Not the typical 3v spark plug issue

FL197Guy

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Hey all, I have a very strange issue. I have an '06 GT 3v and am trying to change spark plugs. My issue is that none of the plugs have a hex on them for the socket to grab. They are not rounded, but perfectly round. There are no shavings, or anything around them and I drug a small screwdriver around them slowly and there are no burrs where the hex should be. I also checked all of them to see if there was a washer covering the hex, but there are not. It's like they were manufactured that way... Anyone else come across this?

1201181313.jpg
 

stkjock

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Did u look inside the COP?

It looks like they already broke in 2 and it’s stuck in the head
 

FL197Guy

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Nothing is broken. The car runs fine, it just has that little miss that only the owner can feel. Coils are good, dielectric grease in all boots. Keep the ideas coming...
 

MrBottleneck

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No way they where manufactured like that. How could they have installed them.
Did the owner already previously try to or have someone try to remove them prior to you getting involved?
 

LikeabossTM

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Using my eyeball calipers, the hex would be underneath of that black ring. Is that a spark plug socket rubber insert that got stuck on there? Can you pick it off with a dental pick or something?

If my view is off and that ring is just darkness at the base of the plug where it meets the head... never mind.
 

FL197Guy

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Sorry, my post may have sounded a little deceiving. I am the picky owner that can hear the little miss. I bought the car about 5 months ago. I agree, there is no possible way these could have been made this way. I was a mechanic for several years and I have never seen anything like this. I checked to see if they were rounded off by some idiot, but I can't find any evidence supporting that. Every one is very smooth all the way around. I thought surely I could feel any burrs or bumps around them thinking they were rounded off, but none. I could see one being this way, but all 8 are exactly like this. Surely I'm missing something here.

Boss, unfortunately, it's not. I could take a pic of each hole and this is exactly what you'd see. Wish the pic was a little better.

Getting a detailed description of the pic. Stand by.
 
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07gts197

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Im with the other guys. Im willing to bet the po tried to change the plugs and only the threaded portion came out. The Lisle spark plug extractor tool is your best bet at this point.
 

Marble

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Get a spark plug to compare depth and where the hex portion is. Got to be something much simpler than a one off spark plug.
 

thump_rrr

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Are you using the correct socket?
3V engines require a 9/16” spark plug socket.
Most cars use a 5/8” or 13/16” socket.
When I took a picture of my spark plug in the hole it also looked round and it’s not.
 
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tjm73

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Are this engines spark plug holes caked with dry oil/ gunk hiding the hex part of the plug? The black looking ring could be caked oil and dirt. ie...gunk.
 
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MrBottleneck

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I would like to see a boresope or similiar to look down next to plug to get a better view.
 

rocky61201

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thump_rrr's picture looks about right. I can just barely see hex. The OP's pics don't look right at all and it reminds me of all those old posts from the spark plug thread saying they used an impact to get their plugs out. I wouldn't be surprised if some previous owner fucked up your plugs big time. If it is truly rounded off I don't know what to do. I've got a fairly nice and robust extractor socket set and I don't think anything in my kit is deep enough to get down past the ceramic.

Maybe you can find a 9/16 size deep socket extractor by searching on amazon.

If you can find something to grab onto the plug securely make sure you give it a nice long soak in PB blaster first.
 

thump_rrr

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thump_rrr's picture looks about right. I can just barely see hex. The OP's pics don't look right at all and it reminds me of all those old posts from the spark plug thread saying they used an impact to get their plugs out. I wouldn't be surprised if some previous owner fucked up your plugs big time. If it is truly rounded off I don't know what to do. I've got a fairly nice and robust extractor socket set and I don't think anything in my kit is deep enough to get down past the ceramic.

Maybe you can find a 9/16 size deep socket extractor by searching on amazon.

If you can find something to grab onto the plug securely make sure you give it a nice long soak in PB blaster first.
I think that it’s a lot more simple than that.
I think that the OP is using a 5/8” socket and not a 9/16” socket.
 

FL197Guy

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Thanks for the replies all. I am going to take another whack at it this weekend. I will check everything you guys suggested and let you know what I find.
 

MikeVistaBlue06

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Isn't that a heat shield over the plug? Maybe part of the COP assembly that has broken loose? These may be aftermarket COPs.

It is basically a long thin cylinder of metal with a tapered top, surrounding the plug.

I bet you can grab that with needle nosed pilers, give it a yank, and out it will come, exposing the hex part of the plug you're looking for. Also you can take a piece of rubber heater hose, push it over it and give it a yank.

I really think that is over the plug itself. I’ve seen sparkplug wires with metal heat shields like that and they go over the hex nut part of the plug.

They look like this:

https://duckduckgo.com/?q=sparkplug+metal+heat+shield&t=iphone&iax=images&ia=images&iai=http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/NzEzWDc4NQ==/z/~uMAAMXQ01tRVl7p/$T2eC16FHJI!E9qSO8HTpBRVl7pI8P!~~60_35.JPG
 
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FL197Guy

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Sorry it has taken me so long to reply, but I just had time to take another shot at this yesterday. I'm reluctant to admit how much of an idiot I feel like, but during my first attempt, I went through all of the sockets (metric and SAE) trying to find one that fits. In my frustration, I missed trying one socket. The 14 mm was the winner. Luckily, with a little finesse and patience, they all came out in one piece and I got them replaced with new one piece plugs. Thank you guys for the advice and additional help.

1223181343.jpg
 

ghunt81

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And here I was starting to think somehow, someone had gone through and done this to all your plugs...
0ktXef0.jpg
 

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