I have a low mileage 1995 C220. The plugs have never been changed. I am trying to removal the ceramic/plastic sparkplug boots. They don,t seem to want to come off. There is a knob on the top of the boot to pull them with. I don't want to break them. They don't twist off by any chance. Any suggestions. I did a search on other models but these seem differant.

I've been wondering the same thing... I tried to revive this post a few days ago without any help...
95 C220 w202 where are the spark plugs?

My thought is that that there may be some sticking of the sides of the connector in the bore and that this can be loosened by spraying some WD-40 or sliding a shim to free them up. I would hate to break one of these connectors, they are $18 each and the fear of having to dig out the broken piece is a concern. Someone out there must have had the same problem.

It would help to use the tool made for the job. I believe it's called hose pliers or spark plug boot pullers. It looks like pliers with the tips curved into a circle that helps you grab the spark plug boot, give it a twist to break the bond with the ceramic. This is your best chance of taking it apart. Of course the boot may be hopelessly baked onto the ceramic and you'll have to buy a new boot. The technique I use is to first break the bond then move up and grab the boot where the end of the clip is inside the boot for removal. This prevents ripping the clip off the ignition wire end.

The best way to deal with the problem is prevention. Buy yourself some silicone grease (dielectric grease or brake caliper pin lube). Every auto supply house should have some. Butter the inside of the boot where it contacts the spark plug ceramic with silicone grease to prevent this problem in the future. As long as you're at the store, buy some anitsieze compound for the spark plug threads.

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95 E320 Cabriolet, 169K

no no... already know all about boot removal. This is a piece under the boot- once you get the boot off, there is a brown platic or ceramic piece sitting over the plug. This needs to be removed in order to unscrew the plug. The question here is how to remove the piece to get to the plug

Here is a picture of the connector.

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