Torque and Chrome

I have no torque wrench to tighten my spark plugs. can i just turn it a half a turn or full turn or what?

Public Comments

1. just tighten it till it reaches the inside then give it about half a turn more but don't use to much muscle you don't want 2 stripe it or worse have it brake off inside
2. Neither do I. I just use the ordinary spark plug wrench to tighten it. I never have trouble with it. After you've tightened the spark plugs, why give them an extra 1/2 of a turn. You'll stretch the spark plug, strip the thread, or both.
3. Do yourself a big favor and spring for the torque wrench, it's a very good idea especially if you are dealing with aluminum.
4. Iron head? Aluminum head? DOHC? All these will change how you're supposed to tighten them. Spark plugs don't need to be torqued though, generally you put about 20lbs on them, by feel. But if still unsure, the half turn I believe is the norm.
5. should not tighten more than 1/6 turn with washers or a bit less than this on taper seat plugsafter they have been seated by hand. more could actually break or strip threads out of the head
6. just snug it up, not too tight
7. old school style. turn them in with the ratchet holding it close to the head of the ratchet till the plug gets snug then give it a qiuick snug from the handle normal it should only move about an 1/8 turn or so. dont over tighten them. you can always tighten them a little more if the plug is leaking but a stripped out thread hole is a serious pain. www.mycarandineedhelp.com its me and its free
8. dont need it just tighten up and then check it one time and thats fine really too tight is bad... it dont take much to do it
9. You don't need a torque Wrench.just use a socket wrench.turn the wrench until it stops,snug,then apply a little pressure to ensure it is tight.if you over tighten you could snap the plug.
10. A lot of spark plugs don't have the collapsible washers anymore, so an extra half turn would be a good way to strip the hole out. Use the torque wrench.
11. without a gasket about 1/2 turn, with the gasket 1 full turn.