Well, I finally couldn't take the check engine light and the glow plug light being on anymore. I've had a brand-new set of OEM glow plugs riding around in the trunk for a few months, and today was the day to tackle the project. For those of you that haven't already checked it out, the following link is the mother of all threads to DIY this job:
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?t=88574

Seriously, that thread is brilliant.

I have worked on plenty of engines, but never a diesel and never this one. With a four-post lift and a helper, we got the whole job done in about three hours. All six old plugs came out without breaking, though two of them were *very* tough. Lots of penetrating oil and finesse was involved -- I didn't feel like spending a couple of weeks with my head in the machine shop! I used a good coating of anti-seize on the new plugs when installing them.

The worst part of reinstall is getting that O-clamp bolted back around on the EGR pipe. Geez it's hard to work under and around that intake manifold.

Anyway, many thanks to the forum for the wealth of reading I did before tackling the job -- it's great having no lights on my dash and having her start up smoother than ever before.

Cheers, John

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'98 E300TD (W210) | Sold 6/09 with 205k and counting
'04 VW Touareg V10TDI