Looking for the easiest steps to replace spark plugs and plug wires on the LT1 (preferably removing as little pieces as possible). Especially would like to know which plug/wires are the most difficult of the 8 to do.

thank you
-Trevor

 

with headers, it is a lot easier, with manifolds....hope you are a patient person.
The passenger side is the hardest to do, loosen the two bolts on the power steering pump to pull it out of the way a little bit, it would be easier if you take the A/C out and ALWAYS make sure that the plug wires are away from headers/manifolds.

 

Would it be easier to go from underneath on the passenger side....

 

so I'll chime in too.

I replaced most of the plugs from the bottom of the car. The driver's side is pretty easy and straightforward. All four plugs and wires can be reached and replaced easily.

For the passenger side, #2, the forward most one, is a real bitch. It's not really visible and the AIR and A/C lines are in the way. I did it by feel from the top, swearing and cussing my way through. #4, the one behind it, is pretty easy from the top. #6 can be easily reached from the top or bottom and #8 from the bottom only. The real nightmare begins when you get to the wires on the passenger side. The wires pass behind the power steering pump pully and around the pump. They are pretty much pinched between the pump and some lines. I managed to route my 8mm wires without removing any accessories at all, so I know it can be done, just takes a lot of patience.

Make sure the wires clear the pullies!! They pass VERY close to the A/C and power steering pullies. I pulled the wires taught, double checked clearances and cinched the looms and clamps down to secure them in place.

 

Or you can cheat like I did and route your passenger side wires under the motor and between the AC and the opti. Beats trying to route them through the stock location especially if you are using larger wires that won't fit in the looms. Also, on my Mac headers, number 6 is the biggest PITA ever until I made a spark plug tool. There's a few guys on ebay who make something real similar for $10 bucks.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...ayphotohosting

That's the only one I could find at the moment.

 

I just went through HELL doing plugs/wires.

134k miles, 1995, EVERY single bolt was rusted to hell, I was throwing on a 3" ypipe and testpipe at the same time.

The manifold studs broke, of course, and my friend tried to torch them out. no go.

Had to buy headers.. Took 2 days, 2pm-midnight to install plugs, wires, shorties, ypipe.. and then the test pipe didnt fit with the little exhaust coupler thing.



I wish I could go back in time, wouldve been an AWESOME time to replace..oh.. everything not internal.

Then we messed up the routing so the header burnt through one of my plug wires - nothing like the sound of a 7cylinder putt putt when your running open ypipe.. OMFG.

GOODLUCK.

It's probably 1000x easier now that Ihave headers intsalled though. If you can find cheap headers locally, do it. Its worth it just in how much simpler it is.



I'd give you my steps.. but since we did everything at once it might be useless to you if you're just going to change plugs/wires on stock manifolds

 

Does that tool make it easy to get to the plugs that have a pipe right behind them and wont fit a stocket?

 

DAMN that sucks... How did you get the stud out.... I bet you made a whole sentence with just @#$%'s........

 

Yeah it does. You end up using a wrench and once you break the plug loose, they normally come out pretty easily. I can now change all the plugs in about an hour. Number 6 used to take an hour by itself, so it's quite an improvement.

PS. It's really easy if you can pick up a ratchet wrench. Mine is 3/4".

 

im doing the same stuff right now i just put my msd coil intoday and monday i am doing plugs and wires. i am gonna try to do the plugs at my house and the wires on a lift. i am also gonna make that tool too. so hope fully it will help does the tool make it possible to get them all from teh top . i have elderbroke headers?

 

I didnt

Bought some edelbrock shorties off a friend for $100

 

On my Macs, I can get to all of the passenger side plugs from the top, and all but the back two on the driver side.

 

Amen to that!

I learned the hard way, after one of the pullies chewed through my Accel Extreme 9000+ wires....

Using zip-ties to keep the wires away from the headers/manifolds can be helpful too.