The plugs are under that big plastic assembly bolted to the top of the valve cover. You will see an electrical connector that is plugged into a metallic looking little box - the ignition module which is in turn plugged into the big plastic coil assembly on top of the valve cover - once you take this off - you will see all 4 plugs at once beneath. - Dale in Twin Falls, Idaho USA
If the valve cover gasket is still very rubbery and not hard or brittle you should be able to reuse it, mainly if it wasn't leaking oil before it probably will continue to seal for awhile. You do not need to take the valve cover off to get to the spark plugs though.
Just like Cloud2019 said, it is in the middle of the valve cover. There is a big black plastic piece with a connector at the end. Pull the connector out, remove 4 screws and pop the top off. Pull steady but don't yank it off. Once you feel the first one pop out you'll get the picture. It doesn't matter which one you take out first, the wires are a long tube. It only fits in one direction on the Cavalier.
Easiest plugs I ever changed. I couldn't get the black bar loose so I just bent it up, then bent it back when I was done.
While I have changed plugs on dozens of cars I have never done one exactly like yours.
But I have two VERY important tips:
First: ONLY DO ONE PLUG AND WIRE AT A TIME!!! This will help you NOT mess up the firing order. If you mess up the firing order you might need a real mechanic to come over and fix things up. I warned you!
Second: Put the new plugs in with a tiny amount of anti-seize on the threads. Start them into the head very carefully by hand. Once you are sure the threads are engaged thighten them as the manual for your car says.
Hi. You know spark plugs seem simple but they can really I mean really be difficult sometimes to change. The best is to start at the easiest ones in the front and these will teach you for the rest of them. Most of the time if you follow the spark plug wires right to the sides of the engine you can see where they are. Getting spark plug boots (The end of the spark plug wires that go on to the spark plug ) off the spark plug can be hard to do and you do not want to rip the spark plug wire by grabbing just the wire and not the boot at the very end, which is where you need to grab the spark plug wire AT THE BOOT. Playing backyard mechanic you have to answer these questions and YES there is a spark plug boot remover for around $10 dollars if you can find it at PEP BOYS or something OR you can take your changes with your hands and fingers of you believe yourself to be strong if your car really has these boots on tight. It can be done but these are the in - betweens so to speak being a backyard mechanic, it's like sometimes there is no definite logic to the procedure. Know what I'm sayin'? So your car is a six cylinder that means you have six spark plug wires / three on each side of the engine. If the car is an eight cylinder that means you have eight spark plug wires / 4 on each side of the engine. These examples would be a V6 / V8 style engine. Following the end of the wires going into the engine and at the end of these wires is the spark plugs. Pull off the spark plug wire boot and you can remove the spark plug usually with approximately a 13/16" deep socket and a ratchet and will need some extension pieces for the ratchet that usually comes with a wrench set.
