How to Change the Spark Plugs on a 2005 Jeep Liberty

Iskandar Blogger 12:39 AM

Based on the idea of economy the base Jeep Liberty offered for the 2005 model year came with an inline four-cylinder engine and a five-speed manual transmission. Despite the nice trim package it seems Jeep wanted to make life difficult on even top mounted spark plugs by placing the throttle body over the middle two cylinders, requiring you to remove the throttle body to even access the plug wires. It may sound like an in-depth job for a quick tune-up, but the throttle body is quick to remove and install and will only add about five minutes of extra time needed to swap out the plugs and wires.

Instructions

    1

    Lift the hood and loosen the clamps for the air intake tube. Pull the air intake tube away from the air box, and then away from the throttle body. Rotate the throttle linkage counterclockwise and remove the throttle cables. Disconnect the wiring harness from the intake air sensor and the throttle positions sensor. Remove the three throttle body mounting bolts and slide the throttle body up on to the intake manifold. If you have to disconnect the vacuum lines label them with tape,

    2

    Remove the front spark plug wire with a slight twisting motion; pull on the boot only, not the wire. Rotate the spark plug counterclockwise with a sparkplug socket, extension and ratchet. Remove the spark plug from the cylinder head. Gap the new spark plug to between .048 and .053-inches with a gap tool. Install the sparkplug into the cylinder head and tighten to 15 foot-pounds at maximum; Exceeding 15 foot-pounds will damage the plug and cylinder head so be careful. Place Dielectric grease into the boot at each end of the new spark plug wire and install it to the coil and plug. Repeat this step for the remaining three plugs one at a time.

    3

    Clean the throttle body to manifold mating surfaces with brake cleaner and install a new throttle body o-ring. Install the throttle body and tighten the mounting bolts to 105 inch-pounds. Connect the throttle position sensor and IAC sensor harnesses. Rotate the throttle to 100% and install the throttle cables. Slide the air intake tube onto the air box fitting and the throttle body. Tighten the clamps with a screw driver.