What exactly is done at this service interval? I dont have the book handy and I did a search unless I'm just tired

 

pnyklr, per the JTIS, all that is recommended is an oil change, topping off of all fluids in the car, and then doing an inspection of the accessory drive belt (aka, serpentine belt). This would probably be a good time to rotate the tires and do a brake inspection. But, much beyond that, not much at this mileage. Should have recently changed the plugs (due at 70K miles).

 

I just replaced all 4 tires with Continentals maybe 100 miles on them, I'm not due for an oil change (I use Mobil1 anyway)

I got the car with 70,000 miles on it I'm not sure if the plugs were done, as far as the brakes, they are in good to excellent condition, only thing is I think they have after market pads on possibly ... my front wheels get super dirty with brake dust very quickly

I wonder if I can tackle the plugs myself is it simple?

 

The spark plugs were supposed to be changed at 70,000? Oops.

 

the changing of the plugs - If so any recommendations?

 

I just changed my plugs a few days ago, i am at 110,000 miles, and they were the originals ;(

As far as how hard, i do not know what you are capable of or how mechanically inclined. But id say its about average. If you do decide to tackle it, i personally would change the O-rings in the intake passenger side while your doing the plugs as the intake needs to be off to get to the bottom one. Just my 2 cents. They are only like 10 bucks total form the dealer. They are a common problem for check engine cruise not available power loss.

 

Any recommendations on a specific brand of plugs?

 

I could swear that the service interval on the plugs is 100,000 miles. At least, that's what I found for my 2004 model.

 

I personally used NGK's. Always found those to be pretty good. Nothing fancy. The car isnt a hot rod.

 

pnyklr, if you can turn a wrench, you can do the plugs. It isn't hard. The hardest part of the job is lifting the top half of the intake. While this sounds intimidating, it isn't. There 2 things to keep in mind:

1) disconnect the throttle body from the intake, don't do as the JTIS says and disconnect the coolant hoses from the throttlebody. It makes for more work than is necessary

2) there are two 10mm bolts on the backside of the intake that need to be removed (located between the intake and the firewall). Not a lot of room there, but even with my gorilla hands, I can get these bolts in and out. The rest of the bolts are out in the open for you to get to.

If you are doing the plugs, replacing of the intake o-rings wouldn't be a bad thing. Not a necessity, but if you are there already, might as well. This would also be a good time to change the IMT o-rings if you haven't done this too. They are also very cheap and since getting them on with the intake installed is a lot more difficult (have to stretch the o-ring over the IMT valve with limited space).

As for brands of spark plugs to use, go with a major brand name. I think you will find that when it comes to power generation, you are not going to see any difference between a quality double platinum plug and some exotic plug (Bosch +4's, Splitfires, etc). But, at a minimum you should install double platinum plugs to get the full 70K miles between plug changes. Can you put in your generic $1 spark plugs? Sure you can. But then, 20K miles later (if not less), you will be doing the plug change again. Pay me now, pay me later. Personally, I would rather do it one time and call it good.

 

Thanks for the help I do the maintenance on my Grand National but thats cake to do the plugs...

I'll take a look at it this weekend and see if I want to tackle it