Rubber spark plug boot stuck BAD!! Any ideas?

[MaineExport]

Okay... this is going to be a bit hard to explain, so I will take some pics this afternoon to help describe my problem.

I recently replaced the sparkplug wires with a cheap auto-zone set (I was in a pinch... had misfiring and they were the only place open after 5 on a Saturday). Anyway, they didn't fit very well and kept wiggling themselves free of the plugs. This caused misfires to occur about 10 minutes after every drive I took, until I popped the hood and pushed them back into place. Well, after a week of this crap I decided to just get a set of NGK wires.

Here's the problem. As I pull the cheap wires off... the little rubber boot has come off the wires and is now stuck around the spark plug on ALL FOUR PLUGS! Not a big deal I though... so I grab the longest needle-nose pliers I've got, they won't reach... I try to snag the boot with a long flat-head screw driver.... won't budge. Finally, I decided to screw a woodscrew down into the stuck boot, and grab the head of the screw with the needle-nose. Hey, it worked for three out of the four plugs quite easily. The boot came out and I was able to put the new wires on. Well, I struggled with the fourth for 2 hours with NO LUCK!

It is so stuck that I bent the pliers pulling so hard. The screw sets into the rubber boot strong enough that I can bend hardened steel trying to pull the boot out, but the boot is STUCK. At this point I think it's fused to the valve cover or something.

So, short of removing the head and backing the sparkplug out, is there any other way to get it out? I'm at a loss for ideas, as I've NEVER seen something stuck so bad.

[sammy]

wow, never heard of one being that hard to pull off.........did you use any of that gooey lube inside the boots when you installed them? have you tried some type of heat, to maybe cook the boot and make it brittle so it will break off easily....? I had that prob once on an old ford van, real pita to reach, took a blow torch to the boot till it was all crusty and brittle, and then used a screwdriver to chip it off

[S14 Wannabe]

Yeah you might have to take the head off man. That sucks...

[ndskz]

i had the prob ,i used apair of long twezers .was more like scissors but they didnt cut stuck in there and they tore up but it worked

[MaineExport]

Thanks for the ideas guys. That'll keep me busy this weekend I'm sure. I'll try anything before I go ripping the engine head off.

[groundhogday1976]

I used my fillet knife. Worked like a charm.

[JustinM]

Pull the valve cover off first, it's easy and will maybe give you clearance to grab that sucka.

[MaineExport]

Pull the valve cover off first, it's easy and will maybe give you clearance to grab that sucka.

Damn.... nice work... thanks. I've been putting off this little task for fear that I'm gonna be into a whole day's work to solve the problem. But, removing the valve cover will be a WHOLE lot less work.

[DeeZNuTTss]

took a coat hanger and pryed at it took a while but it work. Good luck

[groundhogday1976]

I tried the coat hanger first, then went to the fillet knife when the hanger turned out to be a beotch.