spark plug came out
Thread Starter
Racer
Joined: May 2014
Posts: 416
Likes: 29
From: diamond bar ca
spark plug came out
Hear is a weird one, while idling at stop light my engine made a loud popping noise and rough idle, and you could hear the loud popping noise of the engine , pulled over check out the engine and could see the #8 plug dangling in the wire, it was too hot to do any thing so I drove it too a friends home locally and will return tomorrow and hope there is no damage to the threads,,,has this happened to any one and what did you do....thanks
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 2,996
Likes: 304
From: MOORESVILLE NC
Not on a Vette but my wife’s 2 Miata’s. #1 plug blew out and dented the hood upward (overhead cam). Replaced the plug and never had a problem. The other Miata was another story but again it was the #1 plug. Stripped the threads this time. Ran a tap loaded with Vaseline to keep metal shavings out of the cylinder. Used a vacuum cleaner with a small rubber hose to get at any shavings. Blew the cylinder out with air. Put in new thread inserts. Never had a problem after 6 years. You may want to run a tap the same size as you spark plug to check the threads before installing a NEW spark plug.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 2,216
Likes: 113
From: Michigan
Threadchaser would be better as a tap is sharp and could dmg them more.
Had a plug blow out going down the e-way on a 93 lumina. Was a rear plug so it was fun to fix because the threads were too damaged so I had to use a repair kit. The kit I got used a timesert and they are better than a helicoil. It was an Alum head and I drilled/tapped w/o removing the head. If I would have thought of it waaaay back then I'd of gotten some cheap plastic hose from the hardware store, taped it to the shop vac nozzle and at least tried to vacuum some out. It went another 80,000 miles till 220,000 and then I drove it to the scrap yard. LOL my buddy used JB weld and a new plug, he did that maybe 5 times I know of.
edit: I think I was at Ace recently and saw a spark plug thread chaser it had the two common thread sizes.
edit: Also I drove that Lumina home 50mins on 5 cylinders
Had a plug blow out going down the e-way on a 93 lumina. Was a rear plug so it was fun to fix because the threads were too damaged so I had to use a repair kit. The kit I got used a timesert and they are better than a helicoil. It was an Alum head and I drilled/tapped w/o removing the head. If I would have thought of it waaaay back then I'd of gotten some cheap plastic hose from the hardware store, taped it to the shop vac nozzle and at least tried to vacuum some out. It went another 80,000 miles till 220,000 and then I drove it to the scrap yard. LOL my buddy used JB weld and a new plug, he did that maybe 5 times I know of.
edit: I think I was at Ace recently and saw a spark plug thread chaser it had the two common thread sizes.
edit: Also I drove that Lumina home 50mins on 5 cylinders
Last edited by BOOT77; Aug 14, 2015 at 06:16 PM.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 2,082
Likes: 50
From: Palmdale CA
Not weird at all, this is why there are Torque specs! I had a plug unthread it-self from a 390 ford back in the late seventies, no thread damage at all.. I would closely inspect the threads them self and if they look OK reinstall the Plug and torque it properly.
Thread Starter
Racer
Joined: May 2014
Posts: 416
Likes: 29
From: diamond bar ca
plug chaser
I checked the hanging plug wire, the plug was gone, tried starting another plug from another cyinder could not get it started,,, so I went to auto zone and rented a plug chaser kit and could not find the right size apparently its a 14..125 which the kit does not carry...I have been fighting this all morning its 104 degrees,,i quit, will try again tomorrow.
Team Owner
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 25,413
Likes: 2,745
I checked the hanging plug wire, the plug was gone, tried starting another plug from another cyinder could not get it started,,, so I went to auto zone and rented a plug chaser kit and could not find the right size apparently its a 14..125 which the kit does not carry...I have been fighting this all morning its 104 degrees,,i quit, will try again tomorrow.
