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DIY Spark Plugs, as requested. (Pics inside)

108K views 140 replies 85 participants last post by  Edgy36-39 
#1 ·
A few people asked for a small write up, so here it is! The job itself is not very hard, just takes a little time and some small hands. I am not responsible for any damage you do to you engine or yourself. This is a high voltage system, use common sense and disconnect your battery.

Tools:
3/8'' Rachet
LONG 3/8'' Extension
3/8'' Wobble joint
10mm Socket
Spark Plug socket
Torque Wrench
Flat head screw driver
New plugs, NGK or Bosch are the BMW choice from the manual
Lots of light
Gloves
Liquid refreshment
A girlfriend/wife with small hands (If you have giant monster hands like me)

I started with the passenger side first. In order to access everything the cabin filter and its plumbing need to be removed. Zee Germans did a very nice job of making this unit easy to remove. At the center of the filter tray there is a small metal clip that holds the entire unit to the strut tower. Pull this clip out and set aside. Now lift the long, thin black bar that holds the filter lid on. Remove the lid and filter and set aside. Now to disconnect the plumbing into the firewall. On the filter box end, there are 3 tabs on the connector that need to be lifted (I choose a small screw driver but your fingers will do) The filter box and plumbing should now be separated. To remove the tube from the firewall rotate the entire tube clockwise, then it will pull straight out. To remove the filter box lift it from the right side. the box has a tab that sits in the fender and will pull right out when the right side in angled upwards.

You should have an area like this when finished


Parts that were removed look like this


There are two 10mm nuts on the surface of the access cover that need to be removed. Take care are not to drop the nuts or their washers into the engine bay! Once these bolts are removed the cover can be lifted (with a little force) and then maneuvered out of the engine bay. Be gentle and just wiggle the cover out, it will come, it may take some different angles.

You should see this


Now for the Bremi's (coils). I found it best (after trying many different ways) to remove all connectors first. To remove the electrical connector from the bremi takes the following: There is a large metal retaining clip that holds each connector in place. I found it best to use a flat head screwdriver, insert in the small recess at the front/long side of the clip and just "pop" the clip up. Then with your fingers lift the clip as far up as you can (it will stop, you won't pull it off). These clips are a pain in the arse because they always want to work there way back down, so with one hand hold the clip up, and with the other slide the electrical connector off the bremi. Repeat this process for all 4 bremis. The last one (closest to the firewall) is a PITA but take your time, just move the rubber insulator as best you can to access the connector. With the electrical connectors off I then removed the two 10mm nuts that hold the black, plastic wire loom in place. With the all of the above mentioned removed it makes access to the bremis very easy.

On to the Bremis. There are two 10mm nuts that hold each bremi in. Start with the first bremi, remove the nuts (again be careful as not to drop the nuts down into the galley) With the nuts removed get two fingers under each side of the bremi and give it a firm tug straight out. Remove the bremi and set aside.

Cover off and the first bremi out


Here is a pic with a bremi out, it is the driver's side but you getb the point


With the bremi out, use a very long 3/8'' extension, a wobble joint and your spark plug socket to get the plug out. Try to turn the plug as true to center as possible. This is hard because of the angles required to access the plugs. Remove plug and number. Reinstall new plug and turn in with FINGERS ONLY (ie remove the racket and turn the extension with your hands) this will ensure the plug seats true and not cross threaded. These are aluminum heads, not hard to f up. Once the plug is turned down by hand grab your torque wrench and tighten to 21-22 ft/lbs. Again keep your extension as true to center as possible. Reinstall the bremi and your done your first plug. I again suggest leaving the electrical connectors off to better facilitate access to the remaining units.

Work your way rearward. The last plug is a bit hard to access, but use your head and take your time.

After you change all 4 plugs, put everything back together in reverse order. Again the plug closest to the firewall is just a PIA.

I am not going to post about the drivers side because it is 99% the same as the passenger! There are a few AC hoses that are in the way, so small hands work better.

Button everything up


Start her up and enjoy! Make sure you get all your tools out of the engine bay!! Label your old plugs and post pics on here so smarter people can analyze them for you :biggrinbounce:
 
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#95 ·
Finally did mine and this post was a great help. Although I was able to do it without removing the cabin filter air boxes, just got creative with the extensions and swivles. Over all this was a easy job. My only concern was the torgue of the plugs, could not get the torque wrench in there. I hope I did not over-tighten or under-tighten.
 
#96 ·
Thanks for the guide. Very helpful. I did the passenger side as the OP suggested and then left the Bremi's attached on the driver side. Definitely much faster that way despite being slightly more crowded.

I also had a bit of oil inside the bay. Didn't worry about it based on the comments in this thread. Not sure if they were original plugs or not. At 106k miles I'm not too worried about it either way.

Old plugs have a bit of dog hair on them which was picked up from the table not coming out of the engine ;)
 

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#101 ·
It definitely pulled harder last night, but I'm still having issues with what seems like limp mode (more severe during the day time - thermostat related?).

I also cleaned MAFS (just in case) a few days ago which appeared to be relatively new (Bosch). It could just be that they stay clean and new looking for a long time or someone did regular cleaning before. I haven't run any of the MAFS tests outlined in this forum yet though.

Only have two codes right now after fixing CPS intake. They are 0441 (breather tank valve I think) and 0411 (CBU or O2 sensor?)

