Oil in the plugs

[Pete McBride]

I had an '89 and went to look at a '91 to buy. My '89 had this problem so I looked when I visited the '91. The plug holes fill up with several millimeters of oil from no obvious source. Mine didn't burn or leak but every time I got the oil out, it would come right back. Any clues?

 

[sideSHO]

The cam covers have an o-ring fixed to the back side that seals the spark plug holes.
This is a common problem on an SHO that has not seen a 60k tune up in a while.
When getting the oil out use a towel or suck it out.Don't just let it drain in the hole.The trash that may be in the oil could score the walls.
Welcom to the forum

 

[Electricat]

Oil the plug wells also will cause misfiring.

You also really ought to get new plug wires when you fix the leaking seals....the wires often have problems after being soaked in oil for a long time. I recommend the AC Delco wires, they are basically identical to the Motorcraft wires, but half the price!

 

[Brian Smith]

My apologies. I was having a really bad day. Yeah, oil in the plug wells is from leaking seals between the head and valve cover. Everybody who gets this car with a few miles on it has this problem because no one ever does any maintainance. check out http://shophoenixproject.com/ for all the maintainance concerns you will encounter with your new car. Good luck.