Changing Spark Plugs - need help

Edit: Confirmed. This is a drain tube from the coolant tank. I just changed the plugs and tubes and was buttoning things up when I found this tube/hose hanging down on the Driver (left) side near the rear-most coil. The car is a 2000 C2 Cab. Is this a drain tube or a vacuum hose, or something else. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated. See photo.

It looks like the little drain hose for the top of the coolant tank. Look up top at area around fill cap and you will see a little spill/over fill hole and hose.

Thanks. I screwed something up - have a flashing CEL now. I don't have a code reader, so I guess I'll have to take it to the indy. This job kicked the crap out of me. Between the heat and being 60 years old, and having vertigo it took me 10 hours to do. And the kicker is it didn't need to be done. I got the car with 37k miles on the clock. For MY2000, the recommended change is at 45K. The plugs I removed were Bosch, not Beru, so they must have been done already.

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You've gone so far. Don't give up just yet. If the engine feels like it's running on 5 cylinders? Maybe just one of the plug connectors is not fully engaged. They will click when they are fully engaged.

Bill, relax and what Ahsai said. Did you use the special boot grease? It helps get them seated. Did you remove the mufflers? Makes the job much easier. Did you do one plug/coil at a time? You will get it. No hurry.

I removed the wheels and mufflers and used lithium dielectric grease. I may go out and get a code reader to see if it narrows it down to one side. Just putting the car on jack stands, and removing the wheels and mufflers is a lot for an old guy to do in this heat. All of the tubes were seated and I'm pretty sure all of the coils clicked in. I'm hoping it's the case the one of the cables isn't seated. The engine seemed a bit rougher, but not horrible. Would an unseated coil cable throw a blinking CEL?

Kudos to you and I can imagine. I hope I have your energy level when I'm sixty. A code reader will help. Sounds like one of the coils is not firing so the heavy misfire makes the CEL flash. There's really not much you can mess up as long as everything is seated properly and you use the right spark plugs and the coils are in good shape. You tightened up all the coils, right? The bolts on the coils provide ground to the coils so they need good and tight contacts as well.

I torqued the coils to 7.5 ft/lbs and the plugs to 22 ft/lbs. There were two bolts (not on the same coil) that I couldn't reach with the torque wrench so I tightened them using an Allen wrench. I'm going to pick up a code reader tomorrow and will post the codes.

Does anything come out of that hose when the engine is running, or, conversely, does it feel like it has vacuum? I looked and I don't see anything like that just hanging down so my thought is it must connect to something somewhere up above. Just my two cents but the coil pack connector you show in your picture doesn't look fully seated which might be the source of your CEL. Congrats on your job and hard work. I would check the code(s) and head straight to the coil packs and double/triple check all the connectors..they are damn hard to get clicked into place. Always go back to the last thing you did...more than likely the source of your problem.

I had trouble getting the first coil wire seated, then I started sliding the rubber hood back so be sure that the lock engaged. That tube was behind the metal cover, so wasn't visible until I removed it. I'm heading out to AutoZone to pick up an OBD II reader.

Ok, Cylinder Misfire on #6 - I'm going back in....

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Bank #6 is passenger side closest the front. I'm guessing the clip on the coil did not lock in. You should here a "click" when it locks in. I did the same thing when I did mine.

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I'm betting my money on this.

Success!!! The connection on #6 coil wasn't clicked-in. (You're not boomphin' right, Norton). I would have been done sooner but chalk it up to not reading the instructions that came with the code reader. I thought I erased the code but it kept coming back, so I spent an extra hour or so fixing something that was already fixed. I swapped the coil packs 5 and 6, figuring I might have a bad coil. When it came back up with #6 misfire again I broke down and read the instructions. Oops. Thanks for all of the help everyone. Time for a cold one.

Bill, you're my hero! :-)

Glad it worked out. Been there and done that and made the same mistake before too. Don't know the temps out there but around here it's in the upper 80's and humid today. Worst day to work on something like that.

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Well done! Lucky it was #6, one of the easiest ones to get to.

Really lucky. I didn't have to remove the mufflers again. The crazy thing is that I was trying to make sure they all clicked in so I'm not sure how I missed it. I could probably do the job again in less than half the time. Live and learn. Well, I got a code reader out of the deal and probably lost a few pounds as well. Just took the car out for a spirited drive. The butt dyno detects a power increase of 7.39443 hp.

