DIY: Spark Plug Change - 2008 E92 M3

roycemek wrote

I'll send a pm to one of the guys at Tischer to see if the official BMW tool is even avaliable.

Regarding the alternative, cost is about $30.
http://www.wunderlichamerica.com/motorcycle/8160237.html

I guess we could confirm it if there was a BMW tech on the forums that has the tool and can take a better pic the official BMW tool.

I doubt the bikes use the coils as knock sensor detectors, like M3s do, but could be wrong. What we can do is ask if that special tool also works with N engine coils, which are more likely to be the ones used on bikes. We need input from a dealer (a tech) that also sells bikes indeed. You might have to start a different thread though. Will keep watching this one . And thanks for the info on the coil extractor . My guess is the BMW tool will be at least 4 times that .

Well I ordered the two tools and neither of them fit. But of the two the 816239 actually is really close to fitting. I'm going to play around with it and see how easy it will be to make it work. The tool as a whole is designed perfectly to how I would want to use the tool. I took the coil cover off today and the height of the tool fits to remove even the 4 and 8 cylinder coil packs. I'll try to post some pics later or maybe if I get the tool to fit.

On another note I was able to finally get a BMW part number (83300496274) for the OEM tool and the good news is that it is avaliable. The bad news is it is $300. The guys at Tischer were able to look it up and it comes up on their website too.

roycemek wrote

I took the coil cover off today and the height of the tool fits to remove even the 4 and 8 cylinder coil packs. I'll try to post some pics later or maybe if I get the tool to fit.

Great news buddy. And yes, please post some pics. If the only issue with the xxx239 tool is the width, it can easily be filed down. And do you think there's enough space to use the tool with the 'cap' for those rear coils? Guess it'll depend how soon they 'dislodge' so they can be pulled the rest of the way with our fingers. If they pop up right away, it might work without cutting off the 'cap'.

Hey, consider leaving the engine covers off; that's the way car should come from the factory. I did that, and the engine looks MUCH better IMO. And no more fumbling with the damn coolant reservoir to remove the passenger cover. I just removed the black stickers, and sanded down the blue paint on the few bolts on each side (couldn't get it off with anything else; some tough sh*t). Now I can easily clean that area, and there's one less step to get to the plugs. And water gets under the covers, so that's not an issue. Oh, and I also removed the ugly engine hangers . Here's a pic:

Hi guys!

I got that tool that I used for the job. A must for sure!
As I don't need it anymore now, PM me if you're interested.

(shipping worldwide)

Sorry so long on the update. I did manage to get the Wunderlich tool to work. Specifically the 8160239 but I did have to do a little machining on a mill to make a little more room in the tool pocket. Here are some pics of the tool after machining and with it all said and done it works decently. It fits on the back two cylinders too. Here are some pics.

pascal01630 wrote

Hi guys!

I got that tool that I used for the job. A must for sure!
As I don't need it anymore now, PM me if you're interested.

(shipping worldwide)

Hi Pascal01630. Can't PM you. Your profile doesn't allow. How much are you selling the tool for? I might be interested. If possible could you post up some pictures of the tool.

Thanks,
Royce M

What's the torque on the plugs?

Got it 30nm

Do the plugs for the car come pre-gapped?

I didn't want to shield out $300 for the bmw tool and it looks like even the other tool above needs to be modified to work. So, I went and got $3.50 worth of pvc cap and went at it with my dremel and files. End result is better than I expected and worked perfectly. I will probably make some more cut to lower its height so it's easier for the 4 and 8 plugs. Here are some pics:

Final version.

Nice. That looks good.

great idea!

Did the job last week. Didnt really want to do that job, after i had read comments here, stating 4-5 hours needed to accomplish the job, also taking into consideration the need of special device.

Nevertheless, with only my hands in gloves and spark plug socket and some extensions for it, I accomplished the job in less then 2 hours...

THe job is simple, there may be some problems with sparks 4 and 8, but everything is possible with hands only...

Hi Guys, I got a few PM asking for more detail so I figure I will post them here for those that are interested. The PVC caps are the 1 inch ones. Here are some pictures with the measurements.

Just did my first plug change on the
M, 30k miles. It was also my first plug change on a BMW ever, owned a 328 and 335 before this and never touched them. Had three mustangs prior to those, all with extensive mods.

Anyway, total time took me 1.5 hours including a test ride. Used a WIRE HANGER to remove to coil packs, and it worked like a charm every time

I'll post pics later on. Car runs smoother throughout the rpm band. Had what felt like a "lugging" in the lower rpms prior to this. Power is now smooth and "lug" free.

OLD:




And my CUSTOM HANGER.

Do you guys know if I can use Anti-Seize Lubricant for the plugs? TIS Manual specifies "Do not Grease/Oil threads, i.e. no graphite or copper grease either".... That is strange, I always add grease to my other cars for easily removal.

Anti-sieze is a lubricant. I would not use it.

Lubing the thread alters the torque. In general, lubed threads on bolts are supposed to be torqued to a lower value to achieve the same clamping force. If you're using a dry torque on a lubed bolt, you're probably generating 15-20% more clamping force, which can result in stripped threads.

Yeah, makes sence.. So just to confirm..I don't need to apply anything to my new spark plugs thread then?
Thanks

Yes, don't apply anything. Especially since the manual explicitly states for you not to do it! The threads on the cylinder head are aluminum and will strip if you apply too much torque.

for those that have changed the plug, can you let us know if you used anti-sieze or not? I thought the purpose of the anti-sieze is to avoid the galling (sp) reaction between the steel of the spark plug and the aluminum in the head which can cause the thread of the head to be stripped the next time you remove it. (Kinda like the wheel spacers). Response appreciated and thanks in advance. I have a few more thousand miles to go before changing the plugs.

The steel threads on the spark plugs have a zinc plating. The purpose of this plating is to prevent galling.

While I haven't changed the plugs on my E90 yet, I have changed the plugs on all my previous cars (EVO, DSMs, Civics, etc.). All of them had aluminum heads. I never used anti-sieze and never had any problems with galling. They always came out easily and have always been properly torqued.

Heat cycling is a mechanism for galling. Turbo engines generate a lot more heat compared to an N/A engine. My EVO saw 25+ track days and 3000+ track miles. This is probably an extreme case for heat cycling spark plugs. Plugs always came off easily.