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Z4 M54 SparkPlug Removal/Installation with Pics

Shipkiller
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Z4 M54 SparkPlug Removal/Installation with Pics

Post by Shipkiller » Sun Nov 11, 2007 9:01 pm

I was perusing the forum and found the link to change the sparkplugs on the BMW's but when I went and did it I found that a lot of the info is old or wrong for this style of engine.

I had 48K miles on the plugs. Figured they needed a cleaning. Did it and took pics. Then I went driving.... Better low end throttle response and more midrange power.
So here you go.

First pic is of the Covers. One thing about BMW, nice clean install. Not cluttered with crap.


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Kinda hard to see the cover bolt covers. Better pic here.

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Just pri them off. Very easy, but unless you are careful, they will go flying....
You only have to take off the Right side cover. I took off both covers too see what was under the other one.
Very nice design. You only have to remove the two bolts for the covers. Everything else is plug and play... :worshipbmw:

Here is a pic of all of the COP's (Coil on Plug).


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You notice the wiring and the two ground connections. These DO NOT need to be removed.

Close up pic of the COP.


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Now just lift up the connector hold down. This will unseat/remove the COP connector for you. No wiggling or stress on the wiring.

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Close up of the connector removed.

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Now just gently pull the COP out. You may have to wiggle (slightly) the assembly. In case you were wondering, I had already did Cylinder 1. Then I went and got my camera. Using a marker, mark each COP as to which cylinder they came out of.

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The COP completely removed.


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Here is a closeup of the COP socket.

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Now you have access to the plug. If you have a large amount of oil in the plug well, get it out before you remove the sparkplug. All of mine were clean except cylinder 4. It had about three drops of oil in it, and I was not concerned about that. More than that, you risk the oil draining down into the cylinder when the spark plug is removed. A lot of oil in a plug well indicated a failure of the seal. Replacing the rocker cover seals is really easy. A complete new seal set is about $35.00

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Now remove the plugs. Here are mine before cleaning. Notice the nice brown/tan color. Seems to be burning well. No oil deposits indicating a potential problem.

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Now a cleaned plug.

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Installation is just the reverse. Very easy.
The whole process (including taking the pictures) took only about an hour.

Things to remember.

I use an air compressor to blow out the plug wells of debris/grit before I remove the plugs. If you have oil in there, remove a much as you can.

Using a socket and/or an extension to insert/screw the plugs down until seated, using only the torque from your hand. If it take more torque than what your hand has, then there is a problem. Remove and and try again. Sometimes you may have to use a ratchet to seat a plug because there will be carbon on the tread surfaces in the head. If you use a ratchet, very LITTLE torque is required to get the plug to seat. I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH. If you cross-thread a plug, you risk a plug blowout. Some mechanics might be able to fix this problem in the car, the the only proper way is to remove the cylinder head and chase the threads with a tap or install a helicoil. Big dollars. (Been there, done that. :headbang: )
If you are slow and careful, it is really easy.

The Service manual states that you DO NOT use grease on the plug threads. I take that to mean NO anti-seize.

After seating the plugs, use a torque wrench the to torque your spark plugs to the proper specs.
According to the BMW Service Manual, the torque specs are as follows:

Plugs with thread M12x1.25 is 17ft/lbs.
Plugs with thread M14x1.25 is 22ft/lbs.

As a Submarine Combat System Electrical/Computer Engineer, I work on a lot of OLD systems. Remember, the wiring under the covers is subjected to long term high temperatures. Try not to play with the wiring unnecessarily. If you have a lot of miles, things can start to break. Don't be scared, just be gentle.
Drives 2008 Z4MC (His) & 2003 Z4 Roadster (Her's)

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Re: Z4 M54 SparkPlug Removal/Installation with Pics

Post by inTgr8r » Sun Nov 11, 2007 10:32 pm

Excellent write up :thumbsup:

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timscuba
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Re: Z4 M54 SparkPlug Removal/Installation with Pics

Post by timscuba » Wed Nov 14, 2007 5:27 pm

Nice write up and great pics. Will come in very handy. It looks like hole where spark plug goes is to small to start with your hand. How deep is it?

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Re: Z4 M54 SparkPlug Removal/Installation with Pics

Post by Shipkiller » Wed Nov 14, 2007 5:36 pm

Sorry, I was not clear in my write up. It is WAY to deep to use your fingers.

What I ment to say is you should use your hand on the socket extention then use a torque wrench to torque it down...

Dummy me.. :headbang:
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Re: Z4 M54 SparkPlug Removal/Installation with Pics

Post by Adam D » Sat Nov 17, 2007 1:21 pm

Excellent guide :)

However (& I may be wrong) I always thought that spark plugs had a crush washer on them as part of their design and shouldnt be removed and reused? For the small cost I would have probably changed them for new ones rather than cleaning them - do bmw engines like iridium plugs such as NGK iridium X's? I found those to be very good in my previous japansese turbo cars.
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Re: Z4 M54 SparkPlug Removal/Installation with Pics

Post by Shipkiller » Sat Nov 17, 2007 1:52 pm

The washer has some give to it but it is designed to be resused. It is not a true crush washer.

