How To: Spark Plug Change (1 GR-FE)

I changed them last Sunday, and was able to do it without removing the pump. I released the latches on the air cleaner housing, loosened the clamp holding the inlet hose to the air cleaner, and twisted the air cleaner off of the hose.

I had enough clearance to remove and install the plug without removing the hose or the pump.

 

same here, that's exactly the way i did it. just removed air filter box...

 

Were everyone's factory plugs made in Japan? I picked up 6 Densos from dealer today ($23) and they said made in Indonesia. Not a big deal to me but wondering when they made the switch and if NGKs are still made in Japan?

 

Did my whole 30k service yesterday - took about 4 hrs all in with a few breaks. Changed plugs, cleaned MAF/throttle body, changed oil in front/rear diffs/transfer case, rotated tires, greased u-joints. I did move the air injection pump - it wasn’t too bad. Putting it back I lost the front screw under the washer fluid reservoir, but could unscrew that enough to lift it up and grab the damn screw. The front drivers side plug took the longest to get to, but I have short stubby fingers that aren’t very nimble.

Holy crap does Toyota put the plugs in tightly at the plant, but fortunately I had no issues getting them out. I did use a teeny bit of anti-seize and torqued to 14 ft-lbs. The 3 Densos were all gapped about 44 or 45, the NGKs all came out at 47 or 48. I put in new Densos gapped at 41. Truck ran fine before and after. My throttle body was surprisingly clean - barely any build up. Diffs probably could’ve gone another 20k, too. I do tow, but just a small 5x8 utility trailer with plants, dirt, mulch, etc - no more than 2500 lbs and not for a long distance.

The only weird thing - I had pulled the battery cable, put it back and cranked it up. It started right up, ran for 3 secs and died. No codes, just as if you turned it off. Cranked it again, no problems. Idled fine, drove fine, no issues. Ran a few errands, all is well. I had heard of folks having funky idle speeds or stumbling if they got TB cleaner in the intake - I pulled the TB off completely before cleaning so don’t think that was it - maybe it just needed to reset itself. It does seem to idle more smoothly, but that may be the placebo effect.

 

Just a reminder to not use antisieze on the plugs.

https://www.ngkplugpro.ca/content/contentfiles/pdf/NGKSP-0907-1R-Anti-SeizeonSparkPlugs.pdf

 

Thanks Chris for the how-to on page 1.
And to the random input of many more... I didn't read the whole thing...

I used the Denso TT plugs as they were rated for the longest life. The electrode on them is hair thin!!! see fuzzy pic below.
The gap on the old plugs were 55 on the passenger side and 60 on the driver side.

The passenger side went very smoothly. On the driver's side I would like to congratulate the Tacoma engineer (who I suspect used to work at either Ford or Hyundai) for making things more difficult at so many levels.

The major pain points were:

• loosening the bolt on the bottom of the bracket -- I recommend using a six sided hex socket.
• detaching the wire holder bracket -- as suggested the thin needle nose pliers were very handy
• the plug in the back -- as noted the clearance for every step was very tight.
• the plug in the front -- I thought it would be totally easy... and most of it was. But snapping off the from wire from the front most coil was painful. That alone took me 30+ minutes. When putting back together I had to snap the wire in prior to bolting down the coil, so that I could slightly rotate the coil ever so slightly to get some clearance. I think if I had removed the coil bolt & left the coil on, but slightly rotated it the wire snap would have come off more easily.

 

I always use a dab of copper anti seize on all my plugs and never tighten them with a torque wrench.

Ive yet to have a problem with the 3 Tacomas Ive owned over the last 17 years.

-RJM

 

That's why I use Densos.

 

Denso also warns against using any thread lubricant. --- at the bottom of the link
http://www.denso-am.eu/products/automotive-aftermarket/ignition/spark-plugs/installation/

 

except for the warning that it may result in a torque increase of 20% which can be adjusted for i have seen no other mention of problems caused by properly applied anti seize so i will continue to use it as i have over 40 years with no issue. I apply a thin amount with a small paint brush and then use a paper towel to remove any excess leaving a very thin coating.

i have never yet heard of any reports of problem related to its use vs many instances of extreme and even destructive results of seized plugs in aluminum heads..

but to each his own... i think the manufactures are just trying to limit their liability in case something happens and someone used antiseize

this is what i mean by a thin coating.. its one of the plugs i recently installed at 30K miles.

 

Thanks for the write up.
Was hoping there was a trick for the drives side but still got it done in under two hours with dropping a seal in the engine bay.

 

is this the 4.0 v6? I did both sides in less than 1 hour and it was the first time... drivers side wasn't bad, just moved hoses and the support bracket out of the way and it was quite manageable.

passenger side was a breeze once i removed the air filter box..

 

Seriously, less than an hour? That's impressive. I did it once on my 2012, found it to be a PITA, and decided to just pay someone to do it from there on out. That said, it may be a PITA, but compared to a 99 Subaru I had, it's nowhere near as bad. That car had so little space, not only did I need a universal joint extension for my socket, but I don't think my knuckles will ever be the same.

 

Yup the 4.0. Spent about 20 min on passenger side and about 30-40 on drivers. About 30 min on looking for the seal at least.

 

Thanks @chris4x4 once again for helping me save $$$$, just did my 4th spark plug, air and cabin filter change and have got the process down to under 2 hours...
And now it is time.
Cheers

 

Just changed plugs a few weeks ago because I was a little overdue approx 40k instead of 30k recommended. Was getting crappy mpg before change like 13-14 and acceleration sucked. Plugs that came out were .044 and .045 ballpark. Put in all denso and gapped at .041 and am still getting about 13mpg. Acceleration and performance is much better but mpg is still terrible compared to what I used to get. Any ideas or suggestions?

 

In my opinion, your acceleration and performance improvement is all in your head. No put down intended, just a placebo effect. That small a difference in plug gap should present no discernible improvement whatsoever. The real point is, you made a timely change, avoiding a future issue.

Regarding your crappy MPG, the fact that you are aware of your acceleration and performance tells me that you drive with a heavy foot, which will kill MPG numbers on the most economical of cars.

 

No placebo effect. I just know my truck. When going on a highway on ramp thing had no pep at all. When trying to merge it would almost just get more loud and accel was definitely delayed and weak. Could definitely tell the plugs were a bit overdue and out of spec.

I read other posts in this thread and others saying ecu needs to relearn after something as subtle as a spark plug change. Is that really the case? No joke I was definitely getting more mpg about a year ago before my plugs were a bit overdue for replacement. Granted it’s summer and I live in the south and run the ac full blast nearly all the time right now and do primary city driving to work 28 miles round trip. Also have 33s, but again I was getting better mpg same time last year with same setup.

 

Thank you Chris for this sticky on spark plugs changing. Very helpful! I must confess that I have not personally changed spark plugs in ANY vehicle in a longggggg time. I WILL be doing this for my Tacoma Baby soon. Just have to buy the torque wrench. Already have a Tekton picked out. Just like Houston's Jim McIngvale of Gallery Furniture fame, this will "save you money!!!".