Spark plugs torque?

[mister 2]

Should I be careful about the torque of the spark plugs? Is there a way to have the correct torque without a torque wrench?

Whats the optimal gap of the spark plugs (stock 1.8T)

thx

[old guy]

Should I be careful about the torque of the spark plugs? Is there a way to have the correct torque without a torque wrench?

Whats the optimal gap of the spark plugs (stock 1.8T)

thx

Gap .031-.032.

Tighten the plugs 1/2 to 2/3 turns after contact with the seat.

[Doss]

Do not try to turn the plugs much more. You will feel very little resistance, but the last thing you want to do is keep going.

If you are unsure about how tight it is, poke a screwdriver down the hole and see if you can make the plug move any. If you can't, it's probably tight enough.

[kpatz]

They should be torqued to 22 ft/lbs.

Without a torque wrench, I would hand tighten them (use your socket extension without the ratchet, spinning with your fingers) until you feel it bottom out, then go another 1/4 turn, no more than 1/2 turn MAX. It's better to err on the low side and have one come loose than to overdo it and strip the threads.

[martini]

22 ft lbs indeed

if you overtighten them you could be screwed, howver if you dont tighten them enough you will leak air from around the plug and probably keep popping the coil packs up.

make sure you do it when the engine is cold

http://www.a4mods.com/index.php?page...pperplugs.html

[Raus]

Would torqueing them with anti-seize applied require less amount of force than a dry-torque? Or does the spec take into affect lube since it should be done to all plugs.

I felt like it turned a little to much when I torqued them to 22ft/lbs with anti-seize applied.

[old guy]

Gap .031-.032.

Tighten the plugs 1/2 to 2/3 turns after contact with the seat.

For those installing plugs without a torque wrench, let me be a little more specific: New plugs come with a "crush" washer that is designed to flatten out upon installation. If you tighten the (cold!) plugs slowly you can actually feel the washer as it flattens out. After you hand tighten the plugs, begin tuning the plug wrench slowly. The resistance will remain pretty much even until somewhere between 1/2 and 2/3 turns. At that point you will have completely crushed the washer and the plug will get noticeably tighter. That's where you stop.

If you remove the plugs and then reinstall them you will only need 1/8 to 1/4 turn max since the crush washer will already be flattened out.

[mister 2]

thx for the info!

[AudiA4_20T]

yea i just turn them till i feel the washer seal

[A4_Mike]

When installing my spark plugs over the weekend, I lightly coated the spark plug threads with some motor oil and slowly torqued them to specifications (30 Nm). I started at 15 Nm and worked my way up to 30 Nm in 5 Nm increments.

Good luck!

[Doss]

When installing my spark plugs over the weekend, I lightly coated the spark plug threads with some motor oil and slowly torqued them to specifications (30 Nm). I started at 15 Nm and worked my way up to 30 Nm in 5 Nm increments.

Uhh...

Not to call you out, but that was not a wise thing to do.

Using motor oil is far different than using anti-seize. According to SAE J1102 (yes, it is a wheel fastener spec, but deals directly with metallurgy), when using anti-seize the general method is to reduce the dry torque spec to roughly 2/3 (extreme) or 3/4. This is why I generally tighten by feeling (I'm pretty good at that). I have several torque wrenches at my disposal and usually go back and dial it in to 2-4 lb-ft of the dry spec (for sparkplugs).

But, in the case of motor oil (which is very different than the chemical composition of anti-seize [yes, anti-seize does contain a grease]), you could almost cut that down to 40-70% the dry torque value.

So, tightening up to full dry spec when using motor oil lubed threads is an act of lunacy on an aluminum head. On an iron head, you can easily get away with it.

I'm not saying that you haven't done it successfully, but I'm glad I'm not buying your car next.

[A4_Mike]

Uhh...

Not to call you out, but that was not a wise thing to do.

Using motor oil is far different than using anti-seize. According to SAE J1102 (yes, it is a wheel fastener spec, but deals directly with metallurgy), when using anti-seize the general method is to reduce the dry torque spec to roughly 2/3 (extreme) or 3/4. This is why I generally tighten by feeling (I'm pretty good at that). I have several torque wrenches at my disposal and usually go back and dial it in to 2-4 lb-ft of the dry spec (for sparkplugs).

But, in the case of motor oil (which is very different than the chemical composition of anti-seize [yes, anti-seize does contain a grease]), you could almost cut that down to 40-70% the dry torque value.

So, tightening up to full dry spec when using motor oil lubed threads is an act of lunacy on an aluminum head. On an iron head, you can easily get away with it.

I'm not saying that you haven't done it successfully, but I'm glad I'm not buying your car next.

Thanks for calling me out on that. I'll make sure to use anti-seize compound next time around rather than the Marvel Mystery Oil like my dad and I have always used throught out the years.

[Doss]

Like I said, it wasn't meant to call you out, but it's definitely not recommended that you tighten a "wet" fastener to dry specs.... especially in aluminum threaded pieces.

Ask any smart mechanic, they will give the same answer. This is simple Vo-tech level automotive/ machine work stuff.

Like I said, you may be doing it successfully right now without negative results, but it's just a matter of time. After that, we'll be pointing you to the Heli-coil insert into cylinder head thread that ran about a month ago.

[kpatz]

If you're using copper plugs and changing them every 5K miles, there's no need to use anti-sieze compound. I would recommend anti-sieze for platinum or iridium plugs that stay in for 30K+ miles.

If you're a DIY plug changer, a torque wrench is a wise investment. I like the kind with the dial on the bottom where you set the torque, and it "clicks" when you reach the set torque.

[jstrebel]

Gap .031-.032.

I have been putting my bkr7e's in at .28 gap.. as they come out of the box, good? bad? Am I losing power or anything?

[kpatz]

.028 gap is recommended if you're chipped, or .032 if you're stock.

[daniel B6 1.8t]

Great Info !

[Furly]

Gütentight

I've never used a torque wrench for spark plugs.
If you're familiar with how soft aluminum is, and how easy it is to strip threads on your head if you go ape shit on the wrench, you'll be fine.

Tighten by hand til snug, then give about a half turn with a wrench feeling for resistance. Plugs dont need much to seat correctly.

Do not use oil. It will eventually seep down the streads onto your plugs and you will lose the feel for how tight you're going on the threads since you've now got lube on the threads.
Anti seize is ok tho since it's not a lube.