, and I will always find that 1% when people say there's a 99% chance that it's a simple problem. Maybe I'm just showing a lack of male fortitude by not hitting it with a hammer? Has anyone encountered this kind of problem before?
1. do not try to change plugs when the vehicles HOT
2. wd40/pbblaster/seafoam deep creep, its very possible that the plugs have some rust around the base and are just kinda stuck
3. stop being a pussy, put some "uuummppphhh" into it, not a hammer though, you dont want to break the plug, then have to pull the head off, what a crappy ordeal that would be
