20-22 ft-lb won't go wrong. Just make sure to work on cold engine.

 

I can confirm, the torque specs on the first post are exactly what I downloaded from the WM -

- New plugs 25 Nm tolerance + 1.5 Nm no lubricant
- Reused plug 31.5 Nm tolerance + 1.5 NM
- Fastening screw ignition coil 10 Nm
- Fastening screw coolant reservoir 5 Nm
- Torque support pan-head aluminum screw 20 Nm + 180 degree turn (requires new screws)

 

I can confirm, the torque specs on the first post are exactly what I downloaded from the WM -

• New plugs 25 Nm tolerance + 1.5 Nm no lubricant
• Reused plug 31.5 Nm tolerance + 1.5 NM
• Fastening screw ignition coil 10 Nm
• Fastening screw coolant reservoir 5 Nm
• Torque support pan-head aluminum screw 20 Nm + 180 degree turn (requires new screws)

Anyone direct me to the correct pan-head aluminum screw? Where did you get yours?

 

As I recently purchased my CPO Macan GTS, I wanted to conduct a basic service on it to establish a baseline for future service. While the miles were fairly low for a 2-year old vehicle (just hit 22k), I am replacing some of the wear items now or within the next few months. I was going to change the spark plugs on my own but free time is becoming a rare commodity for me. Fast forward, the plugs were replaced this week by my selling dealer. Perhaps it's mental but the car does seem, if slightly, run smoother.

Photo of one of the original plugs. Though all six were in similar condition.

 

...
Photo of one of the original plugs. Though all six were in similar condition.

I'm not an expert but, your old plug looks just fine to me.

Do you think the look of your old plug tells you it was time to change plugs? I don't.

Am I wrong?

 

So did we ever come to a consensus whether or not iridium plugs are the preferred/oem replacement? Im confused that the OP states:

"Plugs:
Porsche Number: 999.170.233.90
Bosch Number: 0242245585 <---- Use this one to search.
Its an iridium plug with an odd electrode connection.
28 Nm tightening torque
0.700 mm gap (DO NOT STICK A FEELER GAUGE IN THE GAP)"

But those part numbers lead to double platinum plugs? So for those who have pulled their plugs were they platinums or iridiums?

As an added question for those who have tuned with cobb etc... have you thought about or tried brisk silver racing plugs? Those are what I currently run on my tuned s4. TIA

 

So did we ever come to a consensus whether or not iridium plugs are the preferred/oem replacement? Im confused that the OP states:

"Plugs:
Porsche Number: 999.170.233.90
Bosch Number: 0242245585 <---- Use this one to search.
Its an iridium plug with an odd electrode connection.
28 Nm tightening torque
0.700 mm gap (DO NOT STICK A FEELER GAUGE IN THE GAP)"

But those part numbers lead to double platinum plugs? So for those who have pulled their plugs were they platinums or iridiums?

As an added question for those who have tuned with cobb etc... have you thought about or tried brisk silver racing plugs? Those are what I currently run on my tuned s4. TIA

Looking for the same info and couldn't find it going through the threads. So the plugs that come with the car are platinums or iridiums?

Thanks.

 

I ordered OEM plugs from Suncoast and they are platinum plugs. Iridium plugs have thinner center iridium tips.

 

Did the procedure today. Thanks to all that contributed! Two hours, taking it slow. 32,000mi plugs were great. #6 no problem, thanks to your heads up!

 

I plan to do both spark plugs and PDK fluid change at 40k miles.

 

Changed mine today.

Picked up the plugs from my local $tealership to aid in "documentation" of my self service. They looked good showing even burn across all 6 @ 30,400 miles on the clock.

 

Why don’t more people use FCPEuro? I have always used them, and living in MA/NH their free shipping option gets my orders here next day. Their prices are usually cheaper than everywhere else, if not about the same, but free lifetime warranty on everything from brakes to oil and filters, wipers, spark plugs everything. Buy a part install it, if it goes bad or is a wearable part, you buy new ones, have them ship the new ones to you, ship them the old ones and you get refunded. Yeah shipping cost, but save up for a big shipment and get a big refund. I send back pads, rotors, oil, plugs, wipers, fuel filters, coolant, water pumps, anything and everything. When I bought my CPO GTS I bought all oem Porsche filters, plugs, etc and it will be the last time I have to pay for them.

FCP is absolutely awesome.

 

FCP Euro is selling the 99917023390 plugs for $19.73 each.

This compares with Rock Auto's price of $9.88 each.


FWIW...

 

How do they make money? I feel like ripping them off if I do that. They need to make a living too.

 

Over the years I have paid them a ton of money. They have been my go to for all vw/Audi/Porsche parts. I don’t get how they do it either, but they offer it and are very open about it. So for me it’s a no brainer. I use this for my personal cars only. I do have a shop and get almost all customer parts from them too, but that’s a whole separate account and I don’t do this with customer cars. I would assume they don’t even offer this to their commercial customers, have never asked.

 

Suncoast is selling Porsche OEM plugs for set of six $99. I am torn as my upcoming 30k service is $820 for oil change and spark plug change. Seems pricey.

