That'll teach me! (long story, please bear with me)
I've been a lurker for some time, and many of you have my heart felt thanks for all of the invaluable info and tips this forum provides. I don't post generally because I have little to offer with all of the expert advice from experienced M Coupe owners.
I have a 2000 M Coupe I bought about 2 years ago. It came with a Vortech supercharger and Scorpion exhaust installed by ERT. Nice car and very well cared for. Anal person that I am, I immediately changed all fluids (oil, diff, transmission, brake/clutch, cooling) and went over the car thoroughly (I thought). I have incrementally performed additional mods as I became more familiar with the car, and enjoy each improvement immensely. The overall performance is impressive.
Well, to finally get to the gist of this story, Sunday I decided to finally get around to changing the spark plugs and install Iridium IK20's. The Coupe runs very well with only the occasional stumble at idle and I had noticed an occasional miss, so I decided the plug change would be beneficial. I removed the cover and the coil packs, put the plug socket on cylinder one and (doh, argh!!@) the plug was only hand tight. Thinking "what the..." I removed the plug. There was some evidence of oil blow by past the plug threads, however the tip was clean and indicated a good spark.
I thought, "must be a fluke" and went on to the rest of the plugs. ALL HAND TIGHT!! (forehead slap followed) Some indicated minor oil blow by, but all had good color at the tip. I couldn't believe it. Cleaned out the plug holes and installed the new plugs...and torqued them!
I will say that very little problem was experienced from the loose plugs and it appears there is no damage done. However, it does run smoother and pulls harder with no stumble. At the very least, I'm sure it improved engine compression. Even better power than before!
Sorry for the long-winded story. Just had to share with some that may appreciate the finer foopahs in life.
NEVER ASSUME ANYTHING. Don't overlook the obvious. Etc., etc.
Mike
|
Boy, are you lucky. Because of the SC and it's extra cylinder pressure, you could've had anything from an engine fire to cracked pistons or cylinder head damage. The previous owner (or his mechanic) made an understandable but very preventable mistake: they probably ran the plugs in with a speed handle, then got distracted somehow and forgot to torgue them down.
Here's unlucky: Pulled a cylinder head off a Merc outboard about 10 years ago, checking to see why it was running hot. The sensor (plastic) had melted so I replaced it and bolted the head back on with a new gasket. When I fired it up, I noticed a bit of the rag I had stuffed down one cylinder coming out the exhaust. The cylinder barrel and piston both cracked from the pressure, and I had to spend 4500$ on a new engine. 
|
Menu
Lesson learned. Assume nothing...