94 Jimmy 4.3 Vortec stripped spark plug hole

[shanes76]

my Jimmy is running rough so I decided to pull the plugs today and see what they looked like, I went to pull the #2 plug and noticed it wasnt tight, so I pulled it out, its black colored, cleaned it and went to put it back in and it wouldnt tighten up, any suggestions on this? And then I pulled off the black round thing under the Vortec plastic to look for washing, and on the drivers side, if I shiined the light toward the grill and loked that way I could see a very shiny intake bolt- is this the washing from the nut kit?

[old_master]

Most auto parts stores have a heli-coil repair kit for the spark plug threads. Directions are on the package, not difficult at all.

Best to remove the plenum and turn the ignition to the RUN position, but don't start the engine. You can easily spot a leak with the plenum off.

[shanes76]

do I have to remove the head?

[old_master]

Nope.

[shanes76]

oh thank god for that, do you know how it works? Its the plug closet to the grill on the passenger side, any idea as to how much this kit cost?

[old_master]

Here's a link: http://www.autozone.com/autozone/cat...&brandName=OEM


In the kit there is a tap, inserts, and the installation tool. Once you can get at the spark plug hole, it takes about 10 minutes.

[shanes76]

ok thanx, when Im retapping the hole- how do I keep the shavings from entering the cylinder? If I take off the tire I can get to the hole pretty good thru the fender

[old_master]

Bring the piston up almost to the top, then spray the tap with lithium, white grease, or some sort of grease to hold the shavings. When you're finished with the tap, use a vacuum cleaner with the hose attachment to suck out anything that the grease did not hold. Make sure you keep the tap as straight as possible when starting it in the plug hole. Hopefully there are at least SOME threads left.

[shanes76]

there is some threads left, the plug screwed in but wouldnt tighten up, it would start to then get loose again. are Bosh super plugs good? thats what they were runing in it and when I checked a few of them they were black, also I have a small shop vac if that will work

[old_master]

Bosch plugs belong in the trash can, not in a 4.3L engine! VERY well known problem in the 4.3L engine. In fact, that may be why you've got a problem. The taper seat on the Bosch plug does not align well with the seat in the cylinder head. Get yourself AC Delco CR43TS or AC Delco 41-803 plugs and gap them to .045 Just for grins & giggles, hold a Bosch plug next to an AC Delco plug; look closely and compare the taper seats.

[shanes76]

I found 2 new plugs in the Jimmy when I got it- they were AC-delco and on the box it says R43TS and the bosch has a longer part with threads on it- I did notice that because I looked up the delco online a few days ago and was gonna get 4 more and change them and seen they were the same number then I found this problem today( I havent been driving it) waiting till its running right, what does the blackness on the bosch plugs tell you?

[old_master]

The R43TS is probably old stock, the new ones are CR43TS. The "C" means it has a copper tip. Best to have all 6 plugs the same. The 41-803's are platinum and will last longer.

It's hard to say why they're burning black, the fact that the threads are longer might be the problem. Or the engine could be running rich for some reason, or even a problem with the distributor cap or wires. Throw a set of AC Delco's in and see what happens.

[shanes76]

ok, Im going to get the kit tommaro, and the 6 plugs and will probally tackle the job on Saturday morning, thank you for the help and I'll let ya know how everything goes

[shanes76]

well Old Mater- here is what I found today! lol better sit down for this! The plug was not stripped- I thought it was, but from the Bosch having the longer threads is why I thought it was, I put in an AC delco cr43ts and it tightened right up- now 4 of the 6 were loose( all have new AC's now- one plug wire broke when I pulled it off, and I also took off the top part of the plenium and the fuel nut is leaking, drivers side full of gas, I havent checked out the cap or button yet, I went to 3 different stores trying to buy the fuel nut with no luck seems everyone has to order it and Orileys said they cant get it, autozone said it was 55.00, what is the actual name for them?

[old_master]

GM calls it a "nut kit", not sure why. The Dorman part # is 55163. It's a pretty common part so O'Reilly and most other auto parts stores should carry it or at least be able to order it for you.