 

Suncoast is selling Porsche OEM plugs for set of six $99. . .

I believe these are the same Bosch (Porsche part #999-170-151-90 ), which are available from Pelican Parts for $7 (x 6 = $42) or even from Warehouse33auto for $5.70 (x 6 = $34.20).

 

I’m sure the rock auto plugs aren’t oem Porsche either, probably Bosch, which are same as oem, but at least I can have receipts for oem Porsche parts. And in that case, replace them once and you have hit the same price and then from then on they would be free.

 

I changed my plugs on Saturday using Suncoast parts. I changed them at 25K (yes, I know it's early). I read the forum's tips which were helpful. The entire job took 2.5 hours because I took it slow and had a few interruptions. The last 30 minutes were spent on the plug under the coolant reserve tank. Taking off that particular connector from the coil was a pain.

I have worked on cars for many years and although cars have become more complicated, forums like this make the job relatively straight forward. I appreciate the time people spent writing down their experience to help others.

 

Thanks for the great posts for DIY spark plug change!

I plan to change mine @ 30K miles. S/B ~4 ½ years.

Seems as though mijae28 used a regular 5/16 socket to remove wiring harness bolts instead of a E-10 female Torx. I do not have an E-10 female Torx socket (Or any Female Torx sockets)
I do have a regular 5/16 socket for my ¼ inch ratchet + a 3” extension + a ¼” torque wrench..
Will that be enough for all 6 wiring harness bolts?

I would hate to be in the middle of the spark plug job & discover I need to go & buy a tool.

I just bought the GEARWRENCH 80546 5/8-Inch x 6-Inch Swivel Spark Plug Socket recommended by shorton 335.
I also have a ⅝” ratchet & 3” & 6” extensions. {I need to buy a ⅝” torque wrench.}

I have male Torx bits; T-20,T-25, T-30 (& a T-40 which is not mentioned.)
I do not have a T-50 bit & think I need to buy one? Or should it be a T-45?

It is confusing to me that different people seem to be using different sizes of Torx bits.

Thanks!

 

You will need wobble extensions, rather than a swivel. The issue with the swivel is it allows too much play. I
completed the replacement job using wobble and/or straight 3/8" extensions. As far as the female Torx socket
goes, do yourself a favor and just buy one. I happened to have a couple of female Torx sockets on hand as
a result of having to pull a BMW transmission several years ago. Some of the bolts were accessible only by feel!

You have to get the wiring harness out of the way before you can loosen the Torx bolts for the coils, so no worry
about getting started and getting stuck.

The plug beneath the coolant expansion tank is really the only one that is moderately difficult. And with that one
you'll just need some way of keeping the tank elevated so you can access things beneath it (bolts, coil, plug).
One member mentioned using a bungee cord to hold it up. I ended up using a small block of wood. Getting the
coil 'tube' to release for that plug was an effort, again because of the limited space the ability to exert leverage
was compromised.

Just take your time.


Good luck!

 

I bought the female Torx from Amazon. it is pretty cheap.

 

Just did my 30K plug change today. With all the good info in this thread, once I dove in I felt like I had already done it before. Bigt thanks to TripleZ and to all others who have contributed.

For my part:

I am a tool junkie so I bought the specific VAG plug socket and extension called for in the WSM. Nice piece but not mandatory. As stated earlier in the thread, it's a real good idea to have an assortment of extensions in various lengths, wobble or otherwise, to make things go smoother.

I didn't have a bungee or an idle human nearby so I used a piece of twine to hold the coolant tank up and out of the way, which made access to the rear plug on the left cylinder bank much simpler.

 

This DIY went pretty smooth- agree with everything posted here. Thanks to all those that added steps and tools to get.

A pic of my spark plugs. I think this looks pretty normal. Got pulled out at 32k.

 

Just an update on this thread to tell of my recent spark plug replacement on my 2015 Macan S. I did the replacement this weekend, early, at 28,900 miles. I bought the Bosch replacement plugs from Pelican at $11.75 each (total for all 6 = $70.50). It took me nearly three hours because I'm an old guy who works slowly and deliberately. Nothing too challenging, and less trouble to do than on my 996 Carrera.

However, I must say that I was surprised to find that the plugs that I took out, although somewhat discolored, as might be expected, did not show any discernible deterioration or erosion of either metal or ceramic and the gap measured at 0.7 mm, the same as the new ones.

What to think about this? Well, maybe my experience is an outlier, but it makes me skeptical that an owner needs to follow strictly the Porsche maintenance schedule for replacing spark plugs. I frequently push my Macan, do not baby it, but it was not misfiring before I replaced the plugs. Furthermore, I am running a COBB AP 91 octane OTS tune (love it!). Those are my variables.

My total cost to do this was a few hours of my time and less than $100. To hear that some Porsche dealerships are charging up to $600 for a spark plug replacement, and that some on this forum have said that they have even been pushed to replace coil packs at the same time (completely unnecessary unless one is failed), suggests to me that possibly unneeded maintenance schedules set by the manufacturer are huge money makers for the dealerships.

