Ahhhh...job well done! Thanks for the tip robo5. I had actually just (skeptically) pulled the neg battery cable and came back in to find your post. Good timing. Plugged it back in and took the van for a short drive. Put it in park in the garage, and she dropped right down to maybe 650 rpm. I did clean the TB by the way, but I think maybe more importantly, I replaced a terribly dirty air filter...thought my wife's oil change place had been checking it. I know, I know...bad DIYer
Changing spark plugs is quite a job in itself, but I am more than happy to share my experience. Actually, I intend to conjure up a little piece on my lessons learned over the whole project. I'll drop that in a different thread, but I can share some of the spark plug experience here.
Of course the 1st step is to remove the engine cover and then the wipers, wiper motor, and cowling...annoying but necessary. Then I removed the air cleaner cap and disconnected that subassembly from the throttle body. Then I removed the throttle body itself. That comes off in two sections and exposes two rubber gaskets. I had ordered the gaskets through Autozone the previous day just in case, but I thought they were still in pretty good shape so I reused them. Now I had intentionally delayed reinstalling a couple components from the timing belt job in hopes of making my spark plug job easier...specifically the "engine moving control rod" and the "engine mounting stay No.2"...both on the passenger side of the engine. With all that stuff removed, I now had access (albeit very limited access) to all 6 spark plugs.
The front three should be no problem of course. You just pull out the 10mm hex head bolt, unplug the wire, pull out the coil, and then use a deep well socket with an extension to get to the spark plug. Sounds easy. Use a very thin flat head screwdriver to pull up the little clip that holds the wire on. I broke one, but it still clips on ok. One of the bolts holding one of the coils on was kinda hard to get out. It turned a while and then stopped. I panicked and decided to skip that plug. As I screwed that bolt back in it snapped. It must have been bent or cross threaded at the factory. Enough was still sticking out to grab with a set of vice grips. Got it out, retapped the hole, and filled with a zinc plated bolt from Home Depot. Worked fine. I also used a flat head screwdriver to help pop out the coils. Just be careful with those as they will break.
The back three are the troublesome ones. You'll want to experiment with the front three a little. You're going to want a socket/extension combination that is long enough to reach the plug but small enough to maneuver in extremely tight spaces. I ended up with a 7cm (2.75in) extension, a swivel attachment that extended another 4cm (1.5in), and then a 16mm deep well socket that extended it another 6.5cm (2.5in). So basically, from the edge of the ratchet to the tip of the socket, I had about 16cm or 6.25inches. See pic... Working from the throttle body side, I was able to get the two plugs on that side. Luckily, I think I'm the perfect build for such a job. I'm tall, skinny, and have small hands. That's what it takes. After you unclip the wire and remove the bolt, there is enough clearance to remove the coil and get at the plug. Clearance is very tight on the passenger side plug, but it can be done. The coil is rubber at the bottom which is necessary to bend over a bit. Take a big shot of patience before tackling this job. It takes careful steady and patient hands to get it done. At times I had my left arm around the left side of the intake and my right arm around the right side. From there I just worked by feel. You will lose some skin off of your forearms in the process. Don't forget to dab a little anti-seize on the threads before putting in the new plugs. I used the manufacturer suggested iridium plugs. They sure are expensive, but I don't want to do this job again for a long time. Feel free to ask for any suggestions or pictures or whatever. I would be more than happy to help. Have fun and thanks again for the reply.