Hi all,

Was going to replace my spark plugs today, and when I pulled out the #1 (far right) cylinder ignition wire, there was a little bit of oily residue on it. A seal at the top of the spark plug hole seems to be torn (see attachment), and there was a little bit of oil on the spark plug body as well (the other attachment). The other cylinders were dry like they should be.

It's a 2000 Accord EX, 2.3L 4-cylinder, about 128,000 miles.

What am I looking at as far as fixing this? Removal of the valve cover at a minimum, I'm sure, but I'd like to have some idea of what I'll be dealing with once I get down in there. Is the broken seal replaceable? Is this something a moderately competent amateur could attempt?

Thanks for the help,
Russ

 

This is something that you can do yourself.

I you will need a valve cover gasket kit that will have the spark plug tube seals. I like the FelPro brand as aftermarket. You will need some RTV grey as well.

Google wYU8qtPzQOY

This is a video on an older accord. You can ignore the middle part where he takes off the rocker arms, because your accord doesn't have those lower seals. The end shows where to add the RTV and how to torque the valve cover bolts.

When you replace the spark plug tube seals, pay attention to which face of the seal is inserted on the original seals. On my 95 EX they were installed opposite of how I thought the seal should be installed. Maybe use a bit of oil on the new seals to help slide in the new seal into place.

 

Thanks for the help! I watched the video, bought the Felpro kit, and was done in less than an hour. You're right, the new seals didn't want to go in, but with a little oil and a little encouragement they eventually did.

 

@PAhonda, thanks for the tip on the video, it helped quite a bit. I have a 96 accord lx with a 2.2L, non Vtec, manual and have the same issue with oil around the plugs. I'm going to get the parts tomorrow and you mentioned to the OP he didn't have the lower seals on his year accord, does the 96?

 

The 94-97 EX accords don't have the lower seal.

The 94-97 LX and DX have the lower seal, so your accord has them.

If you are comfortable doing the lower seals, then you can change them too. The video covers how to do this. I don't know if the Fel-Pro kit for the LX/DX comes with the lower seals. You can also follow the advice on the video and see if replacing only the upper ones fix the problem.

 

Thanks, I got the oem gasket and seals. (While I was buying plugs and wires I saw the Fel-Pro kit and it looks like it had the lower and upper seals). I'm having a bit of hesitation when accelerating, then I noticed the oil in the spark plug tubes while checking basic maintenance. I'm going to try replacing the upper seals and valve cover gasket then see how it does...

Thanks!