OP
OP
Our 1.6 has them too - again, flatspots gone, MPG increased . . .
Same effect on our BMW 5-Series too, 3 out of 3 cars improved.
Technical NGK Iridium IX plugs vs. Bosch Super 4's; the review!
- Thread starter Rich
- Start date
Currently reading:
Technical NGK Iridium IX plugs vs. Bosch Super 4's; the review!
Our 1.6 has them too - again, flatspots gone, MPG increased . . .
Same effect on our BMW 5-Series too, 3 out of 3 cars improved.
Whats best plugs too fit in a 2.4 abarth please,god knows whats in there at mo not had car long will get em changes on service me thinks.Cheers
Well as my foot is always well planted to the floor its in the mid 20s
then again I have the extra power so need to use it or the ECU gets confused if I dont
OP
OP
Been driving the 5dr again this weekend, the 1.6 feels faster than mine on a flat (an illusion I'm sure
), but you really notice it when it's trying to pull - and I miss my VVT!Trip computer read 32.6mpg when I looked - thats round town, with my mum driving it for 2 mins to work (wet weather) mostly and me this weekend. Sometimes, it goes to the supermarket.
Can't complain, my 1.8 gets around 27 with me at the helm
Been driving the 5dr again this weekend, the 1.6 feels faster than mine on a flat (an illusion I'm sure
Trip computer read 32.6mpg when I looked - thats round town, with my mum driving it for 2 mins to work (wet weather) mostly and me this weekend. Sometimes, it goes to the supermarket.
Can't complain, my 1.8 gets around 27 with me at the helm
Both a lot less economical than my Abarth then
I get about 35-36 even including 'around town'.
Along with Lee, this thread has now confused me over which spark plug is best?!
-Alex
OP
OP
Both a lot less economical than my Abarth then
I get about 35-36 even including 'around town'.
Along with Lee, this thread has now confused me over which spark plug is best?!
-Alex
Thats pretty impressive for the Abarth!
I still stand by the Bosch's!
Just to take the confusion a bit further...
What about Denso?
http://aftermarket.denso-europe.com/Spark-Plugs---1000620000000001.aspx
I have the opportunity to get these. Has anyone any experience?
Morten.
What about Denso?
http://aftermarket.denso-europe.com/Spark-Plugs---1000620000000001.aspx
I have the opportunity to get these. Has anyone any experience?
Morten.
Also a very good plug and rated very highly ..they also do an irudium plug ..still for me its NGK's
Would be interesting to see if the Bosch were OK in stilo02's car so if you've fitted them lets have a report on how they are in your 1.6
If you put new plugs in and the performance is worse then that's a fair test and a fair comment to say they were worse.
But if you remove old, worn out plugs and replace them with new shiny Do Da plugs and say "Ooo the performance is so much better" then obviously that's not a fair test and very unreliable info. Plugs start losing performance after as little as 1000 miles
The iridium plugs have hard electrodes so they can make the electrode much thinner than standard plugs so there's less junk in the way of the flame. Put your thumb over your lips and blow and you get the idea how the gas sees the spark with standard plugs, then use just your little finger and that's the difference, there's less junk in the way of the flame.
For the same reason, you can often get better performance from a single point plug rather than a multi electrode type- less junk in the way again. The multi electrode is just to prolong service life, the rest of the scaffolding is just in the way of the flame
Now we're talking milliseconds here so it's a bit individual to each engine. Compression ratios differ, fuel type and driving styles affect things. Even the compression on each cylinder will also differ and the fuel mix depends on what your doing with the gas pedal on each revolution so it's very individual to an engine. What suits one engine may not be good in the next. What works best is what works best.
Personally i find NGKs at 0.9mm gap (.035") work much better on my 1.6 than the gap they are shipped out at of 0.8mm.
Point to note, when you look at Sparkplug suppliers websites and key in all your vehicle details, it comes up with the spark plug type and a spark plug gap but that is just the gap the plugs are shipped out with and not necessarily the recommended gap for your vehicle. So don't just buy new single point plugs and bang them in assuming the gap to be correct
But if you remove old, worn out plugs and replace them with new shiny Do Da plugs and say "Ooo the performance is so much better" then obviously that's not a fair test and very unreliable info. Plugs start losing performance after as little as 1000 miles
The iridium plugs have hard electrodes so they can make the electrode much thinner than standard plugs so there's less junk in the way of the flame. Put your thumb over your lips and blow and you get the idea how the gas sees the spark with standard plugs, then use just your little finger and that's the difference, there's less junk in the way of the flame.
