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Thread: Quick! Best spark plug for a DE!

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Posts: 41-50 of 55
2008-08-05 14:03:26
#41
Originally Posted by Vadim
Good tip thanks Rob

More at SE-R.net!

http://www.se-r.net/engine/platinum_copper_ngk.html

Read through the article to why the Platinums have a higher gap and look at the bottom bolded sentence.


^Good info right there.
2008-08-07 15:28:34
#42
Just my 2cents...i ordered STOCK plugs for my car from napa,what they sent was PFR5 something plugs,the same ones i pulled out of my car.i have never seen a BKR number as stock,only platinum 5 and 6 heat ranges.its not smart to use a non-platinum plug in an sr,but u can if you wnna be cheap.
i recently changed from the number 5 platinum to the six,now it doesnt idle good,but stills drives fine...
also,u shuoldnt gap platinum plugs,they are pre-gapped for your vehicle and gapping them usually damages the electrode,not always,but most of the time.ive done it,im a mechanic.
again,just my 2 cents,it comes down to personal preference in the end
2008-08-07 17:09:33
#43
Originally Posted by Power-Shift
Just my 2cents...i ordered STOCK plugs for my car from napa,what they sent was PFR5 something plugs,the same ones i pulled out of my car.i have never seen a BKR number as stock,only platinum 5 and 6 heat ranges.its not smart to use a non-platinum plug in an sr,but u can if you wnna be cheap.
i recently changed from the number 5 platinum to the six,now it doesnt idle good,but stills drives fine...
also,u shuoldnt gap platinum plugs,they are pre-gapped for your vehicle and gapping them usually damages the electrode,not always,but most of the time.ive done it,im a mechanic.
again,just my 2 cents,it comes down to personal preference in the end


napa goes by the ngk catalog, that is why you got the platinum plugs. copper plugs will make more power and are cheaper. i can understand using a platinum plug on cars that make it more difficult to change such as a fwd v6 where the plenum has to come off to change. a number 6 heat range plug will not make your car idle like crap, check you plug wires, maybe one of the leads got damaged when you took them out. it definatly isn't because you changed the heat range, it is something other than that, i have ran both, in highport and lowport motors. you can re-gap platinum plugs, just have to be careful. this thread is rediculous, i'm done
2008-08-08 18:40:27
#44
Originally Posted by Vadim




Shawn, I will have to apologies to you, I miss read one of your first posts, about Nissan never using the non-platinum plugs. Do to your wording I thought you meant to say that Nissan never used/released a Platinum plug.

This does make it interesting. If Nissan didn't really test the regular plugs and just put them in the manual as a cheaper alternative.

Now for Platinums and Iridiums, did you mention that you do gap them or you don't? Also can you translate the 1.1mm to 1.4mm into standard numbers? .044 is which?

Thanks



I always check the gaps on any plugs I install, as far as gaping paltinum plugs goes, if you have the right tool and use it correctly you can gap them ... but alot of people dont know or use the right tool incorrectly and that will ruin the platinum electrode ..

1.1mm is .044in. ... I have ran stock to all out built SR's on 1.1mm and never had any issues ... the wilder NA SR's I run around .047in and have always seen gains and never had any issues even after running them over 20K miles ...

I just cant see Nissan having less gap with a non Platinum plug over a Platinum plug on one engine ... since there isnt any other engine I have ever seen that calls for that ...
2008-08-08 19:29:45
#45
True, but from what I was reading on SE-R.net it seems like it is like this:

The Platinum plugs don't require as much energy from the engine to go from electrode to the ground electrode. But since the spark is weaker they had to increase the gap to get the same effect as using a regular plug at say .035 gap.

Now if you have a B14, which has a stronger system, you can probably get away with running a regular plug at .044 and will get gains. But from what it seems like the B13's system is not as strong.

I can't remember the technical words, so please fill them in
2008-08-09 01:00:48
#46
Explain t0 me why a copper plug will will make more hp over a platinum thatbthe car came with?noty being condecending or sarcastic,just curious cuz i never hard that before.i cant seem to think how a copper plug could generate more efficient combustion then a platinum plug,which to the best of my knowledge is more conducive
2008-08-09 02:21:46
#47
Originally Posted by Power-Shift
Explain t0 me why a copper plug will will make more hp over a platinum thatbthe car came with?noty being condecending or sarcastic,just curious cuz i never hard that before.i cant seem to think how a copper plug could generate more efficient combustion then a platinum plug,which to the best of my knowledge is more conducive



http://www.se-r.net/engine/platinum_copper_ngk.html



All things being equal, a more powerful spark will create higher cylinder pressure which will create more power. The power of a spark is determined by its voltage (more voltage = more powerful spark).

Aside from variables such as cylinder pressure and A/F ratio, the amount of voltage required to jump across the gap of a given type of spark plug is determined by the plug gap. A smaller plug gap requires less voltage to jump across the gap and a larger plug gap requires more voltage to jump across the gap.

There is a way to reduce the amount of voltage required to jump across the gap of a plug. By increasing the number of sharp edges that the spark can jump from and to (as in SplitFire and Torquemaster plugs) or by using an electrode material that is a more efficient conductor than the standard steel material (like platinum) you can decrease the amount of voltage required to "jump the gap".The only problem is that these "specialty" plugs will produce a less powerful spark than a standard plug will at the same gap. This means that, as long as your ignition system can provide enough voltage to jump the gap on the spark plug all of the time, with these "specialty" plugs installed in your car your engine will produce less power than it will with standard spark plugs. The only way you can regain the power lost with these "specialty" plugs is to open their gap out farther (a wider gap requires more voltage to jump the gap).

I've seen a number of cases where people have installed SplitFire, Torquemaster or platinum plugs in their car in the place of standard spark plugs and have complained of reduced power. In all of these cases the specialty plugs were installed using the plug gap specified for the car's original standard plugs (with the exception of the Torquemaster, whose gap is not adjustable). The reduced spark power due to the reduced voltage requirement of these plugs was the culprit.

Nissan DID address this problem by specifying a larger plug gap when using platinum plugs (0.039" to 0.044") instead of standard plugs (0.032" to 0.035"). In this case, the platinums will produce roughly the same spark energy as the standard plugs while providing an extended service interval (50K to 60K miles for platinums versus 20K to 30K miles for standards).


I posted the link to that page earlier
2008-08-10 16:18:00
#48
ah,after reading the article that does make sense.
now,is the power difference even noticeable?i have never used coppers before and if i were to put them in in place of the platinums,would i feel it?
also,could i add just a little more gap to the platinum,(Like .48-.50)to make up said power difference?
2008-08-10 18:22:50
#49
Originally Posted by Power-Shift
ah,after reading the article that does make sense.
now,is the power difference even noticeable?i have never used coppers before and if i were to put them in in place of the platinums,would i feel it?
also,could i add just a little more gap to the platinum,(Like .48-.50)to make up said power difference?


I doubt you would feel a power difference, but it would help your engine run more efficiently, and eventually with enough little mods, the car just gets faster
2008-08-11 00:17:12
#50
ok.and wat about the heat range,is a 5 better for the mods i have?(mods in sig)
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