Quarta2six

Need some help Im about to try and tackle this Spark Plug DIY but Im a little hesitant due to spark plug and coil #8. I took off the engine cover just to familiarize with what Im seeing in a couple of DIY threads. I don't see how I would have enough room to get the coil out even with taking off the air filter and the trim under it. Another article said I need to remove the plastic housing around the battery cable to give me a little more room on the #8 side. How long is the actual coil? I dont want to dig into to this and not be able to complete it. Im going to start with plugs #4 and #8 since they seem to be the hardest. Can anyone that's done this before chime in and offer me any tips?... I really want to try this myself instead of paying my mechanic seems pretty easy besides those 2 plugs.

RTR

Just takes time and patience to do this. For #8, remove plastic housing of the + cable and move the cable slightly out of the way. For me #4 was much harder. Even after moving the A/C line it took me literally 20 min to get the coil out. But I put it back in in like 30 sec... go figure. It's kind of an annoying job, but doable.
By the way, I didn't remove the air filter.

BimmerFan52

I did the plugs on my 545i earlier this year using these three resources. My compliments to the authors! Taping the socket fittings together and using a piece of rubber tube to start the new plug thread made it much easier.

If you haven't purchased plugs yet keep an eye out for a sale with a rebate. I found Bosch plugs on Amazon with a rebate that ended up costing me $24 delivered for all eight plugs.

I considered doing my ignition coils but since they seemed fine I passed on it. However, due to the difficulty of getting to ports #4 and #8 you may want to consider purchasing two new coils (buy OE) and just replacing those. The rest are fairly easy to get to.if you have problems later.

I was extra cautious and did one plug at a time and started the car after the first two or three plugs to make sure everything fired smoothly.

A real PITA were the four torx screws that fasten the brackets that hold down the ignition coils (each bracket holds down two coils). They are hard to get to and strip easily. I stripped one screw and ended up having to bend the bracket to get it out (didn't seem like a good place to start drilling even if I could have fit a drill into the space). I replaced all four of these torx screws with hex head bolts so in the future I won't have problems.

Quarta2six

OK cool makes me feel a little better I guess Im just going to have to dive in and see what happens. Thats interesting because It seem like there's a lot more room near #4; #8 seems like there's not way possible to get the coil out.

$24 for 8 plugs you SERIOUS, I wish I could get that deal. I havent brought the plugs yet so I i guess I'll check around on amazon. Is there a specific part #?... Those are the same threads I have on my computer just was double checking to see if someone had anymore advice or alternative methods. Aint nothing to it but to do it I guess!!!

BimmerFan52

They still have the rebate for a final price of $2.73 each until Dec 31st 2012. Not sure if shipping is still free.

Quarta2six

Thanks alot I appreciate the link.... Do you know the torque on the plugs? I've seen 23nm a couple of times and one of the above threads has 30nm. Is there like and index on where I can find torque specs for specific bolts on the car I have to change my tranny and diff fluid and need to know the torque for those bolts as well.

BimmerFan52

I think they are 14mm thread which would make it 30NM or around 23 ft-lbs.
Search this forum with "Standard Torque Specs". It will give a list by fastener size.

Hyper_545i

I just replaced the 6 easy plugs. I see what has to be moved for cyl. 4. What needs to be moved for cylinder 8 on the drivers side? I know the DIY articles mention moving the battery positive cable but I can't see where or how? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

BimmerFan52

This write up talks the most about #8.
Patience and tenacity!

ncsugrad2006

Pull the cabin air filter plastic crap off to get some room

Pull the plastic cover off of the positive cable running through there

and have a supply of a lot of extensions / universal joints so you can snake it down in there and still have the wrench away from the crazy tight area

oh, and the coil is the hard part, but there is enough room to barely squeeze it out if you get the battery cable cover out of the way.