NGK's advice for MSP

[BOOSTR]

I asked NGK about the plugs in our cars and if a copper plug was better for a turbo application. Specifically asked about PZFR6F vs BKR7E.

Here is what they said.

"Hello,

All NGK Spark Plugs are copper core. It's the firing end design that's different. Remember NGK engineers work closely with Mazda engineers to produce a spark plug that's best suited for the application. The reason they use the fine wire platinum design are as follows.

1. Lower voltage required to fire the spark plug. Improves ignition
efficiency.
2. Longer service life
3. Enhanced ignitability
4. Lower emissions
5. Less quenching
6. better anti fouling

The BKR7E is a nickel alloy spark plug and will wear very quickly. You won't obtain a complete burn of the A/F mixture as with the double platinum series. In addition to this the PZFR is an extended projected design. This means the A/F mixture will be ignited towards the center of the combustion chamber. This means stable idle and improved combustion. If you use the nickel spark plug the ZFR series is a better choice. I would highly recommend using the new iridium IX series. BKR7EIX if you need cooler spark
plugs.

Jon MacQuarrie
Technical Customer Service Representative
jmacquarrie@ngksparkplugs.com"

GOOD INFO IN MY OPINION!

[DiscreetSpeed]

cool thanx for the info.

[funnylittlman]

Good stuff for upped boosted proteges :D

[speedfrk]

Im sticking with copper myself dont give a shat what ngk says. platnium is bad in turbo application even if its just the tips.

[jflo]

can u elaborate on why platinum is bad...just want to know.

anyway, this is cool information to consider

[mspdfreak]

Would a stock MSP benefit from these "cooler" plugs?

(sorry to jack)

[MSPDAVE125]

Originally posted by speedfrk
Im sticking with copper myself dont give a shat what ngk says. platnium is bad in turbo application even if its just the tips.

You're right! Platinum is not ideal for ANY turbo'd engine.


But don't rule out Irdium. Iridium is a much harder and more durable material than copper and Iridium plugs will withstand much higher cylinder temps and last much longer.

Gapping your plugs is critical too!

Most tuners will tell you that a .032 or even .030 gap is ideal for colder plugs in a turbo engine

I gap my NGK Iridiums to .030.

[funnylittlman]

When I get my plugs changed at 30K, I'll consider going to Iridium

[Mark94]

Where is the best place to find the iridium plugs? Can we find them at local auto part stores or do they have to be ordered online?

Thanks!

Mark

[MSPDAVE125]

Originally posted by Mark94
Where is the best place to find the iridium plugs? Can we find them at local auto part stores or do they have to be ordered online?

Thanks!

Mark

Just quote the NGK part # to your Auto Zone or Pep Boys Sales Rep and they'll probably have them in stock.

[mazdadan]

I put NGK V-power plugs in my ES. No real performance improvements, but the engine ran a bit smoother. My ES has regular Denso plugs from the factory. Some engines have NGK which are basically the same thing.

Like others said, I would stay away from the platinum plugs. Platinum plugs don't give as smooth of an idle, but the benefit is that they last a little longer. Personally I don't mind changing plugs every 30K miles since they are so inexpensive.

With my diesel engine i'm in hog heaven....no plugs to change...ever!!!

[jersey_emt]

Originally posted by mazdadan
With my diesel engine i'm in hog heaven....no plugs to change...ever!!!

What about glow plugs? :p

[TheJohnny]

There just trying to promote their new plugs.....J/K. I'm using the BKR7E's.

[Kooldino]

I also run BKR7E's gapped to .035. BUT, when the car isn't warm on a cold day, they'll misfire @ 5KRPM and up. I guess i'll either go with "hotter" plugs or close the gap, or both.

[unwrittenLaw]

so whats the consensus from the experts in here for boosted cars....iridium or copper...?? I have the copper ones as a precaution even though i don't raise the boost, because i would rather have cooler plugs vs longer-lasting plugs...

[TampaBlackMSP]

I've been happy with my BKR7E's, but might consider the iridium after 30K as well...no problems to date so far however...

[robsir00]

Hey Guys...

I heard that iridium plugs by denso are very good for turbo apps . The tip is made out of an astroids fragments that hit the world 50 million years ago. They can withstand lots of heat.
http://www.densoiridium.com/index.php?flash=1

[robsir00]

If i recall correctly Turbo mag or superstreet did a test on a turbo powered car and gained about 15-20 hp

[MSPDAVE125]

Originally posted by robsir00
If i recall correctly Turbo mag or superstreet did a test on a turbo powered car and gained about 15-20 hp

Yeah a freakin fully built drag civic running a T3 super 60 at 25 psi on spray!

Of course you'll gain 20 hp off spark plugs with a setup like that!

You'll maybe smooth out your existing HP at 6 psi. But they do help!

