prepreludesh

I won't get into the specifics with a step-by-step approach to changing your spark plugs, but I did want to show you guys my old plugs before I threw them away. I also wanted to comment that for the past ~20,000+ miles, the car seemed somewhat lethargic. Part of that might have been because I had to remove my J-Pipe and put back on the stock one (after the Xcelerate one developed a hole in the flex pipe). But in early August, I got the J-Pipe welded to my old third-cat delete pipe (now I have a v2!) and I was still feeling like the car had a lot of dips in the powerband and was especially slow off the line in normal driving.

Well, seeing as how I'm so close to the big 105,000 mile service, I decided to replace the sparkplugs by myself. My local Acura dealer was going to charge $19.99 per plug and a reputable online Acura parts seller was selling them for $14.28, but Amazon ended up having the cheapest price at around $12.50 per plug.

Two hot tips to changing the plugs: #1, you absolutely have to remove the strut tower bar and #2, make sure you have two 3" or 4" extensions for your ratchet, because you can't use one long one, the firewall will get in your way.

A quick analysis of the plugs shows that the front bank of cylinders showed that the cylinder that was furthest from the throttle body to be the "sootiest" while the opposite was true for the rear bank of cylinders. Overall, none of the plugs gave me reason to worry that I was burning excessive amounts of oil or anything.

Overall, I would say that if you can, you should replace your plugs at around the 75,000 mile mark, or maybe even 50,000 mile mark? The reason I say this is because I was amazed at how much smoothness came back to my driving experience after replacing the plugs. The slight "jerk" that came between switching gears and accelerating again is eliminated, the slow get-up-and-go response from a stop or just rolling start is now gone and even the smoothness of the engine when I'm in a gear that is too high for the current speed (35mph in 6th gear for instance) is now apparent when before it felt like the engine felt extremely coarse if I didn't have it in the exact gear for that particular speed.

Save yourself the money and do this one by yourself, you'll be glad you did!

JM2010 SH-AWD

Thanks for posting. The tips look a little worn, but the plugs are otherwise pretty clean and in good condition.

Georgiey22

Thanks for posting. Based on the recommendation and to be proactive, I'll replace at 50K miles. Did you use any type of thread compound?

csmeance

with coupons you can get the plugs from autozone for $7 for the NGK Irdium.

I changed out the plugs at 97K on my 3G J32 TL and they looked pretty close to yours. They can easily last the 105K and are a cheap replacement. Be sure to use anti-seize and also make sure that you are torquing the plugs properly to the right value.

The #5 plug likes to back out and cause a lot of damage over time so PLEASE double check it!

I Check the torque on the plugs every 30-35K to make sure they are good.

Reorge

NGK recommends NOT to use anti-seize.
http://www.ngksparkplugs.com/pdf/dyk_5points.pdf
http://jenniskens.livedsl.nl/Technic...1antisieze.pdf
It's because the treads are plated and do not gall or seize.
If you look closely at the old plugs in this post they do not have anti-seize residue.

jim_c

I posted about this a while ago also.
Very easy change. I am very skeptical about all the "improvements" associated with a simple plug change. I know folks who have driven for ten years on the same plugs and never noticed any issues.
I'm not recommending it, I am a fussbudget about regular maintenance.

prepreludesh

I actually did use anti-seize on the new plugs, I guess it's something I just have always done. I don't think that it's going to hurt anything.

By the way, the very last picture with all 6 plugs... I placed them that way to represent the order I took them out of the engine, so just imagine opening the hood and looking straight down at the engine, that is how I've positioned the plugs.

JT4

Good to know, thanks for posting this..

Tonyware

A couple more DIY tips: 1. don't throw the new plugs in the hole, lower them slowly by attaching them to a tube... if the tip bends you'll lever know it! 2. When you remove the old ones make sure the washer comes out with the plug... otherwise the new one will have 2 washers on it (not good!).

PS. OP pics, they look like mine when they came out at the same mileage. No issues.

TheDingo

I'd add the anti-seize as well. Overall those plugs don't look so bad so I'm surprised you saw such an improvement. Either way, good deal. Keep on truckin

Reorge

Probably not. I use it till a few years ago when I read the NGK recommendation. They will be a little more difficult to remove next time. Unscrew them slowly. They will feel gummed up (they actually are from the dried up anti-seize).

Thanks for sharing your experience. I would not think to change them if I ever had issues because I have never had plug problems on a H/A J engine. I've only changed them at the recommended mileage. Now I know it fixed an issue you had and I'll keep it in mind.

Booya4139

i did the 105k service at 99k miles and the car feels fantastic. also got a new trans put in at the same time, car feels brand new.

GYac

What is the proper torque for 4L 3.5 spark plugs. I'm doing as swap next weekend ahead of my timing belt service.