You can use other types of plugs, but for the life of me, I could not find out what the plug gap was. I when to all three BMW dealers in my area, and NONE of the machanics could tell me. They all said that the plugs come gapped from the factory, which is true if you use the Bouch +4 plugs.

In my truck I have used E-3's (loved them) and currently am using NKG Iridiums, but will go back to the E-3's when it gets warmer.
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Re: Z4 M54 SparkPlug Removal/Installation with Pics

Post by WLH » Sat Nov 17, 2007 3:39 pm

Excellent write-up.... :thumbsup:
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Re: Z4 M54 SparkPlug Removal/Installation with Pics

Post by Adam D » Sat Jun 07, 2008 1:18 pm

Does the rear plug need the brace removed to replace it?
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Re: Z4 M54 SparkPlug Removal/Installation with Pics

Post by Shipkiller » Sat Jun 07, 2008 9:13 pm

Not normally. It depends on how long your socket extension is...

Also, according to the BMW manual, every time you take the nuts off the two cross braces, you must replace the nuts.. Not sure why..
Drives 2008 Z4MC (His) & 2003 Z4 Roadster (Her's)

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Re: Z4 M54 SparkPlug Removal/Installation with Pics

Post by Shipkiller » Sat Jun 07, 2008 9:18 pm

In the previous post in this thread, I stated I was going to use E3 plugs... I did use them for about 4k miles.

I then when back to the Bosch plugs, then bought a set of Bosch Fuzion +4's. That is what I am using right now and plan on staying with them...
Drives 2008 Z4MC (His) & 2003 Z4 Roadster (Her's)

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Re: Z4 M54 SparkPlug Removal/Installation with Pics

Post by Adam D » Sat Jun 07, 2008 10:39 pm

Thanks :) :thumbsup:

I have had good experiences with the NGK Iridium x's in my last car (SR20DET 200sx - 240sx over your side of the pond tuned to stage 1 with 270hp @ fly est.) and also a more run of the mill 1.6 16v vauxhall astra. Both started cleaner and ran sweeter/more eagerly, although I'm tempted by the Denso's as they have a smaller tip... this however also makes them more fragile though.
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Re: Z4 M54 SparkPlug Removal/Installation with Pics

Post by Shipkiller » Sun Jun 08, 2008 2:52 am

I have the NKG's in my V8 truck... They work well... of course Ford's are temperamental with respect to sparkplugs... I cannot run a Bosch in that motor.
Drives 2008 Z4MC (His) & 2003 Z4 Roadster (Her's)

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Re: Z4 M54 SparkPlug Removal/Installation with Pics

Post by czechT698 » Sun Jun 08, 2008 7:52 pm

man that shipkiller guy is cool :driving:
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Re: Z4 M54 SparkPlug Removal/Installation with Pics

Post by Adam D » Sun Jun 08, 2008 10:11 pm

czechT698 wrote:man that shipkiller guy is cool :driving:
Agreed! I'm going to have a go at this tomorrow, will pick up the denso iridium power plugs IK20's from local euro car parts. £8+VAT each.
Silver Grey 2007 Z4MR which needs to be driven more :evil: :P :cool: :D :thumbsup:

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Re: Z4 M54 SparkPlug Removal/Installation with Pics

Post by Adam D » Tue Jun 17, 2008 11:28 pm

Right I forgot to post back my sucess at changing my plugs :D

This guide really is spot on, thanks!

I used a 1/2" drive socket (halford professional 150pc set) along with the long locking extension bar and a magnetic spark plug socket. I didn't need to remove the cross brace but unless you have a deep extension bar it may prove rather tricky to get onto the plug straight.

In the end I source some denso IK 20 iridium power plugs from my local eurocarpart, not bad price @£54 for a set.

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As you can see they have a much finer zappy tip and seem rather well crafted compared to the stock long life item. The small time is supposed to help by reduce load on the ignition components and create a more powerful spark as more energy goes into the spark. The stock four pronged plugs last a long time since they are platinum tipped and as each of the prongs wear down the spark will always jump to the shortest gap (so you get 4 times the wear I guess before the plug fails). Downside is the prongs get in the way of the ignition explosion and probably make it burn worse.

I've done a hundred or so miles and I am now used to these plugs, my first impressions were (in comparision to original plugs which had covered 33k miles in 5 years):

The car started very quickly and keenly and has done so ever since - that said any new plug could do this.
Throttle response improved, it seemed more sensitive to small thottle inputs - I found this also on other cars I have fitted with NGK iridium X plugs which are similar.
Eagerness to accelerate at 2-3krpm was improved - certainly a bit better picking up from low rpm.
The jury is still out at to whether fuel economy is better/worse, (the car was at the garage getting the rear brake pads done and it as spent time being test driven and idling a lot - a fresh tank of fuel a decent run on thursday might give me a better idea!) - they market the plug as improving power by making a more thorough burning bang, under lambda control this should automatically trim the fuel input and make a small saving.
Silver Grey 2007 Z4MR which needs to be driven more :evil: :P :cool: :D :thumbsup:

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