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Spark plugs


mexiNAMEDsqueak
06-13-2009, 05:07 PM
Does anyone have a preference on what performs the best?

Like are these spark plugs that have the 4 tips legit? Or are they just a stupid gimmick?

Also these pulstar plugs; has anyone had any experience with or have any knowledge on how good they actually are?

J-Ri
06-13-2009, 10:39 PM
Use the AC Delco Iridium plugs. The 2 and 4 outer electrode plugs do the same thing. They make a very, very, very, very small difference because the flame front from the spark has a straighter path. The Bosch plugs seem to take out the ignition modules in our Ecotecs. Not sure why, but a number of other members have had that problem, and when I bought my car it had Bosch +4's in it, and the ignition module went out at around 70k miles. You can do the exact same thing by side-gaping a regular spark plug, basically just cut the outer electrode a bit after where it curves and then bend it towards the center electrode until the specified gap is reached. Just be sure you use regular copper plugs for that, by doing this you remove the platinum or iridium from the outer electrode, so you'll have the same life as a copper plug, may as well pay less for them.

mexiNAMEDsqueak
06-13-2009, 10:41 PM
Hm, I never really bought into the +4 shit, however these pulstars are seeming pretty legit. I'm unsure if I really want to drop 25 bucks a plug for it though.

J-Ri
06-14-2009, 12:51 AM
Ok, you made me look at their site...

The Neon SRT4 they put on a dyno gained 3 HP. http://www.sparkplugs.com/sparkplug411.asp?kw=Pulstar+Dyno+Results+-+SRT-4&mfid=0 That's something, but not really worth $100 to me. The SRT4 also has almost 200 HP, which may put the gain on a 145 HP Ecotec closer to 2 HP. I may buy a set before I dyno my car and see what they actually add, if I do, I'll let you know what happens.

Another thing to consider, the iridium plugs I have now I paid $12 each and they last 100k miles. That makes the Pulstars about 4x more expensive per mile since they only last 50k miles. I've done some tune-ups on Ecotecs with 130k miles on them and the plugs still had the correct gap, so although I'm not recommending it, I'm sure they could go longer than 100k.

Since an image on the Pulstar site reminded me of this, here's another way to improve a spark plug, but it's such a PITA I haven't tried it even though I have a metal lathe and could do it a lot easier than most people. This is another one that requires copper plugs. You bend the outer electrode straight enough that you can get a drill bit the diameter of the center electrode to the center electrode to cut a "dish" into it. Bend the outer electrode back and gap it, then drill a 1/16" hole in the outter electode centered over the center electrode. This is supposed to send a "pencil torch" like flame past the outter electrode and increase the speed of the flame front, burning more fuel quicker. If you decide to try this, check your plugs at 15k miles and then every 5k miles after that until you know how far thay can go. As the outer electrode wears, the thin part around the hole wears out first and can completely wear away which makes the tip fall off into the cylinder.

mexiNAMEDsqueak
06-14-2009, 12:48 PM
Knowing my luck and level of expertice; I'm fairly sure I'd have a nice little car bomb in under 5 minutes lol. I think I'll just play it safe with the iridium plugs.

mexiNAMEDsqueak
06-14-2009, 12:49 PM
But yeah, the pulstars seem pretty interesting. Like the concept is there but I don't feel like dropping that much into some plugs.

mexiNAMEDsqueak
06-17-2009, 11:08 PM
So I bought those irdium AC Delco plugs and put some fuel system cleaner into it. The car runs like a fucking dream. Even better than when I first bought it.

Jmrec100
06-18-2009, 08:33 PM
What AC Delcos did you put in? Mine is the 2.2L. Looking for the PN at least to get the temperature range. Can't find anything online.
Thanks

mexiNAMEDsqueak
06-19-2009, 05:59 PM
I honestly can't remember. I just went to O'reilly's and was like hey, I need AC delco iridium spark plugs and these were the only ones that they had. They already had it gapped to .042 as well. That's all I can tell you without going to get them from my house. Sorry I couldn't be of much more help.

J-Ri
06-20-2009, 10:56 PM
Jmrec, you have the 2.2 OHV which uses different spark plugs than the 2.2 Ecotec

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