Oil Leak - Cylinder #1

[KevinH1990]

I changed the spark plugs on my 2000 non-S this weekend. I purchased the parts from Pelican. The car has just under 62,000 miles on it.

I had seen some oil under the right (passenger side in the U.S.) rear of the car and suspected a bad O-ring. When I pulled the coil pack off of cylinder #1 it had oil on it and the inside of the tube was oily.

I had the transom plug recommended in Pedro's Garage DIY instructions, but I could not remove the tube. It is in an awkward position at the front of the engine and I could not tighten it enough to stay in. All the oil in the tube may have contributed to the problem.

Here are my questions:

1. Based on the amount of oil shown on the side of the engine in the attached picture, do you think I could have a cracked spark plug tube instead of just bad O-rings? The picture shows cylinder #3 with the coil pack removed. I didn't take a picture of cylinder 1.

2. Could there be another source of the oil? I replaced the oil filler tube about 3 years ago, and some of the oil could be left over from that.

3. Should I just buy a spark plug tube and plan to replace the one I have?

4. Is there any method other than the transom plug for removing the spark plug tubes? If I'm replacing the entire tube I guess I don't have to worry too much about cracking the existing one when I remove it.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions or comments.

[Wayne 962]

You should be able to get a set of needle-nosed pliers on the tubes and pluck them out. At least that's how I've done it in the past. If you break the tube, then no worries, as you are indeed replacing them. I would definitely replace the tube first, as it sounds like it may be the source of your problem, from your description...

-Wayne

[KevinH1990]

Thanks for the reply.

I may have been a little too gentle with my attempts at removal out of concern for cracking the tube.

Someone on another board offered to sell me some unused spark plug tubes, so I think I will wait until I have them on hand and then try removing the leaking tube again. The tube may already be cracked anyway, and it won't be a huge expense to install a new one. So, if the transom plug won't work, I'll attack with a pair of pliers.

After I replace the tube, I'll clean off the side of the engine and see if the leak recurs

[turboflyer]

Could just be the O ring near the plug. I just change all but one of mine at 75K. You can clean the tube with some solvent then use the drain plug. Try using a small slide hammer with some safety wire. Worked for me. None were cracked, but I did have a spare on hand just in case.

[Wayne 962]

Article where I show the spark plug replacement: Pelican Technical Article: Replacing Boxster Spark Plugs and Coils - 986 / 987

-Wayne