# Where are the spark plugs located



## christophergour (Feb 18, 2007)

hello all,

i just bought a used 1994 nissan altima se abd i am clueless about the engine i bought 4 new ngk plugs but i dont know where the plugs are located??? is it easy to cjange them ? what will i need?? should i do it myself or take it to mechanic? 

please help, 

new 2 nissan and lovin it!!!


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## MickeyKnox (Jun 17, 2006)

don't fall in love at first sight. nissans are very reliable cars. but you have 94 car so you 
will probably do some maintanance.

open your hood. on the very top of your engine there are 4 wires coming into the
engine. pull a wire. then you can actually see spark plugs in the hole if there is light
use 15mm or something around that to unscrew the plug. 
so unscrew screw in all the plugs and put the ignition rods back inside the engine.
make sure you hear a click when you put back the ignition rods. you may need to push harder. but you must hear a click or something that kind of feels "it got in"


anyway consider doing tune up since you just got this car. well check when the tune up was done on this car last time.

here is complete manual.
PhatG20 - Downloads

and one thing you need to remember: 95% of the time a mechanic or stealership will rip you off.
so when you go in there you need to know what needs to be done and what labor is involved.
they may charge 100$ to change spark plugs and do "maintanance" while what they really will
do is put 1$ spark plugs, which will take 5 minutes of their time.


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## christophergour (Feb 18, 2007)

*thanks*

I feel like an idiot, the plugs where on top infront of me the whole time. Thanks for your help...anyways, i replaced the plugs, the air filter, the fuel filter and did an oil change. What else do you recommend for a tune up? Should i replace the oxygen sensors and the manifold air intake gasket?? 

I want to do as much of the work myself as you are right about the mechanics, they are RIP OFFS!!! They wanted 300.00 to do the work i did for 65.00 in parts!! Go figure!


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## MickeyKnox (Jun 17, 2006)

air intake manifold gasket is quite a project for a beginner I think.
and it's not part of tune up. it's changed when it leaks.

you could check your ignition timing. you will need a timing light it's about 40 bucks.
I always borrow my neighbors light. procedure is pretty simple. 

don't change rear O2 sensor unless the check engine light bothers you. 
you could change front O2 sensor. but if there is no check engine light I guess you could
drive for a year and then change it.

check the resistance of your spark plug wires. I forgot the spec resistance, it should be in any manual I changed mine to NGK.com spark plug wires(which are the best for nissans).

you'll be fine. you know you need to change oil filter when you change oil right? just wanted to make sure.


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## KA24Tech (Feb 2, 2004)

I do recommend using a really good fuel system cleaner such as BG 44K with a tank of good premium fuel. Also if the spark wires appear to be original they should rpbably be replaced with some NGK wires as suggested. Other than that I recommend buying a Haynes manual because it is more for regular people than the factory service manual. The Haynes manual sells for around $15.

Troy


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## rod_88 (Jan 13, 2007)

Why not bosch wires and bosch irridium dual tip spark plugs? They work great for me, plus the wires have a lifetime warantee.


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## MickeyKnox (Jun 17, 2006)

rod_88 said:


> Why not bosch wires and bosch irridium dual tip spark plugs? They work great for me, plus the wires have a lifetime warantee.


when I started working on my car I thought bosch makes good products. well it's not the 
case with plugs and plug wires. I put bosch 2(which have 2 ends on the spark plug instead of 1) and they gave me misfires and there was loud "marble sound". usually this sound happens on low octane gasoline or misfire(when spark plugs overheat and randomly fire) or bad ignition timing(mine was perfect 20degrees)
then I learned on numerous forums than NGK is the only choice for nissans. 
maybe bosch works on euro cars. 

after I put NGK plugs and plug wires those sound disapeared and my car drove like 6 cylinder  well there was noticeable increase in torque. very noticeable.


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## christophergour (Feb 18, 2007)

*need help troubleshooting*

my 1994 nissan altima se, with the 2.4l engine has been stalling on me I replaced the fuel filter, air filter, spark plugs and oil filter when i did the oil change. i had hoped this was the end of my problem but today while driving home it died. i was driving and it just stalled. I couyldnt start it for like 20 minutes, it just kept turning over and then for some reason it started again and got me home with no problems....my check engine light is NOT on. please help me to get to the cause of this problem. Could it be the fromt O2 sensor? Should i replace my plug wires?????

:newbie:


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## MickeyKnox (Jun 17, 2006)

clean your maf (mass air flow ) sensor with MAF sensor cleaner.
take out the air filter box --> remove the sensor and spray with the cleaner
don't spray too hard or too close.

look on manuals for details.


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## christophergour (Feb 18, 2007)

Thanks, I will try it this weekend and let you know of the results.


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## MickeyKnox (Jun 17, 2006)

also clean throttle body. I think I wrote the procedure some time ago.

and check air leaks. 

anyway I am going in the middle of nowhere. was packing all day today. and this will
be my last post for at least 2 weeks. take care you all.


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## rod_88 (Jan 13, 2007)

Thats wierd, the bosch in my car do the exact oposite, maybe the weather could be the reason why the different wires and plugs work differently.


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## christophergour (Feb 18, 2007)

*car stalled, wont start*

Well my car died and this time it wont start. I cleaned the MAF sensor, it didnt help. Before it would stall but start right back up in a few minutes. Now it just turns over. i had it towed to my house.....I suspect it could be the fuel pump.....a $550 job Any ideas what else it ciuld be???

:newbie:


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## ctwaley (Feb 3, 2007)

For troubleshooting, a gas engine needs three things to operate: 1) fuel; 2) spark; 3) compression.......

Number three is rarely a problem, unless it's valves or rings.....Usually it's one of the first two on the list, and a mechanic will trobleshoot by answering two questions - "Is it getting spark?" and "Is it geeting fuel?"......Only after the first two questions have been checked out okay, will the third question be asked - "Is it getting compression?"

This is old school sutff, before computer modules (ECM) came onto the scene. The computer has control over both fuel and spark via the various sensors, so the first two troubleshooting questions still apply....Check all spark and timing related possibilities and fuel system possibilities, based on the symptoms of the problem.....

Usually when a vehicle stalls then restarts a while later, the most likely candidate is the fuel filter, but you already replaced it.......So start with the fuel system and go from there.....If you don't have a manual handy, I found the online manual at AutoZone comes in real handy....

HTH


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