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YOUR RESEARCHChange spark plugs and tubes? - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners
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Replace plugs and o-rings
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I just did my 60k and changed the plugs and o-rings.
Change spark plugs and tubes? - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners
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Leading evidence: 'Replace plugs and o-rings' (no explicit attributable resolution; this is a reported action or suggestion). Across 1 matching discussions, The most frequently discussed action is 'Replace diy article should you want' (1 discussions). For that action, 0 discussions report a resolution and 0 report an unsuccessful attempt. No action has an explicit, attributable resolution report under the current rules. These are forum reports and suggestions, not a confirmed diagnosis.
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Suggestion
Pedro's got part numbers on his plug change DIY article should you want to buy local.
Change spark plugs and tubes? - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners
Replace o-rings
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Explicit resolution reports before identified causes, performed actions and suggestions. Within each level, matching component labels precede direct query mentions and inherited thread context; successful versus unsuccessful discussion counts, owner confirmations and independent discussion support determine order. This is not a probability of success.
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Suggestion
I'm planning to replace my O-Rings when I change the spark plugs in about a month.
Change spark plugs and tubes? - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners
Replace o-rings and reinstall the tubes
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Discussions
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Explicit resolution reports before identified causes, performed actions and suggestions. Within each level, matching component labels precede direct query mentions and inherited thread context; successful versus unsuccessful discussion counts, owner confirmations and independent discussion support determine order. This is not a probability of success.
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Suggestion
Is it better to change the plugs when you have the tubes out, or is it better to pull the tubes, replace the O-Rings and reinstall the tubes before changing the plugs?
Change spark plugs and tubes? - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners
Replace plugs
Suggestion or failed attempt
No successful repair reported for this finding.
0
Reported fixes
0
Unsuccessful attempts
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Discussions
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Explicit resolution reports before identified causes, performed actions and suggestions. Within each level, matching component labels precede direct query mentions and inherited thread context; successful versus unsuccessful discussion counts, owner confirmations and independent discussion support determine order. This is not a probability of success.
Discussions that contain suggestions
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0 original-poster resolution reports. Counts can overlap; they are not unique people or a success rate.
0 discussions have direct query context; 0 report a fix in that context. Other evidence may inherit the discussion’s subject.
Suggestion
Is it better to change the plugs when you have the tubes out, or is it better to pull the tubes, replace the O-Rings and reinstall the tubes before changing the plugs?
Change spark plugs and tubes? - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners
Replace o-rings and reinstall the tubes
No successful repair reported for this finding.
0
Reported fixes
0
Unsuccessful attempts
1
Discussions
Read evidence and context
Discussions that contain suggestions
1
0 original-poster resolution reports. Counts can overlap; they are not unique people or a success rate.
0 discussions have direct query context; 0 report a fix in that context. Other evidence may inherit the discussion’s subject.
Suggestion
Is it better to change the plugs when you have the tubes out, or is it better to pull the tubes, replace the O-Rings and reinstall the tubes before changing the plugs?
Change spark plugs and tubes? - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners
Replace plugs
No successful repair reported for this finding.
0
Reported fixes
0
Unsuccessful attempts
1
Discussions
Read evidence and context
Discussions that contain suggestions
1
0 original-poster resolution reports. Counts can overlap; they are not unique people or a success rate.
0 discussions have direct query context; 0 report a fix in that context. Other evidence may inherit the discussion’s subject.
Suggestion
Is it better to change the plugs when you have the tubes out, or is it better to pull the tubes, replace the O-Rings and reinstall the tubes before changing the plugs?
Change spark plugs and tubes? - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners
Use 1" boating transom plug
No successful repair reported for this finding.
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0 original-poster resolution reports. Counts can overlap; they are not unique people or a success rate.
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Suggestion
I tried Pedro's suggestion of using a 1" boating transom plug, but I had trouble getting it tight enough to grip and by halfway through the job the transom plug was trashed.
Change spark plugs and tubes? - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners
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Counts describe captured discussions, not unique people or a diagnosis. Author identities are not reliably stored. Exact duplicate evidence is counted once across matching discussions; one discussion counts at most once per action/state. Multiple repairs reported together remain a combination. Suggestions and failed attempts do not establish a fix. Matches cover whole discussions and can include related faults, model variants and incomplete threads.
13 eligible posts · 0 unverified posts · 1 discussions match the subject in their title or opening post.
986Forum: 1 discussions
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Generation: 20261027T150039Z · outcome-qualification-6. Deterministic extraction; no AI model inference. How we use sources
I will soon need to change the spark plugs in my 97 base as I am approaching 90K. Do most change the plugs, tubes, and o-rings -- or just the plugs?
Thanks!
Bradster
Are the o-rings on the tubes leaking? If not, then I wouldn't mess with them. And don't get platinum plugs. They reduce throttle response. Go with copper.
Your car's now 13 years old w/~90k miles. A bad O-ring's no big deal, but a cracked or broken tube can be a big PITA, maybe even costly. The physical properties of almost all thermoplastics (in a former life I was an engineer in the plastics industry) will degrade with extended exposure to heat cycles. The tubes have been known to fail, which is presumably why you asked the question.
Why risk having a potentially costly failure at the wrong time when you can quickly and easily swap out all the o-rings and tubes for only $75 bucks while you're in there installing the plugs? Excellent, EZ to follow instructions at
http://www.pedrosgarage.com/Site_3/Change_Spark_Plugs_%26_Tubes.html
BTW, I agree w/BudmanV24, stay away from exotic or "improved" plugs. The OEM Beru's are fine, if a little pricey (I'm happy with them); the Bosch plugs Pelican sells for $4.50ea are good choice as well. Pedro's got part numbers on his plug change DIY article should you want to buy local.
I just did my 60k and changed the plugs and o-rings. I didn't replace the tubes. It's a pretty easy job and does not take long. If you have any question, go ahead and do it.
I'm planning to replace my O-Rings when I change the spark plugs in about a month. Is it better to change the plugs when you have the tubes out, or is it better to pull the tubes, replace the O-Rings and reinstall the tubes before changing the plugs?
Thanks
Change the plugs while the tubes are in. That way, if the plug slips out of the socket, it doesn't fall into the crankcase. Change the tubes with the plugs out.
In other words, pull plug, pull tube. Insert new tube, then insert new plug.
Here's a tip for you on the tubes - use the mandrel from a 1" drum sander to pull them out.
I tried Pedro's suggestion of using a 1" boating transom plug, but I had trouble getting it tight enough to grip and by halfway through the job the transom plug was trashed. The drum sander mandrel fit better, has a bigger gripping surface, and is much easier to tighten up.
Mark
Thanks. That process makes sense. While I may have figured it out on my own, I'm glad I didn't have to learn by having an unpleasant experience.
It just proves the old saying - there are no stupid questions.
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