QuestionHelp! I have a Chevy Prizm that I can not remove one spark plug.
It just turns with difficulty using a breaker bar. I would abandon
the plug for now BUT I now can not get the socket off the plug!
It's down in the plug tube with little room to work.
I cut the end of a lag bolt an got it caught into the socket then
clamped it with vise grips then pried up with a steel bar but
could not remove it. I made a tool using a 3/16 threaded rod
and a square piece of sheet steel that I tap into the socket
so that the corners would engage the indents within the socket.
Using a large washer and a nut got good pressure on it but to
no avail. I sprayed liquid wrench into also before I started.
I am thinking I can pry off the valve cover and remove the
socket that way. I ordered a used valve cover in the mean time.
I am also wondering perhaps someone with an arc welder could weld
an extension into the socket? I think there is room to weld
straight down and around it.
Also if I disconnect the fuel injector can I drive to garage on
three plugs?
thanks in advance.
Answer Yes you can drive to a garage as long as it it within 10 or so miles ,otherwise I would be a bit concerned about damaging the catalytic converter. Wow ,have you gotten into some deep poo.I think you deserve a reward for thinking out of the box and being resourceful.I think that if the socket is not coming out then it must have "machined" a groove down there. Those holes are tight and sometimes a run of the mill socket will fit but snug against the plug well's wall, inviting a situation like yours.I am not sure of the location where the gasket rings meet to seal;at the heads surface or elevated atop a metal tube. If the latter ,remove the valve cover. It should not get damaged.If the former, remove the cover . Your are going to break it ,in most cases but maybe not .Be patient.With the valve cover out of the way,you should be able to access the socket a lot easier. Manipulation of it should yield your socket.I wish I could say that about the plug, but unfortunately it sounds like it has taken the head's aluminum threads and accumulated them in such a way that even when "unscrewing" it it will not come out. I am not there to confirm this, and you will get a much better idea of what is happening with cover out of way.Worst case scenario (abd you probably know this)is the head will have to come off(at least you got the valve cover out of the way)and the spark plag forced toexit that hole ,then a time sert or helicoil "machined" in, by hand. The dealer may have a kit for this specific purpose. I know they do for a lot of makes and models already , so, check that out .Check out the other holes, and brush some anti seize on all of the plugs and chase the plug threads in the head with the proper tap before you install them ,to avoid this in the future. Good luck with this one,I have a sneaking suspicion that once the valve cover is off ,that somehow you will find a way to fix this without having to go through all the trouble of removing the head.Welding something to the socket is feasible with cover out of way, I must warn you, you can fry your computer if it is not completely isolated from the process . That means ground wires too, that directly or indirectly lead to the unit.////I have first hand experience with this . I was arc welding something in a Cadillac with the battery to the car still hooked up and I burned a inch big hole right through the heart of the ECM and had to replace it. Best to be overly cautious, when it is about welding on any modern car.