As a result of my experience, I will not continue to replace my spark plugs at intervals as short as 30K miles, but will extend it to at least 40K miles. This is an individual decision. Your mileage may vary.

:|

 

I agree that the miles and plug condition suggests way longer life. More the issue is 4 or 5 years and they may cause damage removing them. I have not had that happen but I hear that is the real concern.

 

Good to know. I plan to do my plug change at 40k miles, at the same time of the PDK fluid change.

BTW, does the Cobb tune cause any shifting issues on your Macan S?

 

I have experienced not one problem with the COBB tune, but the Macan sure seems more powerful and responsive. Highly recommended (I have no financial connections to COBB).

 

Thank you to all contributors. I‘m new to the Macan Forum and it has already been extremely helpful. Replaced spark plugs yesterday and only have three things to add that may be of help for others:

1) To remove the coils I used a nylon strap (3/4“ wide and very flat). After unclipping the coil fully removing the screw holding in the coil, there was enough play to wrap the strap under the coil head several times (choking it). This technique allowed me to easily pull out the coils (no bloody knuckles):
A) without removing the torque bracket on the passenger side (left hand drive)
B) by only elevating the coolant reservoir on the driver side (no need to disconnect hoses)
As a result of this relative easy removal of the coil packs, I opted not to use any baby powder when reinstalling them.

2) After removing the plugs and peering into the hole, I saw there was black dust at the base where the crush washer of the new plugs would seat. I didn‘t notice this until I was replacing the fourth plug. Ideally I‘d take some sort of a vacuum hose (diameter of a thick straw) and get rid of it. Since I don‘t have something like that, I tried using an extending magnet, but that was of limited use. In the end, I was able to remove about 50% of this „dust“. If you can figure out how to get it out, might be worth it.

3) I bought Genuine Porsche plugs from fcpeuro.com because their loyalty program is amazing; the next purchase of plugs gets fully reimbursed after I send them back the ones I purchased last week. Return shipping to them is my responsibility. I am not affiliated with fcpeuro nor have I had a chance to take advantage of their loyalty program, but they have been in business long enough and stream a live web cam of their warehouse receiving used wear & tear parts that get processed for reimbursement. Seemed like a no-brainer. I also bought their front and rear OEM brake replacement kit and will start tackling that project today.

Finally, be sure not to use a 27 torx driver on the 30 head. As a beginner, I grabbed the wrong torx driver and when torquing it down stripped it. At least it is in place, but now I have to replace the bolt somehow.

 

First I want to thank TripleZ for the write up and also everyone who has added comments. I changed my plugs today while watching the Cowboys get clobbered by the Patriots. With the write up and all the comments it felt like I had done this job before.
I purchased the Bosch 7432 from Rockauto.com for about $7.50 each.

2015 PORSCHE MACAN 3.0L V6 Turbocharged Spark Plug | Shop Now at RockAuto

Ignition Parts and More for Your 2015 PORSCHE MACAN at Reliably Low Prices. Fast Online Catalog. DIY-Easy. Your Choice of Quality. Full Manufacturer Warranty.

www.rockauto.com

The gearwrench spark plug socket seems like it’s made for this car. This with another short extension was perfect.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0014ZVSVK/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Below is a picture of the plugs that came out with 30,300 miles on them. I think they could easily go another 30K or more.

 

First I want to thank TripleZ for the write up and also everyone who has added comments. I changed my plugs today while watching the Cowboys get clobbered by the Patriots. With the write up and all the comments it felt like I had done this job before.
I purchased the Bosch 7432 from Rockauto.com for about $7.50 each.

2015 PORSCHE MACAN 3.0L V6 Turbocharged Spark Plug | Shop Now at RockAuto

Ignition Parts and More for Your 2015 PORSCHE MACAN at Reliably Low Prices. Fast Online Catalog. DIY-Easy. Your Choice of Quality. Full Manufacturer Warranty.

www.rockauto.com

The gearwrench spark plug socket seems like it’s made for this car. This with another short extension was perfect.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0014ZVSVK/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Below is a picture of the plugs that came out with 30,300 miles on them. I think they could easily go another 30K or more.

View attachment 227838

It seems every time I read this forum it costs me money. I had to go for the socket as it is so cool.

 

The gearwrench spark plug socket seems like it’s made for this car. This with another short extension was perfect.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0014ZVSVK/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Below is a picture of the plugs that came out with 30,300 miles on them. I think they could easily go another 30K or more.

View attachment 227838
[/QUOTE]

I agree, those spark-plugs look clean, another 30k miles, even more is plausible.

 

Kudos to TripleZ for the write-up. With the Gearwrench socket and the great tips here, it was a veritable "piece of cake". At 28,000 miles, I saw very little erosion on the old plugs. I did use a small amount of Copper anti-seize on the threads, a little Dielectric grease on the tips of the coil packs and some talcum powder on the friction surfaces where the coil packs enter the spark plug recesses. I saw no need to remove the engine brace...Plenty of room to get to that plug.

 

Hi, I am trying to find info on spark plug change with the 2.0. My first question is, where are they located? LOL