They are under the airbox. You not only have to remove the top of the airfliter box, but the bottom section also.

 

The spark plug caps look a bit different - almost like fuel injectors...

 

Careful removing the Ht leads/coilcaps..

Also, worth using the supplied sparkplug spanner in the toolkit, with a socket extension....

WARNING: Plugs are buried deep in there, also worth putting some high temp grease round the outside 'rim' of the rubber plug caps on installation....

water can force it's way past ,causing rusty plugs and misfires.........

 

Note that the upgraded umbrella-style 2005-up coil seals will work fine on '02-'03 sprints with the push down coils (rather than the bolt-down coils). The seal does not show up separately on the 02-04 fiche but does on the newer bikes and is a straightforward replacement to the older, less effective ring style seal for only a few bucks each. IIRC I put the improved part number in the parts thread in the wiki.

I have the new seals in my 2002 ST and they work great - no more rusty spark plugs!

 

You don't have to disassemble the airbox. The shop manual says to do it wholesale, and it works well. Just unplug the temp sensor, undo the two screws on the back bracket (bottom), lift up to get it off the throttle bodies then pull backwards to unhook the front hook. You still have to do all that even if you remove all 11 screws holding the top down, so save the trouble.

You'll see the three leads into the coils. They may be hidden by a rubber cover. This is my first bike that has coils directly on the plugs, so I also first thought it looked strange how small the leads were. They only have to carry 12V since the coils are attached directly to the plug.

 

As a side note, the new seal is part number T1291511.

Others, more knowledgeable, know whether they will fit earlier model configurations.

The new seal is on the right.

Bikes with the old seal are almost guaranteed to have corrosion on the number one plug. Water, in either its liquid or gaseous phase is usually present in the number one well on motors with the old seal design.

 

thanks guys
spark plugs removed and new ones fitted no problem

art from sunny north wales

nb had a go on the new sprint gt nice

 

Great that you have them fitted.

I sort of missed this, I know they fit my '04 because my dealer retro fitted them for me telling me they were a better design than the original ones.

good job.

DaveM:AustralianFlag

 

An old thread I realise but...

Before I buy new plugs and pull the bike apart to fit them, I have no factory toolkit (previous owner) appear to have kept the tools, manual, and fuse box cover).

Will a standard set of thin wall plug sockets and extensions work or is the factory tool necessary?

 

Usually a thin wall socket will work. You will likely need a piece of rubber hose to push onto the spark plus top to fish them out or an extension with a magnet on the end.

 

Use that section of rubber hose to finish unscrewing them and then to get the new ones started.

 

I splurged and bought myself a new thin wall plug socket today. It has the rubber insert to retain the plug when you draw it out.

I also decided to buy the Iridium plugs. These have worked well in several engines over the years (mostly sports car).

Next stop is to source a reasonable price air filter. While I'm in there I'll probably check the valve clearances...in the hope they are fine.

I suspect the plugs are original so I'm hoping for a slight improvement overall.