Spark plugs on W12 (again!!)

[Woodljp]

Hi All
I had a look today to see how to get access to the plugs on my W12....
wow..they are buried well arn't they!!

My question is.... do you have to remove that big magnesium air chamber thing to get to the plugs? The plugs seem to be under the two side sections of this air chamber.
If you do have to remove the side sections... how big a job is it? They seem to have a lot of stuff connected to them ...the throttle chambers for instance.
Any advice will be very welcome (I couldn't find any items in FAQs about this.)

[PanEuropean]

Quote, originally posted by Woodljp »

...do you have to remove that big magnesium air chamber thing to get to the plugs?

Only the two sides of the intake manifold, not the center portion. See this thread for illustrations and pictures that will give you a bit of a perspective on how it is done: F265 Map Controlled Engine Thermostat Replacement.

The photos there show the middle section of the intake manifold being removed and the two side sections (throttle bodies) being left in place, what you want to do is exactly the opposite - remove the two side sections and leave the middle in place.

In practice, though, it is easiest to remove the whole assembly (two side sections and the middle section). Be sure to put some tape over the holes leading to the intake valves - otherwise, you will be in a world of hurt if something falls down one of those holes.

Be darn careful when handling those parts - the three parts (two throttle bodies and middle piece) are hand-tooled to match each other, and have to be replaced as a set. The price for a set is a five-figure number.

Michael

[PanEuropean]

Here's a photo showing what it all looks like when you have that intake manifold removed.

Be aware you need a special tool to pull the coil-packs off of the plugs. There is a discussion of this and a photo of this tool elsewhere in the active portion of this forum (topic came up a few weeks ago).

Michael

[PanEuropean]

Also - a word for the wise - after you get the coil packs pulled off the spark plugs, but before you remove the plugs, vacuum out the holes that the spark plugs sit in - little bits of sand and dust get into those holes, and by vacuuming them out before you pull the plug, you prevent this grit from falling into the cylinder.

Michael

[Woodljp]

Hi ..thanks for the reply... yes I saw the post about the removal of these air chamber items... I will be very careful not to damage them.
I assume the only place I can get the special tool for the coil pack is from VW?
Also, if I remove the air chamber items, do I need to replace the gaskets on re-fitting?

[PanEuropean]

There is no written requirement to replace the gaskets. The torque values are very low for all of these components, and all of the gaskets can only be replaced in the same orientation as they were removed, so, I don't think there is any benefit to replacing them.

The coil pack tool is a VW tool, however, I am going to guess that it would also be available from other tool suppliers (SnapOn, Mac, etc.), because the same tool is used for all VW - Audi - Bentley - Seat - Skoda vehicles that are fitted with coil packs.

There was a photo of the coil pack removal tool posted elsewhere within the past few weeks.

Michael

[cai]

Here is the post that shows the spark plug coil removal tool posted on 9/1/09:

http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=4531288

Good luck

cai

[PanEuropean]

Thanks for posting that reference, Cai. I knew the discussion was out there, but I did not have the time to look for it.

Michael

[Slimjimmn]

and I thought the w8 were a pita lol...

[SLAB]

It isn't hard. the special tool for the coils can be your fingers, or a plastic hook tool with slow, uniform pressure until they pop out of the cylinder head.

the upper intake manifold comes off really easily, you just have to watch out for thoes locating pins that like to fall into the engine.

i always take the upper intake off in one piece. comes off in less than 20 minutes. never tried seperating the sides of it.

[BltVWF]

Greetings!
Last Sunday I replaced the plugs on my W12. The old plugs had about 32k miles on them.
Here’s the old plug:

New OEM plugs:

Both old and new:

I followed the advice on this thread and did not attempt to separate the sides of the manifold. Additionally, the bolts on the sides were already stripped.
The underside of the manifold:

While manifold was out of the car, I’ve also cleaned both throttle bodies. There was far less grim than one would expect for 73k car:

I’ve also removed both MAF sensors (Torx “security” is required to remove the sensors) and cleaned them with the special cleaner.
The MAF sensor:

The cleaner:

Overall, I was pleased with the condition of the plugs and with the consistency of them from cylinder to cylinder. W12 must be a well-built motor judging by the condition of the spark plugs.
The tool that specified in the shop service manual (ElsaWin) is below:

It is too big:

I ended up using my SnapOn trim removal tool.
Eugene