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Spark plugs change out

85K views 41 replies 28 participants last post by  alluran 
#1 ·
How difficult is it to change the plugs? I have about 75k on it. 2004 MDX. I changed the plugd on my wifes Fronteir and the last one on the rear was a pain. I tore off a few layers of skin off my knuckles and it took me 3xs as long as the whole job did. I do not want to go through that again. Is the MDX just as painful on the knuckles?
Thank you
 
#2 ·
Not too bad on the knuckles on my 01 but it's something I don't want to do again. You have to remove the throttle body to get to the plugs (6). There's a thread here with some tips if you search.
 
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#4 ·
I just changed the plugs on my 01 last week and it wasn't bad at all. Doing that was the first car mechanical work I had ever done and it went smoothly. Just make sure you have the right tools and it will take you about an hour. I save about $200 doing it myself. Good luck
 
#5 ·
as slash007 said you must have the right tools and it will take you about an hour.

have you ever done this before?

this is not easy if you dont have an experience before, maybe it will take you more than 1 hour. better you ask your mechanic to do this for you.
 
#7 ·
as slash007 said you must have the right tools and it will take you about an hour.

Andry, what are you basing your advice on? What Slash007 said was this was his first mechanical work and it went smoothly. The tools required would cost far less than the cost of having a dealer or shop do the work. And it's the beginning of a set of tools to do other jobs.
The pride and satisfaction from doing these small jobs yourself is well worth the hour or so invested.

Changing oil and plugs were the first things I learned to do when I bought my first car and I consider them very basic tasks that anyone can do.

Wal92tt...try reading this:

http://www.acuramdx.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=21867&highlight=spark+plugs
 
#8 ·
Take a look at this attachment. Not much to it. The correct torque for reassembly of the intake manifold cover and ignition coil cover is indicated in the diagram. You will not need more than a standard socket set with a couple of different lengths of extensions and a torque wrench.

This same set of tools will allow you to do your oil and filter change. There are good threads here on doing that job.

The torque for the plugs is 13 lb/ft. It's usually a good idea to coat the threads with anti seize compound, though some plugs have a coating on them and don't require this step.

If you get stuck ask for help. You will get lots of it here.

Don't be intimidated, it's failrly easy.
 

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#9 ·
Great info. And the PDF makes it look very straight forward.

I've done lots of spark plug changes on my cars, but this will be my first one on a car with ignition coils.

Question: The process to remove the coil looks easy, but what is the function of these coils compared to the standard 'wires' which historically connect to the top of the spark plug? Is this basically some electronics added to the middle of the 'spark plug wire' to improve efficiency?

Thanks
 
#10 ·
In the old days, most vehicles had a single ignition coil which was connected to the center terminal of the distributor. The outer distributor poles were connected to the top of each spark plug with wires. The distributor had a mechanical spark advance and a rotor to send the spark sequentially down each wire. Rotors wore out quickly and wires deteriorated.

Through time the rotor and mechanical spark advance was replaced by EFI ignition distributors and then eventually the need for the high voltage spark plug wires was removed by coil on plug ignition.

The timing of when each coil sparks is now controlled by the computer.

The coil on plug design is much more accurate,efficient and with the into of iridium plugs allows for extended intervals between service.
 
#15 ·
It's a pain in the rear of the engine all right! I changed it at 50K last year, it's like 3 times as hard as compared to Lexus's. Good luck.:1:
 
#16 ·
Is there a difference?

Besides price, which is better?

DENSO IRIDIUM Spark Plugs IK16 about $50 shipped

NGK Laser Platinum about $70 shipped

I see the NGK Platinum are OEM ones.

(I usually stick to OEM but noticed the price savings.)
 
#18 ·
It's been 5K miles since I replaced my spark plugs but the process went fairly well. I have an 05 and I found that the plugs in the front were much harder to get to than the rear.

Because of the close proximity of the front support brace and radiator/fan/ground strap, I found myself taking the extension on and off several times.

Did not apply lube to the plugs and torqued them down properly. The plugs didn't look that bad for 130K miles.

Bought the Iridium NGK IZFR5K11 plugs from Autohausaz.com for a little over $11 each.

<a href="http://s979.photobucket.com/albums/ae280/flexdmc/Maintenance%20Shots/?action=view&current=P1060674.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i979.photobucket.com/albums/ae280/flexdmc/Maintenance%20Shots/P1060674.jpg" border="0" alt="Spark Plugs"></a>

<a href="http://s979.photobucket.com/albums/ae280/flexdmc/Maintenance%20Shots/?action=view&current=P1060675.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i979.photobucket.com/albums/ae280/flexdmc/Maintenance%20Shots/P1060675.jpg" border="0" alt="Spark Plug Closeup"></a>
 
#20 ·
midnightMDX said:
You must of noticed a slight difference in mpg. Nothing like DIY! :D
Actually this is one of the reasons why I did this however I have not seen my mpg's go up.
I used to get 17-19 city with 23 highway however now I only get 17-19 highway and 14 city!

I'm thinking it might be my idle control valve. I've had my check engine light go on along with the VTM check light but I didn't get error codes read yet.

Still I agree, nothing like DIY and more importantly, this site for the help!
 
#22 ·
dj-mdx2 said:
Not too bad on the knuckles on my 01 but it's something I don't want to do again. You have to remove the throttle body to get to the plugs (6). There's a thread here with some tips if you search.
When I changed the plugs on my 04 did not have to remove the throttle body. Looks like acura changed it from the 01 (the pdf directions looked a little differant)

Plenty of in the back room with 2 -3 " sockets. The front's were tighter - had to rotate the fan blade and slide the extension out. Especially tight was the driver's side front. There is like 3.1" clearance for a 3" socket
 
#23 ·
2004 MDX, 110K miles...
I could not pull the front-right ignition coil out due to the radiator support brace. The ignition coil is too long. Is there a trick to getting this one out?
I purchased the Denso plugs. It just so happened that these were the same ones used in my car. The 5 other plugs I replaced looked as good as the ones in the pics from the previous poster.
 
#24 ·
Thirsty said:
2004 MDX, 110K miles...
I could not pull the front-right ignition coil out due to the radiator support brace. The ignition coil is too long. Is there a trick to getting this one out?
I purchased the Denso plugs. It just so happened that these were the same ones used in my car. The 5 other plugs I replaced looked as good as the ones in the pics from the previous poster.
It'll come out - you just got to use a little force
 
#25 ·
flexdmc said:


Actually this is one of the reasons why I did this however I have not seen my mpg's go up.
I used to get 17-19 city with 23 highway however now I only get 17-19 highway and 14 city!

I'm thinking it might be my idle control valve. I've had my check engine light go on along with the VTM check light but I didn't get error codes read yet.

Still I agree, nothing like DIY and more importantly, this site for the help!
Did you check the gap on the plugs?
 
#26 ·
Just changed my plugs out on an '03. I also did not have to remove the throttle body. Mileage was at 108k, plugs tips and gaps still looked fairly good on the old plugs, but after that many miles I'm sure there was some breakdown somewhere on the plug.

I purchased the NGK Iridiums from pep boys part # ZFR5FIX11. There were $6.99 each (saw on other on-line sites for up $9-$11 each). I saw some of the Acura on-line stores were offering this the NGK's as well.

:29: Took it for a test drive, and purrs like it should.

Also, these were all pregapped at .044 which is Acura OEM spec (pur the NGK web site)
 
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