spark plugs do matter

custom89stang

New Member
Dec 9, 2003
705
0
0
Seattle, WA
ok, so to all you "nay-sayers" who say just use auto lites, blah blah, my mechanic actually told me to go w/ iridium plugs because he saw an ACTUAL DYNO from a STOCK Toyota MR2 that showed a 9HP increase off iridium spark plugs vs. copper/platinum. Just thought i'd let you guys in on the secret, I think w/ iridium on a 5.0 should be worth a least 10hp!
 
  • Sponsors (?)


I believe the argument is that iridium might not last as long as conventional plugs. I had NGK Iridium plugs in my LX and I just put autolites this last time. It ran a lot better, but to be fair, the Iridium plugs did have about 18000 miles and my wires were trashed.

With the mess i've been through, I'm content if my damn car runs well enough to drive and be decently pleasurable :rolleyes:
 
I worked for a auto parts w/d (warehouse distributor) a few years back and got a sample set for a built n/a civic. I seem to have lost power, but got a little better fuel econmy. I would say about 30% of my customers (mostly ricers) that used them had the same kind of luck and tried to return them. At $10.00 a piece you couldn't blame them. I didn't sell to many to v8 owners because of the price. The few that did buy them liked them. Most turbo guys loved them.

Overall I will not put them in any of my cars again. :notnice: Besides I would have to pay for them this time and that hurts more since I dont work at a w/d anymore.
Your guess of 10 hp on a 3000+ lb car just wouldn't be worth the $80.00 to me. And I dont think it would be 10 hp on a n/a car, maybe 3 0r 4 hp?

Anyway let us know how you like them if you go with them.
 
custom89stang said:
Just thought i'd let you guys in on the secret, I think w/ iridium on a 5.0 should be worth a least 10hp!

You think wrong! :nice: lol. The fact that they make more power on a high compression 4 cylinder car don't mean much. Completely different engine and ignition system. I've seen platinum plugs that make more power than copper plugs on a 4 cylinder car also.....but when you put them on a 5.0L they run like crap.
 
the bosch +4's run like crap on domestic cars but are awesome on imports autolites are just as bad as champion plugs IMO i think the boosted cars like the Iridiums i still dont see 10hp. maybe if the plugs were cracked and fouled up. but you would gain from champion plugs too if that was the case. I plan to use Iridiums with my combo and when you put down top$$$$$ for a motor you arnt gonna crumble your peramid with the cost of plugs.
 
Michael Yount said:
Mav - how does the plug know the difference between a 4 cylinder, and two banks of 4 cylinders on a common crank?

I really couldn't tell you. But can you answer this? Why do imports run good on platinum plugs and domestics run bad?......You're right though, there's more to it than just added cylinders, it has to be something in the ignition system.
 
I beg to differ, I put in DENSO Iridium spark plugs at $10 a pop after I called JDM engineering who specializes in blown lightnings..I told him what I had and hes said go with this....My stang runs like a bat outt hell with near 500HP...I only want the best stuff inmy car and 80 bucks for spark plugs is really no big deal to me.
 
The irridium plugs are made from a super tough alloy that can withstand a lot more heat. The center electrode therefore, is considerably smaller and able to provide a better spark than standard or platinum plugs............... At least that is what I learned from researching them. I have not bought any yet because of the high price, but I do plan on trying a set of the NGK as they are considerably cheaper. Around $6, I think.