Car Talk

May 1997

Dear Tom and Ray:

I was driving home from a friend's house and was on my way up a hill when [redcar.gif] I stopped at a Stop sign. After restarting and letting the clutch out on my 1986 Ford Escort GT with 120,000 miles on it, the peace was shattered by the sound of my No.2 spark plug attempting to be the first such automotive part to land on the surface of the moon. It just blew right out of the engine with an incredibly loud noise. I found the plug lodged in the insulation on the underside of my hood. So I removed the fuzz, screwed the plug back into the block, and reattached the wire. After that, the car ran fine. Do I need to do anything else? And is this a sign that the end is near for this engine, or did my mechanic just forget to tighten this plug during my last tune-up? -- Randy

Tom: Isn't it amazing how much power spark plugs have when they shoot out of a cylinder like that? I've got about six bumps on my head from similar spark-plug "launchings."

Ray: You mean the spark plugs blew out and hit you right in the head?

Tom: No, in each case, I was napping on the creeper underneath some other car, and the noise jolted me awake and caused me to bump my head on the transmission.

Ray: Your mechanic just forgot to tighten the plug, Randy. He screwed it in with his fingers and forgot to tighten it the rest of the way with the ratchet wrench. And as you drove around, the "explosions" in that cylinder slowly unscrewed the plug the rest of the way, until finally it went kablooey. This is just one good reason why cars have a device called "the hood."

Tom: And as long as the plug wasn't damaged, you should be able to just screw it back in and keep driving. But there is one other thing you should do: Check the other plugs to make sure they're tight.

Ray: There are torque (tightness) specifications for the plugs, and to be sure this doesn't happen again, you want to be sure all of your plugs are tightened to those specs. And always remember to drive with the hood closed.

Stop the madness! You can stop driving like a knucklehead, and you'll help your car in the process. Learn how your driving habits can harm your car in Tom and Ray's pamphlet "Ten Ways You May Be Ruining Your Car Without Even Knowing It!" To order, send (check or money order) to Ruin, P.O. Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475. You can also order online.

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