Cross threaded spark plug

My son who lives 22 hours away cross threaded a new spark plug in his 21 V6 Tacoma, and the plug won’t come out.

It sounds to me like he’s going to have to have it towed and the intake and head pulled. Anyone have experience with this?

 

New plugs on a 2021 ? ... but why.

 

Assuming that the originals aren’t iridium and he has more than 30k on it.

 

Not on a Tacoma but its pretty common on 4.6/5.4 Fords. Not sure what options are available for our trucks but look into either a helicoil or timesert if the threads can't be salvaged. These can be installed without removing the head. In fact if you have a local shop the deals with Mustangs they probably have experience with installing them and may be a good place to go.

 

oddly this I my reoccurring nightmare.

can he use a flashlight and mirror to look at it? it is indeed skewed and cattywompused? I have had some scary tight sparkplugs on my Toyotas. last time, I called my mechanic and he told me I was already past point of no return and to simply crank it off of there. it was kinda galled or something and the new plug went right in smooth as silk.

 

Sound advice right here.

 

Check this link, a heli coil may be able to save a expensive trip to the dealership.
https://www.google.com/search?q=helicoil+kit+spark+plug+tacomaworld&client=ms-android-tmus-us-revc&sca_esv=578522338&sxsrf=AM9HkKnXWUWBgkxH-qxfcN3wUkBbzdi_Dg:1698856996632&ei=JIBCZY6PJrehptQP8eGukA0&oq=helicoil+kit+spark+plug+tacomaworld&gs_lp=EhNtb2JpbGUtZ3dzLXdpei1zZXJwIiNoZWxpY29pbCBraXQgc3BhcmsgcGx1ZyB0YWNvbWF3b3JsZDIFEAAYogQyBRAAGKIEMgUQABiiBDIFEAAYogRI6lZQvAtYgDVwAHgAkAEAmAH5AaABlROqAQUwLjcuNbgBA8gBAPgBAcICCBAAGKIEGLADwgILEAAYiQUYogQYsAPCAggQABiJBRiiBMICBRAhGKsCwgIEECEYCuIDBBgBIEGIBgGQBgQ&sclient=mobile-gws-wiz-serp

 

Yeup.
Not a pretty situation.
You are talking thousands of dollars and more than likely a new head.
It’s a labor intensive repair.
Is he still making payments?

Your only shot is what tc mentioned above.
But, playing with aluminum inside a cyl needs lots of cleaning to get it all out.
I am sorry..

 

The factory V6 spark plugs are not recommended for change until 60K.

 

There are thread-serts specifically for spark plug threads. It usually comes as a kit. I’ve had good results with them.
I wouldn’t use an actual heli coil on a spark plug.

 

I wouldn’t do one of those thread repair kits on the head that is installed. The obstacles in the way created a very high chance of jogging up the install, and the possibility of debris and shavings entering the chamber is very high

 

this is what I was wondering, I would think the risk of getting a metal shaving in the head is high, and very likely unnoticed.
risk and reward

 

another vote for the timesert kit... doesn't have a tang like the helicoil that you could loose down the hole.

 

Repair is the last resort, you gotta be sure it actually needs it first. Are you talking it started fine, turn or two with fingers and then got tight or dropped in the hole and hit it with an impact?

If it just got a bit tight but otherwise started fine it's probably just carbon buildup, should be fine to remove and retry.

 

If the plug is spinning, but is stuck in the head.
The valve cover is coming off at a minimum.
You have to get the plug out. And there isn’t an easy way to get it out. Even when the valve cover is off, it will be a pain to out. If you can get the plug out, you might as well give it a go with Time-Sert or Helicoil. Worst case, the head is coming off anyways.

 

Why was he messing with spark plugs on a 2021 ? They are good for 60k miles. Some things you’re better off letting the dealership do.

 

Get a bigger breaker bar, either unscrew it or break it off....at this point, those are the 2 options. If it breaks off, the head needs to come off.

If the head comes off, depending on how bad he boogered it up, a machine shop may be able to extract it and install an insert.

If he can get it out, I'd guess it bound up on the first 3 or 4 threads and the rest of the threads are still fine. There is a tool called "back tap"...sort of an expanding tap / chaser that you can drop in the hole, adjust/expand out to engage in the remaining good threads at the bottom of the hole, then unscrew it to clean up the damaged top threads. https://www.summitracing.com/parts/...bjcz7IfzWwIRjl-EHBYIOW9VvWcxQihhoCi4wQAvD_BwE Use grease on the tool to catch the aluminum chips.

I wouldn't be too concerned with small chips falling in the cylinder...they'll blow right out the exhaust. None of them should be physically bigger than the thickness of the headgasket so they won't get smashed or cause any damage....I'd rotate the engine over by hand through a couple revolutions just to make sure before hitting the key, just to be safe.

 

It’s gonna cost some time and money, or lots of money if a shop does it

First off, get the plug out. It’s gotta come out one way or the other. Last one I did snapped so I had to pull the head and send it to the machine shop, he couldn’t get it out either, so he milled it out and put an insert. Timesert I think. Factory plug. And yet I still bought another Ford after that.

If it doesn’t break, should be fixable without pulling the head. I suppose pulling it would be better but I wouldn’t bother-



This is a somewhat common issue in the auto world, it happens. It sucks but it’s fixable.

 

Yeah this
Although you should have lots of good threads left if you just try a back tap

 

Does it run? If it's not leaking compression through the threads, why not just leave it in for another 30K or so? I'm not a tech, but this was my first thought.