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Exactly the kind of satisfaction I like about DIY. Feel so independent and in control. Imagine if you had brought it to a shop and the mechanic told you it's just a loose wire and think you're an idiot, you would be like :

Nice work Bill! My default move is to leave the MAF unplugged whilst putting everything back together, throw a code, freak out, and then realize what I did, so I can totally empathize. Great work here!!!

What only 7.39443 hp?? Should be 8.2435666, better do it again.

Glad you got it sorted out. One of my last "Oh $hit" moments came when I changed the oil and put the drain plug back in without the WASHER on it. Drip drip drip. Ever try to remain calm while pulling the plug with new expensive oil spewing out and trying to get the plug and washer back on? I still have nightmares......

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That's funny !!

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Maybe my butt dyno needs recalibration. After all, it is rather old.

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So glad to hear it all worked out for you, persist until we succeed! Sixty is oh so young and the perfect age to put all of the wisdom the lessons of life have provided to good use. I'm 58 and often catch myself making remarks like "not too shabby for an old f**k". And I even get the Wednesday senior discount at the grocery store. Yup, I take the 5% and really enjoy the young ones at the store gawking as the "old guy" loads his groceries into where the engine is supposed to be. Oh crap, it's Wednesday so guess I'll need to take one of the 996s for a spin and put the 5% savings in my gas tank. LOL Seriously, I am doing a gut rehab on our 2nd home, and doing it alone. Already filled a 35 cubic yard dumpster and working on filling a 20 yarder this week. And with a heat wave and no use running the central air with no ceilings or insulation, I am struggling to keep my weight up to a healthy level. I promise to change my motor mounts and oil just as soon as I am done breathing all of the insulation dust. Note, my young ones won't work much with me because they say it is too hot and it's "dirty" work. I sure hope they can find a way to get paid for playing xbox in an air conditioned bed room.

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I take my hat off to you. Plugs are the next main job on my agenda but I will wait for cooler weather before I start the job. I got my car not knowing if they are the original plugs at 45000 miles. Now I have 66000 miles on the clock. I am planning on doing them at 80000 unless I get a misfire beforehand. I am almost 72 years of age and could possibly be 73 when I do the job (GOD WILLING) of course.

I used a low profile creeper to make my way around under the car. For us old guys, the key is having all of the tools nearby so you don't have to keep getting up and down. Better yet, have someone hand you the tools you need. I had to get up and down way too many times to look for tools and that, and the heat, is what beat me up. (Plus bumping my head countless times) Your plugs were most likely changed around 30k miles and are probably due again. If it's not running rough you can wait, but you'll probably feel the difference if you change them. My car is noticeably more responsive. I changed all of the tubes as well, though only one was leaking. The ones I removed looked to be in good shape. I used a boat plug wrapped with sandpaper and a pair of Channel Locks to remove them. I used the boat plug and a small pry bar to press the new ones in. Once I figured out the best way to do that, tube removal and replacement went quickly. The first one probably took me an hour, the rest each took about a minute. All in all, really not too hard a task, but of course there's lot of unnecessary fumbling around and trepidation the first time you go through it.

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Thanks for the post - this is on my list. Brakes first, along with brake fluid - then oil change and plug change. BTW - I get occasional cylinder misfire codes when it rains heavily - looking forward to checking the connections on the coils when I do this. Your code reader will come in handy - I use it on the 996 as well as my diesel truck.

I too was 60 when I changed the plugs and tubes on my newly aquired 996. Took the wheels and mufflers off. Went and picked up a $79.00 OBDII hand held also. I used the handle of one of my nut-drivers to pull out the tubes. When seating the new tubes, I tapped them in with a socket the same diameter as the tubes using a small mallet. It took me the better part of the day as a first timer. We have no need to rush things as we get older. Glad you diagnosed the problem and got it fixed.

@RobRichTX - You probably have a cracked coil or two if the misfires show up only when it rains. I just ordered OEM pads, rotors, damper sets, new bolts and spring kits. It came to about $1300. Ouch! I've watched Van's excellent video a few times and hopefully the job will go smoothly. The video doesn't cover the dampers, so if anyone has any removal/installation tips for the dampers please let me know.

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They come out with the pads after you remove the calipers. You can use a 1" scrapper to seperate them from the pads if needed. To install, I like to - push back the pistons fully - mount the caliper - place the dampers inside the pistons - peel off the adhesive backing - slide in the new pads - install the pin and springs - pump the brake pedal a few times to seat the pads and dampers