DIY 2005 Civic: Change Spark Plugs

I use to think my Civic was indesctrutible.  This car is going to last me at least 15 years.  Those thoughts quicky vanished when my check engine light or malfuntion indicator light came on.  The car started to stutter or stumble during acceleration.  I plugged in the OBDII scanner and it showed random engine misfires in all cylinders.  "What?!?!" I thought.  The car is only 4-5 years old, and it has only 120k on it.
So I decided to change the spark plugs since it was way past time.

WHY?: Simply put, spark plugs ignite the air/fuel mixture inside the engine, causing the cylinders to move and hence the car to move.  It is the heart of the ignition system.  Keeping spark plugs in good working order allows for better efficiency and power in many cases.

WHEN?:  Most mechanics, experienced car owners, and parts sales people have told me to change spark plugs at 100,000 km.  Honda Civic maintenance manual says to change spark plugs at 176,000 km.  Since I was having problems, I started with the spark plugs first since they were cheap. ($20 for the NGK ones I got)

HOW?: 

1.  On the 2005 Civic Si, the spark plugs live inside those four coils.  This Civic engine uses a COP (coil on plug) system.  No more wires to the spark plug.

2.  First you will need to remove the plastic cover using a flat head screw driver.  Turn the two screws about 90 degrees and lift off the plastic cover.

3.  Next, disconnect the connector to the coil.  Press the sides to remove the connector.  It is best to replace one spark plug at a time. I started with the rightmost one.

4.  With the connector removed, using a 10mm socket, remove the nut holding the coil in place.  Carefully slide the coil out of the engine.You will now see where the spark plug is located.

 

5.  Take your 5/8" socket with nylon insert (it makes life easier) and carefully loosen the spark plug.  I ran my engine a couple minutes to get it warm.  If you are not careful with removing and installing the spark plug, you can cross thread it, and then you're going to be in some deep trouble.  Once you have the spark plug loosened, I continued to hand loosen them.  After removing the spark plug, also be careful not to get any dirt or debris into the engine.  Here's what my spark plug looked like.   Spark plugs are a window of your engine's health.  They can give you an indication of any engine troubles you may be having.

 

 6. Now take your new spark plug and put it back into the engine.  Finger tighten the spark plug and then torque them to 33 lbs.  (I think that's what it is).  Put the coil back into place, bolt it back down and connect the electrical head to the coil.

7.  Continue the same steps for the next three spark plugs.

8.  Once you are done, put the plastic cover back onto the engine, double check the area for any left over parts, and then fire the engine up.  Should sound and feel great now.  Take the car for a spin, and take notice of any strange noises and how the car feels.

For about $20 bucks, you've just saved yourself some cash by changing your own spark plugs and it only took about 30 minutes.  The best part is, knowing it was done versus someone telling you it was done.  Hope this DIY helped. 

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DIY 2005 Civic: Replace Cabin Filter

Replacing your cabin filter is yet another simple task that you can take on yourself.

WHY?:   Dust, pollen, gases, and bad odors can enter your car's ventilation system.  The cabin filter, or pollen filter, helps keep those things out.  Dirty air filters restrict air flow and can lead to heating and cooling issues.  If you got asthma like me, it's a good idea keep the cabin filter in check.

WHEN?: When to change the cabin filter.  I was told from the part store at least once a year or every 20000km.

HOW?:  There are two cabin filters in the 7th generation civic.  Both are behind the glove box.  Here's how to do it.

1.  Remove the glove box.  Open the glove box and on each side you will see a black clip.  Before continuing, it is best to remove the contents of your glove box first.  Push the glove box towards the front of the car a couple inches.  We need to push both clips inwards to remove it.  Do this one at a time.

 

2.  Once both the left and right clips have been removed, the glove box will swing open, hopefully you removed all the contents from the glove compartment.  With the glove box fully open, you will see a black plastic cover in front of the filters.  It will need to be removed.

3.  WIth the black plastic cover removed, we can now pull out the first cabin filter.  On the right side you will feel plastic protruding from the front surface.  The cabin filter should pull out smoothly.  Make note of the air flow directional arrows.  The filter will not work if it is installed the wrong way.

4.  Remove the cabin filter from the plastic housing and install the new one.

5.  To remove the 2nd cabin filter again on the right side there is a plastic protrusion.  This time slide it to the left and then pull it out towards you.  This is the second cabin filter.  Replace it with the new one.

6.  Reverse your steps to put back the cabin filters and the glove box.  Piece of cake right?

7.  Here is an image of what my cabin filters looked like compared to the new ones.  It was way past 20000km.

Let's hope yours don't look like mine when it comes time to replace them.

DIY 2005 Civic: Air Filter

2005 Civic Replace Air Filter


Replacing the air filter on your civic is very easy, cheap and a good preventative maintenance step.  Here's a little walk through of how to replace your civic air filter.


WHY?:  The filter over time will build up with dirt and other foreign objects.  It should, that's what it's suppose to do  You don't want dirt or any other material to enter your engine.  It will reduce your mileage, possibly damage your spart plugs, and increase your emissions.

WHEN?:  At least once a year.  On the box I bought it said every 12000 miles.

WHERE?:  You can't miss the filter.  On the 7th generation civic, it's the big black box in the center of the engine.  It's an easy maintenance procedure that can be done at home.

HOW?: 

1.  Pop the hood open.

2.  The big plastic black box is where the filter is located.  Unscrew the 7 screws using a 5/16" socket  Once loosened, remove the cover and ...stare at that big hole.  If you stare too long it will suck you in. That's where the air travels into the engine after filtering.  Hopefully the inside is clean.

 

3.  Remove your old filter.  It's probably a good idea to clean this area from dust.  Just be careful not to get dust into the air intake.

4.  Now take out your new filter and compare new and old.  If you put the filter against the light, you should still be able to see thru the filter.  If not, it's time to change the filter.  Look how dirty mine was.

5.  Install the new filter.  It only goes in one way so you can't mess this up.  Some people probably do mess it up but sersiously, just look at the images above to see the orientation.

6.  Put the air filter cover back on and tighten the screws. It  just has to be firm, don't over do it.  That's it, you just changed the air filter.  Don't forget to check it every 12000 miles.