cs2000 Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 Hey all, just wanted to give a heads up that currently (at least when I bought mine) Opie oils have decent prices on the spark plugs required for the DE engine zeds. Mine arrived today and I thought "yeah, no problems, 45 mins tops, I've done spark plug changes before." Little did I know, id finish in the rain and almost dark 3 hrs later. I did want to remove the engine cover to aid in access, but didn't fancy taking the strut bar off. Then there's the sheer amount of cable ties holding in the very tight wiring looms. And, dear god, ive never known spark plugs so deep within the engine! im used to changing them on regular engined cars where they basically sit on the top, easy as pie, but I ended up rigging together 3 extension bars and various expanders/reducers to tie them all together just so I could undo the plugs, my Halfords spark plug wrenches were WAY too short. Anyway, all done and running smooth, but I wanted some advice for anyone who sees this. In spark plug hole 3 & 6 (the ones right against the back of the engine), there was a lot of oil. The plugs exterior, coil pack and my nice shiny tools came out dripping with the stuff and I think the plugs themselves were oily. Both plugs were tight so wasn't leaking from the hole and there didn't seem to be any inside the engine when I peered through the hole. I cleaned it all up best I could but when I restarted the car there was some blue smoke for a few seconds as the oil sitting round the plugs fell into the engine when I undid them, stopped after about 3 seconds though. Ive no idea where the oil came from, any ideas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jez @ H-Dev Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 Its quite a common problem - leaky cam covers. Unfortunately you have to buy complete new covers as the seals are built in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KyleR Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 I assume you mean the plugs from 5 and 6 not 3 and 6? Anyway, what Jez says, new rocker covers required for about £180 each I think plus another tenner or so for each gasket, one required for each side of the engine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMballistic Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 More info here cs2000; http://www.350z-uk.com/topic/54916-cam-rocker-covers-for-350z/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cs2000 Posted January 4, 2014 Author Share Posted January 4, 2014 (edited) Yes, 5 and 6! doh, ok il do some reading. Likely damage if not replacing them? After doing the spark plugs today, I don't fancy changing these myself, far too many pitfalls so it will be a garage job, not cheap when its £320 for the covers, then a few hrs labour ontop of that. Im "only" on 54,000 miles, I find it un-nerving that an integral component such as this fails after that length of time when my previous car was on 147,000 and it was fine Edited January 4, 2014 by cs2000 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZEUS Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 Can they not be resealed with a bead of instant gasket or something similar? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mick-r1 Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 id planned on just doing the gaskets to see if that sorted it tbh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arran Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 Its not that hard to do on your own fella, its a common issue with Zs. The rest of the engine etc is very reliable Mine are in the same situation but I have the covers etc sitting at home waiting for better weather when I can install my oil cooler and oil temp gauge at the same time and also renew all the breather hoses. Just keep an eye on the oil level for the time being Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ewen@Clark Motorsport Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 We stock the covers and gaskets, both can be found here http://www.clarkmotorsport.co.uk/website/webshop/productsSearch.asp?searchPartType=Panel&searchCategory=Engine+Part http://www.clarkmotorsport.co.uk/website/webshop/productsSearch.asp?searchPartType=Gasket&searchCategory=Engine+Part Ewen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gillywig2 Posted January 5, 2014 Share Posted January 5, 2014 Cheaper solution? http://g35driver.com/forums/faq-diy/434721-updated-valve-cover-swap-no-more-leaking-spark-plug-tubes.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cs2000 Posted January 5, 2014 Author Share Posted January 5, 2014 Thanks for those two replies. @Ewen, Both of those two links just redirect to a page showing all your stuff, but I did find them yesterday on your site at £190 each and 11 ish for the seals, bit too much $ imo, ive no idea how long the cars been doing this so im inclined to live with it and check it again in a few weeks, some searching of my own turned up that this may even be normal if its the first time they've been changed. The plugs electrodes were heavily worn in every cylinder so I suspect it was. @gillywig2 , Thanks, il bear that link in mind. Seems the only issue is you need to lose the engine cover otherwise you cant fill up with oil in the future! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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