routine car maintenance

Published: 9 apr 2025

local dumb twink fails at basic car maintenance, is laughed out of room

what i tried

replace the spark plugs
while i’m in there, also replace the upper engine mount with a part purchased by the previous owner
don’t fuck up

this one could’ve been my fault. i think last time i had to take out the charge pipe it got too dark too fast. but i distinctly remember taking out that t25.
had to drill into the bolt (sacrificing the bit) and then twist the whole thing out with a slow but large amount of torque
the end result:
those two ain’t coming apart…

at this point we should just replace the upper engine mount since it’s just four bolts!

boot for cylinder #2 was absolutely impossible to get rid of
plug for cylinder #5 seemed to have some burn
plug for cylinder #3 felt like excalibur to pull out.
i’m pretty sure all thep lugs were way too tight, but there wasn’t any stripping so all’s well that ends well ig

added anti-seize to the plugs before realizing that NGK plugs aren’t supposed to use antiseize
used a random M5 screw from ace hardware and a washer that wasn’t the same size to hold down the charge pipe in lieu of the stripped screw
just didn’t put washers in the nut and bolt assembly for the crossbar. i’d be so mad if i lost the other washer so i just didn’t bother
very rational dread that something’s just gonna come off or break while i’m driving. torqued everything down though so hopefully it would be ok

very slight reduction in car vibrations on idle. i’ll do a more exhaustive test drive that will probably lead to my entire engine falling apart today, i think.

flex head ratchets are GOATED
need magnet on a stick so i stop dropping easy-to-lose mechanical parts.
modern spark plugs, especially ones by NGK, do not need antiseize. too much antisize will lead to a misfire or smth. they also have zinc heads which don’t need antiseize to function.