Each fix so far seems to have restored some lost power/smoothness. I've never driven an M5 before this one so it's hard to know exactly what the performance should be like. I'm hoping to get DIS v44 working soon with my laptop for better diagnostics.
 
#100 ·
Gaskets for sure!

You can be assured that they are not original as the OEM ones, as supplied, would not be marked 'BOSCH Platinum +4'.
 
#103 ·
P0411 is for "Secondary Air Injection System Incorrect Airflow" which is directly attributed to carbon build-up or could indicate a problem with the SAIR pump, relay, piping, wiring, etc. none of which should affect performance.
 
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#106 · (Edited)
I haven't seen this before and maybe it's been thought of already but I changed my spark plugs yesterday and realized those dang Bremi's were a pain to pull out (at least mine were, not sure when the last time these were changed since I just picked up this M5 recently).

Anyway, the wire coat hanger became my friend real quick. Hooks in real quick, pulls out nice and easy...sorry if somebody already mentioned this before :)

 
#108 ·
You're absolutely right, I've changed plugs on multiple vehicles over the years. The problem was not all of them did come out like they should have (2 of them came out with a bit of wiggle). I had asked the previous owner who asked the other previous owner when those plugs were changed and nobody could tell me...so how about we just call it a tip if you can't wiggle it, just a little bit :grinyes:
 
#110 ·
Thanks for this great write-up! I tackled this job yesterday and was a little worried about how things would go as I don't have much mechanical experience but everything turned out fine. It took me the better part of 3 hours to do, but at least 20min was spent getting the wire attachment clipped back on to the bremi for the one closest to the firewall on the drivers side! This one was a real PITA to get connected - if you get stuck on this one like I did, I suggest taking a break and giving your back a rest, then start again fresh:) I did notice a real difference with the car once I was done though - I have 142,000km and I'm not sure if the spark plugs had ever been changed before. Well worth the time and thanks again for posting this write-up!
 
#111 · (Edited)
Happy to report that after replacing the plugs and both MAFs the rough idle in the morning for 20 seconds or so is gone. Just wanted to show what extensions i used to get the plugs out. Also having a magnet close by is handy. Clearly engine was running rich, probably due to the MAFs being faulty. Only thing I could not put back was the rubber gasket that goes around the coil packs and then the cover sits on top of the gasket. It seems that the rubber gasket had expanded and was too long to fit back properly. Will it be an issue if I just mounted the covers back without the rubber gaskets ?

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#112 ·
It won't be an issue if you don't mind flooding the spark plug wells with 10w60. hiha
 
#114 ·
That gasket helps keep water/dirt/oil/etc out of the spark plug area. If it seems too big, then I would cut out a small section on each side to make it fit, maybe use a little RTV/silicone to keep it in place after that.
 
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#116 · (Edited)
Thanks for your writeup. Just finished mine. I don't know how long the PO had these in for, but I estimate at 50,000km (last confirmed Inpsection II time). So we're at 120,000km now. I've been doing my own Inspection II. So far, diff, trans, engine, all filters, are done. Just need to do the fuel filter and we're finished.

Sort of funny; my Motomaster (Canadian Tire brand) spark plug socket no longer holds spark plugs. Had to use a combination of dead socket and a magnetic pickup tool. Also did my oil change and lower pan gasket while I was in there.

Anyway maybe someone smart can tell me if there's anything notable on these plugs. Front is to the top of the photo, arranged per cylinders.

 
#117 ·
I changed my spark plugs today. I just bought an ’02 M5 and, since I didn’t get any paperwork on when the last time the plugs were changed, decided a plug change would be the second job I would do. The first was replacing the Intensive Washer reservoir pump and grommet. With the DIY posts from here I knew what to expect, what tools I needed, and how long it would take. It was a good time! Scratched up my knuckles but no blood. Thank you to everyone’s posts and questions. It made this job much less difficult and much less nerve racking.
 
#118 ·
changed mine too. judging from what i read on the carfax report, the plugs hadn't been changed in 8 yrs. i didn't have the proper sized spark plug socket so i substituted a 16mm deep well socket. i had a flex or wobble socket wrench and 3" and 6" extensions.
to extract the plugs i used a piece of fuel hose. 12" is about right. that's what she said. i also used it as a guide to install the new plugs.
without the DIY instructions i found here, wouldn't have completed the job.
 
#121 · (Edited)
#120 ·
Just wanted to pipe in here that I changed the plugs on my 2000 M5 (pre-ring update oil burner) after 50K on the old ones and the difference in the car's performance is nothing short of amazing. It feels like the Sport button is on all the time. Substantial power increase (DSC is a lot busier now) and improvement in throttle response. Very happy with the results. No codes were being thrown and without replacing them I would have had no clue what I was missing out on.

FWIW I replaced the standard 4-electrode NGK platinums with the single-electrode NGK Iridiums, just for the heck of it. I'm sure whatever plug I chose would have been a huge improvement over the totally carbon-fouled plugs that came out, which were basically the most fouled plugs I've ever seen.
 
#124 ·
The only thing that's a little unobvious is the snorkles...... the weird plastic pieces that take air from the cabin filter to the firewall. The passenger side one will rotate clockwise to unscrew and the driver's side CC.

Take pics as you go and add them at the end of this thread!
 
#125 · (Edited)
Take pics as you go and add them at the end of this thread![/QUOTE]

Here are some pics that might help as I am on the process of doing mine.
Hopefully these somewhat help.
 

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