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You can remove the spark plugs on your 2000 Ford Explorer right from your home garage, saving yourself time and money. You should replace the spark plugs every 100,000 miles. The Ford Explorer gives you easy access to the spark plug wires, making the spark plug change quick. It will take you about a half hour to an hour to finish the job.

Instructions

1

Start with a cooled engine. Pop the hood and find the spark plug wires on either side of the engine.

2

Pull the wires off and turn one of the spark plug wires by the large piece on the end of it. This is called the boot.

3

Put a socket into the socket wrench with an extension and put it over the spark plug and turn it counterclockwise until the plug is free. Brush the debris out of the boot and cylinder well with a wire brush. Spray anti-seize compound inside the boot and on the new spark plug thread.

4

Screw the new plug into the well by hand. Test the spark plug tension with a tension tester tool and make any adjustments necessary with the socket wrench until it meets the requirements delineated in the vehicles owners manual.

5

Put the wire back in place and turn it a half turn to the left. Next, turn it to the right until the wire locks on the spark plug.

6

Repeat steps 2 through 5 for the remainder of the spark plugs.

Weve all heard the old saying, "Patience is a virtue." Wiser words have never been spoken when it comes to exhaust studs. Unfortunately, if you have to remove a stud, chances are its because it has already snapped and that renders the patience aspect null and void. There are ways to prevent snapping exhaust studs, but any exhaust repair technician, no matter what caliber, has experienced the broken stud. Now, the repair that was supposed to take an hour or two just doubled.

Before the Stud Snaps

The best friend to any exhaust technician is the oxyacetylene torch. Knowing how to use it is crucial, but sometimes access to the stud presents challenges beyond our control. Since there are several types of exhaust studs; manifold to cylinder head, manifold to front exhaust pipe and, sometimes, even downstream on the exhaust pipes leading to the catalytic converter, you must first determine what youre up against. A stud that runs through two flanges is a best-case scenario. These types of studs can be drilled out and a regular bolt and nut can replace them. But manifold-to-head studs dont offer this luxury. Nor do many front pipe to manifold studs. These studs screw in without access to the other side.

The oxyacetylene torch can be used to provide heat to the flange or surrounding area of the stud before attempting to remove it. The idea is to expand the metal surrounding the stud. If you apply direct heat to the stud and surrounding area, all youre doing is expanding both the stud and the internal threads. The heat will also soften the stud and it will defeat your attempt to prevent it from snapping.

Heat the flange only or the surrounding area near the stud and then employ a stud remover (see Resource 1), or a pair of vise grip pliers to gently turn the stud counterclockwise. A telltale sign the stud is coming out is an obnoxious squeaking. If the squeaking stops, apply more heat before continuing.

After the Stud Snaps

In some cases, no matter how hard you try to prevent it, the stud snaps. The best-case scenario is enough of the stud sticking out to be able to continue to use the stud extractor and torch. The worst case is the stud snapping flush to the flange. Expletives and wrench throwing may help you feel better, but will do very little to help your situation. At this point, drilling out the stud is required. During this operation, you have to be caul not to damage the threads to the mating threads of the stud or youll have to implement a heli-coil for the stud. But if you drill too much off-center, youll compromise the placement and alignment of the intended stud.

High-speed drill bits will need to be used. Left-handed drill bits will work best because they will work to turn the stud in the direction of removal. A small pilot hole needs to be drilled into the stud to start and it needs to be centered or all bets are off. Once the pilot hole is started, jump to the next size drill bit and continue this process until the stud is threads are extracted. Sometimes an extractor can be pounded into the pilot hold and employed to pull the rest of the stud out, but if patience isnt applied, you may find the hole you just drilled is now plugged up with a broken piece of your extractor.

Another way to extract broken studs is to weld a nut to the broken piece and then employ a ratchet and socket to remove the stud. This case can only be used when enough of the stud is accessible to weld the nut onto it.

