Changing plugs - Q45 w/ TCS is a PITA

[66mgb]

I remember this job being a pain the first time I did this, but I must've repressed the pain and anger that I went through! Time to change the plugs at 185k miles.

Pulled the Q in the garage and removed everything back to the plenum.

I had thoughts of pulling the plenum and changing the hoses, but I will defer to a more qualified NICO member or may take it to T3.

Pulled the driver's side plugs. They were Bosch +4's from 2000. All were a nice chalky white. All electrodes were present and no erosion noticable.The only problem was the #1 plug screw on top was loose and fell off when I pulled the plug from the socket. I tried to thread it back on, but it was evident that there was enough arcing that the threads were gone.

It's nice to know that the NGK's plug top is intergral to the plug. No worries about it vibrating loose over time.

Minor valve cover gasket oil leak in plug orifice closest to driver.

Bolted everything back and started on the passenger side bank.

Dropped the 5mm allen wrench, so now I have to jack the car up and remove the lower pan.

Lower back started killing me, so I decided to hang it up for the night.

Just one more day in the life of my Q!

[elwesso]

The plugs are fun... Its a great first job to do, its tedious but its not hard..... It gives you the basic idea on what working on a Q is like!

[Q45tech]

Nissan recommended 4 years and or 60,000 miles for a reason they knew how long the plugs in the well and the gasket sealing out the oil would last under the HOTTER than normal conditions a DOHC V8 with a coil cover would create.

[Rex]

A suggestion, that may be too late, is to tie a string to the end of a tool you're using so if it falls, you can retrieve it without going "in after it". Seems like a wierd or stupid idea, but if you have to spend 15 minutes getting the tool out to finish a 30 minute job, it's worth it.

Good luck and let me know when you're ready to attack another Q or 2 .

[66mgb]

Well I finally tackled the passenger side bank... I thought the driver's side was bad, because I had to remove so much stuff to get to the plugs.

I think the passenger side is worse, since the AC port and TCS are in the way. There's less to remove, but access is a PITA!

The old +4's were again a nice chalky white. I slapped everything back together and crossed my fingers...

The old Q fired right up. Felt a little stronger / crisper than previously.

Looked under the hood and had an "oh sh** moment".

One of the small hoses that connect to a small manifold by the throttle body came loose and spewed coolant all over the engine.

After a few colorful adjectives and some tedious negotiation with the needle nose pliers, the hose was clamped back on and everything was back to normal.

The only thing that I'm worried about is having an air pocket in the cooling system. I added a couple of pints of 50/50 mix to the upper inlet.

Now I have to clean the sickly sweet smell of coolant out of the engine bay.

[Rex]

Maybe I'm mistaken, but shouldn't "good" used plugs be about the color of a brown paper bag? Supposed to be a good sign of them operating at the proper temp and air/fuel mix?

[66mgb]

I don't know about brown, but tan would be optimal. Yes the plugs were tan.

I must also emphasize that access to #8 cylinder is the worst.

Passenger side valve cover gasket was worse than the driver's side.

#8 plug was an absolute oil bath.

I sometimes think that the Infiniti was designed to be difficult to work on, so that DIY guys have to take it to the proffessionals.