Marmbo

13 lbs-ft

Anicra

2009TL Spark plugs are around 22 N—m (16lb-ft) .
There is manual with all the torque specs on the board somewhere. I taped most specs inside my toolbox and phone

gregwils

I had my dealer change my plugs, water pump, tensioner, and belt at 98,000. I really didn't notice a significant decline in performance leading up to the change, but it really runs strong with the new plugs. I would suggest if you are north of 80k on original plugs, you'll feel the difference.

losiglow

iTrader: (1)

Changing plugs didn't seem to make a noticeable difference with my 3G or 4G TL. I've usually changed them between 50K-75K miles or so. Even though I haven't noticed a night and day difference, I place it in the category of "relatively cheap" maintenance and/or repair items that keeps the car tuned up and running well without breaking the bank. I know that replacing parts for its own sake is silly sometimes, but if the parts are cheap I think it's worth it to keep the car running like it's newer. I think keeping things tuned up even though parts haven't completely worn out yet is prudent if it improves economy, power or longevity of other parts (e.g. ignition parts keeping your catalytic converters from overheating due to a rich fuel/air mixture).

For example, I have 160K miles now and recently replaced the upper control arms, sway bar links and mounts, outer tie rods, motor and transmission mounts and shock assemblies (all suspension parts on the front end only). Total cost was around $600. I did notice a difference with those since all of them were 6 years and 160K miles old and one of the control arm bushings was shot, which was the original reason for the replacements due to the "clunking". But it still wasn't a total night and day difference. But for $600, not having to worry about that stuff for at least another 100K, and the car feeling like I just drove it off the lot - I'd consider it money well spent.

When it comes to the engine, things like spark plugs, a clean throttle body butterfly valve, properly functioning MAF and O2 sensors and carbon removal goes a long way in helping fuel economy and a smooth idle. Again, all that stuff would probably run $200 or so but I'd consider it money well spent. That cost would be assuming replacement of the upper fuel/air ratio O2 sensors, some fuel and cylinder cleaner and spark plugs.

gregwils

At the risk of high-jacking this thread, was the bad control arm bushing on the 4G? I have a 'clunk' coming from my front suspension. Thanks.

losiglow

iTrader: (1)

Yeah, it was on the passenger side of my 4G. The middle bushing of the top control arm that connects to the knuckle. Just a little bit of play. But the drivers side had none. Once I replaced it, the clunking went away.

dregsfan

I'm not sure what year your 4G is, or FWD or AWD. But I looked up parts costs at acuraoemparts.com for my car. Just the shock assemblies and motor mounts were close to $1K - I didn't bother looking for the upper arms or tie rods or links. So where did you buy all those parts for $600? And the costs you list for the replacements of course don't include labor charges. Not all owners are DIYers so labor charges would significantly increase the cost. So yes, for someone like you who can apparently find cheaper parts than Acura OEM and has the tools, space, and time to do the replacement him/her self, doing those repairs before they are actually needed may provide peace of mind. But for the rest of us, paying someone to do the work is very pricey, so won't likely be getting done until a part goes bad and compromises safety or proper operation of the car, or makes a noise that's too annoying to ignore.

losiglow

iTrader: (1)

Shock assemblies were $161 each from AcuraOEMparts.com. The front upper control arms, sway bar end links and outer tie rods we're $49, $17 and $20 respectively. The transmission and motor mounts came to about $130 total (all changed accept the rear motor mount - that one's a beast...). There were some odds and ends like sway bar bushings and some fasteners which ran another $20 or so. Plus shipping costs brought me closer to $700 now that I'm adding it all up. Note that all parts except the shock assemblies came from Rockauto. And all we're premium or pro line like Mevotech Supreme and Moog K series.

I totally agree that with labor, it probably wouldn't be a wise idea. Part of my rationale was due to wanting to keep the car for a very long time as well as having the cash and time available to do the work right then. Also, my experience with my vehicles in the past has been that a suspension tuneup after about 150k-200k miles makes a big difference. This is because suspension parts tend to wear out slowly, making it difficult to tell a difference between new and old. But if I had to pay for labor, which would have cost at least as much as the parts themselves, or I didn't plan on keeping the car until the wheels fell off, I probably wouldn't have bothered.

In general, throwing parts that aren't bad at a car is kind of dumb. I just use suspension parts a little differently. Most suspension parts never really go "bad", they just get old and worn. As far as safety is concerned, none of these except maybe the upper control arm really needed to be replaced. In this case I'd consider those Replacements more of a luxury than a necessity. I wouldn't necessarily recommend to someone else to have that work done. But coming back to the spark plug issue; sometimes replacing them a bit early isn't a half bad investment since you can get the plugs for a reasonable price and even a slight increase in power or economy may be worth it. But by no means is it a critical maintenance item. Nothing like changing oil for example.

frankjnjr

Hey, losiglow, I agree wholeheartedly, with your maintenance philosophy. There is something to be said, for keeping your ride, performing like new. Both the psychological, and physical satisfaction, of knowing everything is (TIGHT), is very rewarding,in my mind, and certainly contributes to overall motoring pleasure.