Removing the belt tensioner on a Dodge Caravan may become necessary if the spring or other components inside the tensioner are worn or failing. The tensioner is not serviceable; replacing a defective unit is the only option. The tensioner keeps the serpentine belt tight. If the tensioner fails, the belt may come off the pulleys, damaging the belt, pulleys or accessories. Replacement tensioners are readily available from the Dodge dealer or larger auto parts stores.

Instructions

1

Open the hood, and locate the negative battery cable. Follow it to the end, where it meets the battery. Remove the retaining bolt with a wrench, and remove the bolt and cable from the battery. Set it aside.

2

Locate the tensioner on the passengers side of the engine, and place a socket on the bolt in the center of the tensioner pulley. Insert a breaker bar into the socket, and rotate the tensioner counterclockwise, loosening the belt.

3

Remove the belt from the tensioner, and lay it aside. Rotate the tensioner back to the home position. Remove the breaker bar and socket from the axis bolt. Locate the bolt at the end of the tensioner arm.

4

Place a socket and ratchet on the tensioner retaining bolt, and turn it counterclockwise, loosening the bolt. Remove the bolt and tensioner as a unit, pulling them up and out of the engine compartment.

Removing the headlight from your Jeep Cherokee will allow replacement of the bulb or access to other components behind the headlight. The headlight, a sealed beam halogen bulb assembly, has not changed over the entire production run of the Jeep Cherokee. Later models use a slightly smaller bulb, but the procedure for accessing the bulb has not changed. If you need replacement bulbs for your Jeep, they are available from any auto parts store or through the dealer.

Instructions

1

Locate the four retaining screws in the bezel that surrounds the headlight on the grille of the Jeep. Remove the screws with a Phillips head screwdriver then pull the bezel off the front of the Jeep. Set it aside to avoid damage to the plastic bezel.

2

Remove the two retaining screws in the ring that surrounds the sealed beam headlight with a Phillips head screwdriver then remove the metal retaining ring from around the headlight. Be sure to hold the sealed beam headlight in place when you remove the ring, or it will fall out.

3

Pull the sealed beam headlight bulb straight out until you can access the electrical connector on the back of the bulb. Pull the connector straight off the bulb and set it aside.

4

Slide the sealed beam headlight bulb out of the front of the grille. Set the bulb aside and repeat the process to remove the opposite headlight if necessary.

Exercise caution and safety measures if you decide to remove the manual transmission from your Ford Explorer sport-utility vehicle. The task will require that you move one of the heaviest components of your vehicle as you remove other pieces of equipment. It will take several hours but you can save a substantial amount of money on repairs if you remove the transmission yourself.

Instructions

1

Open the hood and detach the battery cables.

2

Remove the upper part of the gearshift, boot, console and lever with a socket wrench and Phillips screwdriver.

3

Lift the front and rear of your Ford Explorer with a floor jack and position the four jack stands beneath the frame. Lower the frame onto the jack stands.

4

Position a catch bucket beneath the transmission. Remove the drain plug with a wrench and drain the transmission fluid.

5

Unplug all electrical connectors, sensors and wire harnesses from the transmission.

6

Remove the starter motor from the engine with a socket wrench.

7

Use a socket wrench and pry bar to detach the front drive shaft if your Explorer has a transfer case.

8

Repeat this process with the rear drive shaft with the same tools.

9

Detach the exhaust inlet crossover pipe and catalytic converter with the socket wrench. A breaker bar may be necessary to use on the exhaust pipe mounting bolts for leverage.

10

Support the transfer case, if your Explorer is so equipped, with a transmission jack. Use the socket set to detach the transfer case and and remove it.

11

Detach the clutch hydraulic line from the clutch slave cylinder with the disconnect tool.

12

Hold up the transmission with a transmission jack and a safety strap.

13

Loosen the two nuts that secure the transmission insulator to the cross-member with a socket wrench.

14

Loosen the six bolts that secure the cross-member to the frame with a socket wrench.

15

Remove the two nuts that secure the transmission insulator to the cross-member. Remove the cross-member.

16

Loosen the nine bolts that secure the transmission to the engine.

17

Remove the transmission from the vehicle.