Hi all! [Insert Newb Disclaimer Here] Car is a 2002 Hyundai Sonata
I was having some car trouble, so I took my car to a mechanic, and in addition to diagnosing the problems I had, he did a “complimentary vehicle inspection”. During this inspection he found that I have an oil leak. He said it’s “definitely leaking from valves but possibly somewhere else as well”. Apparently the valve covers are near where the spark plugs are? Not sure how that works, but he said since the valve covers are “right there” then the valve cover gaskets, spark plugs, and spark plug wires should be done at the same time and said all that the spark plugs and valve cover gaskets would take about 3.5 hours at $115/hour… Apparently the wires will take about 1.5 hours just themselves for a total of 5 hours and over $550 in labor…
I’ve watched some videos on replacing spark plugs on 2000-2003 hyundai sonatas, and it looks like it will take a while because I have a v6 engine and removing the intake manifold plenum is a pain. A couple videos mention it taking about an hour. I watched the wires being replaced (again, on my year/model or same model with very close year) and it looks like you just pop one off and pop another of the same length back on so the firing order isn’t screwed up. I can’t imagine that taking an hour and a half. Haven’t looked too much into replacing the valve cover gaskets yet, but after reading some comments and forum threads it looks like it’s about a half hour job.
Comments and opinions on how long this work should take? I can imagine this taking ME 3.5 hours, probably longer, because my experience is limited to oil changes, filter changes, flat tire changes, and tire rotations, I’d very likely get frustrated, tired, and bored and would therefore take short Netflix breaks, and would be rewatching youtube videos on the process 50 times.
Anyway, Removing the intake manifold looks intimidating but I’d REALLY like to avoid over $500 in labor. So any suggestions/opinions/advice on process, difficulty level, tools, mechanic’s claimed time for repairs, etc would be greatly appreciated!