For the same reason, you can often get better performance from a single point plug rather than a multi electrode type- less junk in the way again. The multi electrode is just to prolong service life, the rest of the scaffolding is just in the way of the flame
Now we're talking milliseconds here so it's a bit individual to each engine. Compression ratios differ, fuel type and driving styles affect things. Even the compression on each cylinder will also differ and the fuel mix depends on what your doing with the gas pedal on each revolution so it's very individual to an engine. What suits one engine may not be good in the next. What works best is what works best.
Personally i find NGKs at 0.9mm gap (.035") work much better on my 1.6 than the gap they are shipped out at of 0.8mm.
Point to note, when you look at Sparkplug suppliers websites and key in all your vehicle details, it comes up with the spark plug type and a spark plug gap but that is just the gap the plugs are shipped out with and not necessarily the recommended gap for your vehicle. So don't just buy new single point plugs and bang them in assuming the gap to be correct
Last edited:
My plugs were changed at service interval last time, to NGK Fiat/Lanica brand. These have most likely 0.8 mm gap. And using NGK's search engine I find new plugs, both standard and iridium, shipping at 0.8 mm gap.
But using Denso's search engine, the gap is 0.9 mm. I am planning to buy and test the Denso plugs...
So what is the benefits of this microscopic increase in gap length? And why do they produce plugs with different gap lengths to the same engine / car?
Morten.
With the bigger gap the spark has to jump that little further and the result in it doing so is a brighter spark and bigger bang for your buck
Very illustrating answer, Phil. But using my anti-engineering mind, I think this would delay ze big bang aswell as it has to jump longer.
M.
But using my anti-engineering mind, I think this would delay ze big bang aswell as it has to jump longer.M.
FiatStilo02
New member
- Joined
- Apr 25, 2007
- Messages
- 68
- Points
- 22
replaced spark plugs with bosch ones (thanks to pnl), however no joy- didnt improve performance at all. :bang:
I didnt think for one moment they would but you were more that welcome to have them they were of no use to me ..back to NGK then on your next service
Very illustrating answer, Phil.
M.
I'm talking milliseconds here for the jump .. and dont take that out of context either :devil:
OP
OP
They are not a "install these and gain 400hp" trick, but surely the engine runs smoother, even just because the plugs are new?
its weird how everyone gets different results.
on my 1.8 i found the bosch super4's made it noticably worse compared to the old worn NGK's. i thought the ecu may need a chance to relearn the ignition timings and adapt, but after a fortnight i took them out and threw them in the bin, going back to some NGK's, and the improvement was immediately noticable. people always told me to keep away from bosch plugs, but curiosity got the better of me, now i know better.
on my 1.8 i found the bosch super4's made it noticably worse compared to the old worn NGK's. i thought the ecu may need a chance to relearn the ignition timings and adapt, but after a fortnight i took them out and threw them in the bin, going back to some NGK's, and the improvement was immediately noticable. people always told me to keep away from bosch plugs, but curiosity got the better of me, now i know better.
The Denso plugs are now ordered, and will enter my Stilo as soon as they get here. The seller adviced me not to get the iridium version, as it was just a waste of money. Is it a race car / heavily modified street car? No. Then it will not have any improvements at all. So 4 standard plugs then. But they have 0.9 mm gap. The Fiat NGKs have lasted 8000 km. Will I notice any difference? Don't think so, but interresting to see.
Morten.
Morten.
anthonytutton
New member
Alexgs. How does your car manage 35mpg around town? Mine is only averaging 25mpg with a combination of town and motorway driving?
Might change my spark plugs to ngk to see if it gets better?
Might change my spark plugs to ngk to see if it gets better?
- Joined
- May 8, 2005
- Messages
- 9,053
- Points
- 1,538
interesting thread, i was also talked into buying bosch super 4's, i didnt notice any difference atall compaired to my old 2 prong ones but was a little annoyed as i was talked out of getting the iridium plugs
