Well, time to check/change the plugs and made a almost fatal mistake:
Went out mudding last week, and decided to check the plugs today. Tried to
pull out the first plug and hmmm....socket doesn't fit around the plug.
Stick a screwdriver and clean up any dirt around the plug. Pulled the
screwdriver out and found a little bit of mud/tiny rocks all over it.
Uhoh...pull all the plug wires off the plugs and use a high pressure air
nozzle to blow out all the dirt. So far so good...pulled out the first plug
and looked down the hole (plug shields are still on at this point). Oh My
God!! The plug shields are dirt shovels!! Little rocks, dirt, and lots of
dust collected in them. Yank all the plug shield off and rinse the motor
with some high pressure water and clean up with the air hose. After pulling
out all the plugs, blow out all the holes again and turn the motor over for
a few seconds to blow the rest out of the chambers.
Here's the warning: If you decide to go out mudding in your 2wd (or 4wd),
yank the plug shields out...they only do one thing...collect dirt so that it
can fall in your combustion chambers at the next plug change. (And think
what that'll do to the cylinder walls and rings.)
$0.02
Bernd D. Ratsch
Pflugerville, TX
1997 Dodge Dakota SLT/CC - 2WD
http://lonestar.texas.net/~bernd/Dakota.htm
http://www.mopars.net/dak/bernd/
http://www.toycrusher.com
bernd@texas.net
ICQ: 39320084
"Have I gone too far...Or has Toyota not gone far enough!"
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