Porschenut_Lee

I just ordered the group buy tune-up package from Imagine Auto and am curious how access is as far as changing plugs in these cars. I am a new P-car owner and have never changed the plugs on these before. Additionally I bought the distributor cap and rotor as the car tends to hesitate after it rains for about 10 minutes (or until engine warms up). I also noticed as of late that the engine has developed a flat spot in the upper RPM range (somewhere over 5000 rpm) when I am getting on it pretty hard. I am hoping that both are related and the cap and rotor replacement will do the trick. Any other suggestions would be appreciated as well as any tips from the experienced (well, more experienced than me anyway) folks on doing these fairly straight forward replacements. BTW, finally a pic of my "new" car. The color is really hard to get a good pic of. But here she is.

Thanks,

Lee
1984 Carrera Targa - Slate Blue Mettalic

911 Rod

Nice car. Enjoy!
There should be a spring loaded spark plug socket in your tool kit. Add an allen key socket and it's an easy job. Everything is more accessible if the air conditioning compressor has been removed.
When I bought my car i switched everything just so I would know where I stand. The first thing (and hardest) to change is usually the hood shocks.
Rod

My87Targa

it took me like 2 hours to do my plgs and wires lol

der Mond

I don't see how many miles your car has but I'll mention that at 125K I decided to replace my plug wires with Magnecors, which are cheaper than OEM and highly recommended. I also changed the O2 sensor. When I bought the car it had no records so I just wanted to be sure. I also changed the DME Relay and keep a spare in the car since it's good insurance. The basic engine integrity was/is good, and with valves adjusted, new rotor and cap and NGK Iridium plugs in addition to the above, it's the best running car I've ever had.

pgrunwald

Slight hijack here - I have an '87 3.2L.

What is recommended for spark plugs? I have a set of Bosch Platiums but I have not installed them yet. Something I read also said don't use anti-seize but it is steel-alum. bond - what is the reasoning not to use anti-seize lube?


Thanks,

Paul
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'87 Targa

My87Targa

paul i used bosch platiums last time i changed my plugs, i think this time around i may opt for the NGKs though.

emac

Rod is right about using the spark plug tool from your kit. I changed the plugs wires cap and rotor all in about one half hour. I had Bosch in the car and went with NGK's a total difference with the NGk plug. The car runs much smoother.

Ernie 81 SC.

My87Targa

hey if someone doesnt mind, whats this tool look like and where can i get one?? seems like a handy tool to have.

also what plug wires do you guys recomend

Peter Zimmermann

Lee: If you have access to a Snap On tool truck they sell a 3/8" drive plug socket with an internal magnet. The tool kit tool is OK, but the magnetic socket is fantastic. BTW, your rainy day hesitation is probably your cap and rotor. There was a car wash across the street from the back door of my shop, you have no idea how many 3.2 cars we rescued that had a wet no-start condition!

Paul: Please don't use Bosch Platinums! They are way overrated, mostly through advertising, but they have both out-of-the-box and long-term reliability issues (I still use the old standard, W5DC copper core) in my '82 SC. There are no issues whatsoever and the car still runs perfect at the next 15K major maintenance. If you switch from Bosch to another plug company (NGK for instance) always be sure that the heat range is correctly cross referenced. Regarding anti-seize, I don', and never have, use it. I put a light (very thin) smear of lithium grease about 1/2 way around the 6 or 8 threads closest to the firing tip (the grease will follow the threads as the plug is installed). Since 1967 I've never had a car serviced that way end up with a stuck/tight plug, I've never seen a plug come loose and turn itself out, and I've never had difficulty removing them (actually, once the washer lock is broken they usually turn all the way out by hand).
Pete

My87Targa

so no bosch but you do recomend NGK?? i was told NGK makes bosch plugs tho.

redidrum

Be very careful if you use a socket and extension. I dropped my socket in the manifold and took me 2 hours to fish it out with a magnet first time around. I have a special socket welded to an extension now.

der Mond

As Pete says the standard recommendation is the Bosch plug he recommends, and most owners swear by them. I have had great luck with the Iridium plugs in another application and decided to try them in the 911. Please do not use Bosch Platinum plugs, especially Platinum +4's. They caused enough misfire in my Dakota 5.2 to warrant a premature catalytic converter change. Subsequently I discovered that the Dakota forums members also reported significant problems with the Bosch Platinums, and my mechanic said the same.

My87Targa

so im good to try the NGKs then?

JM993

Be glad you don't have a 993 in this instance

Joe

1995 Porsche 993
1988 BMW M3 2.5 (240 HP)

der Mond

All I can say is that I contacted NGK and got their recommendation for the normally aspirated '87 3.2 engine, for their Iridium plug. My car starts and runs wonderfully in any weather and gets over 26 mpg at 90 mph (don't tell the Alaska State Troopers; we have many miles of wide open spaces and roads here). To be honest, I first used NGK Iridium plugs in my Ski-Doo snowmachine and found I could use a larger gap and I got significantly better starting and gas mileage. Some time back, the tech answer man at PCA said that some Porsche turbos had "issues" with NGK Iridium plugs. I'm starting to see more Iridium plugs on the market and I suspect that the Iridium plug controversy is like the synthetic oil one; at first every mechanic and manufacturer treated it like snake oil and warned against its use and now it's factory fill in 911's. But this is all just my opinion and experimentation; please, if you're going to go to the bank with anyone's opinion, trust a real mechanic like Pete.