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
5 Best & 5 Worst Corvette Daily Drivers
Joe Kucinski
The Headlights of Every Corvette Generation Explained
Joe Kucinski
5 Best & 5 Most Overrated Corvette Track Packages of All Time!
Joe Kucinski
Every 2027 Corvette Engine Explained
Joe Kucinski
Designer Imagines A Corvette That Looks More Like a Corvette Than the Corvette
Verdad Gallardo
10 Ugly Corvettes That We Still Kinda Love
Joe Kucinski
Top 10 Most Expensive Corvettes Ever Sold on Bring A Trailer
Brett Foote
10 Things Every Corvette Owner Needs (2026 Edition)
Michael S. Palmer
8 Most "Only Corvette Owners Understand" Quirks and Problems
Pouria Savadkouei
Thread Starter
Racer
Joined: May 2014
Posts: 416
Likes: 29
From: diamond bar ca
spark plug came out
UPDATE,,,,,I was finally able to insert the spark plug back into the hole, it was wobbly all the way through so I looks like the head will have to come off and new threads installed, hope this does not open a can of worms,......
Team Owner
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 25,413
Likes: 2,745
I would think there are machine shops that offer "over the fender". A friend joked one time that it's part of a FOMOCO "scheduled service".
http://www.timesert.com/html/sparkplug.html
Thread Starter
Racer
Joined: May 2014
Posts: 416
Likes: 29
From: diamond bar ca
blew spark plug out
I want to thank everybody for there assistance, this has been a learning process for me, the time sert sounds like a good idea, I will try it, if I screw it up at least if have the option of taking the head off, I have done that before when I was repairing a cb 750 Honda in my younger days but access was a lot easier . thanks again.. Where would the best place to buy one of these kits, I am assuming the auto shops would be the most likely, is there such a thing as one is better than the other?
Team Owner
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 25,413
Likes: 2,745
I want to thank everybody for there assistance, this has been a learning process for me, the time sert sounds like a good idea, I will try it, if I screw it up at least if have the option of taking the head off, I have done that before when I was repairing a cb 750 Honda in my younger days but access was a lot easier . thanks again.. Where would the best place to buy one of these kits, I am assuming the auto shops would be the most likely, is there such a thing as one is better than the other?
With the inner fenders removed I'd think access isn't terrible and that certainly might reduce the "for hire" approach.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 2,996
Likes: 304
From: MOORESVILLE NC
Bob, before you think about pulling the heads, try the thread repair first. If you have to tap, chase whatever you call it on your old plug threads, then drown the thread repair devise with Vaseline. After that clean your new threads, install a thread insert, vacuum or blow out the cylinder with air. Change your oil after starting up and getting it up to temperature. Worked for me. Best of luck.
Thread Starter
Racer
Joined: May 2014
Posts: 416
Likes: 29
From: diamond bar ca
stripped spark plug hole
Well im still in the thinking stages of my dilemma, I have one last question for the learned ,as I said before I was able to insert a spark plug in the hole but as it was going in it felt wobbly and it will would not seat the plug just keeps turning, so Im assuming the threads have been compromised , first will a thread chaser do any good , im assuming no but not experienced enough for a good answer, end result is I will not do this repair myself, I have a very good mechanic down the street who can do this but I half to wait till he get back from the drags from back east...
Team Owner
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 25,413
Likes: 2,745
Well im still in the thinking stages of my dilemma, I have one last question for the learned ,as I said before I was able to insert a spark plug in the hole but as it was going in it felt wobbly and it will would not seat the plug just keeps turning, so Im assuming the threads have been compromised , first will a thread chaser do any good , im assuming no but not experienced enough for a good answer, end result is I will not do this repair myself, I have a very good mechanic down the street who can do this but I half to wait till he get back from the drags from back east...
Thread Starter
Racer
Joined: May 2014
Posts: 416
Likes: 29
From: diamond bar ca
Le Mans Master
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 5,107
Likes: 171
From: Dublin CA
If your going to attempt the repair yourself and tap the hole over sized to put a Helli-coil or similar product.....take HAD2HAV2 advice and put Vaseline or a heavy grease between the flutes on the tap. This will catch the metal from the new threads. Turn the tap a 1/4 turn at a time and then back off 1/8..another 1/4 turn and back off a 1/8. After you have made about 2 turns, remove the tap and wire away the grease with the metal shavings and add more grease and start again. This will keep the metal out of the cylinder.
Thread Starter
Racer
Joined: May 2014
Posts: 416
Likes: 29
From: diamond bar ca
spark plug came out
UPDATE,,,took it to my mechanic ,3 hours and new plugs all around car runs great,,,,125 bucks,,, now that was reasonable.... thanks again for all
the advice....
the advice....
Team Owner
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 25,413
Likes: 2,745
That's great - did he mention what he did? If he did do an insert of any sort would you mind mentioning the brand!