[robsir00]

Hey Guys this says it all...From the denso page

Iridium Alloy

In a never-ending effort to improve upon success, DENSO developed an Iridium alloy that is superior to platinum based on hardness, strength and melting point. The new Iridium alloy is composed primarily of Iridium with rhodium mixed in for oxidation wear. Pure Iridium has a melting point of almost 700ºC higher than platinum, and had the greatest potential for resistances against wear. Iridium by itself is susceptible to oxidation wear at temperatures over 900ºC, however, ordinary driving around town an engine would never reach these temperatures. Further testing proved that Iridium alone would not meet DENSO's demanding standards. After testing other pure metals combined with Iridium, rhodium proved to be the best choice to meet the needs of DENSO's spark plug engineers.





Originally posted by mspdfreak
Would a stock MSP benefit from these "cooler" plugs?

(sorry to jack)

[mspeedpro]

who cares, just replace the copper after a year, theyre $8....

[03BlkMicaSPD]

I will tell you that with the copper plugs, I get alot of fouling, at the track it almost stalled when I hit 2nd gear. when I was done running the idle would drop then come back up, drop then..... So I replaced my plugs and they were completely black, but not worn, and after I replaced my plugs it ran like a new car untill they fouled:(, I would hope that Iridium would help prevent fouling.

[03BlkMicaSPD]

Also, some of the hard starting is caused by the fouling of the plugs that our insanely rich cars causes. Put new plugs in it and notice how it fires up instantly.

[unwrittenLaw]

Yeah..I've read that the copper ones probably should be changed every 3 oil changes or so...guess it depends

[MSPDAVE125]

No plug fouling with the iridiums for me. Gapped to .030 and very clean after 6 months

[KyRaceFan]

I just put in bkr7e's. The car idles smoother, and it seems to be smoother up top. Im gonna try some denso iridiums next time i change the plugs.

[mazdadan]

Originally posted by jersey_emt
What about glow plugs? :p

Nope, no glow plugs on a Cummins Diesel.....I've got a manifold grid heater. The Ford Powerstokes use glow plugs though.

[wicked]

if i wre you guys id listen to what NGK says
they have tested the sh*t out of there plugs,and i garuntee
they know more about plugs then any one in this forum
but its not my car

[Glowmunkey]

I'd worry about Iridiums acting as a hot-spot in the combustion chamber... Personally I'd rather run the risk of fouling copper plugs... sure, iridium and platinum may last longer, but platinum can create pre-ignition, iridium may as well. Obviously iridium won't be able to transfer heat as well as copper, that's just basic metalurgy...

And why would you take NGK's word for it? They're in the business to sell a product, what they say should be taken with a grain of salt. They're a good company, but I personally wouldn't use anything but copper plugs while running more than stock boost.

Just my $0.02

[Black Majik MSP]

I got rough idle when I installed my BKR7Es...I think I'll be switching to the BKR7EIX. Thanks for the info! (thumb)

[soupedmsp]

ok from what i know about plugs if the heat rating is the same than that iridium plug would be a better choice right? bkr7e vs.bkr7eix correct me if im wrong

[speedfrk]

rough idle did you gap them properly?

[unwrittenLaw]

I just pulled out my ngk coppers and put in the Denso iridium...
Haven't noticed any negative changes yet..seems smooth, etc.
I'm hoping they'll get a better burn, and maybe fix the pinging I get at higher rmp's...They're a little more expensive, but they should last longer...

[Black Majik MSP]

Originally posted by speedfrk
rough idle did you gap them properly?

Gapped to .32 (the # I got from researching on here) & I checked the install several times. Only had them in for about 400 miles before I got sick of the idle & put the stock plugs back.

[Glowmunkey]

Originally posted by unwrittenLaw
I just pulled out my ngk coppers and put in the Denso iridium...
Haven't noticed any negative changes yet..seems smooth, etc.
I'm hoping they'll get a better burn, and maybe fix the pinging I get at higher rmp's...They're a little more expensive, but they should last longer...

They should actually make pinging worse... greater chance at pre-ignition...

[servoeyes]

or the pinging is being caused by fuel pooling due to the richness...turboge had this problem when tuning. he was getting detonation at overly rich levels (yes it's possible)...maybe the iridiums would actually help that out.

[robsir00]

I used the iridiums in My old 2000 Civic sir and found that the pinging at high rpm when using 89 octane gas in the winter went away . With 93 octane in the summer I found that alot less fumes were coming out of the exhaust with the iridiums buring the fuel more efficiantly . Theses are what im installing in my speed when I do my first oil change. Just my 2 cents.




Originally posted by Glowmunkey
They should actually make pinging worse... greater chance at pre-ignition...

[unwrittenLaw]

Originally posted by servoeyes
or the pinging is being caused by fuel pooling due to the richness...turboge had this problem when tuning. he was getting detonation at overly rich levels (yes it's possible)...maybe the iridiums would actually help that out.


this is why i'm trying them out :)

so far so good...no pinging.....when i pulled the ngk coppers out they were fairly black....

[phantom]

anyone knows where I can get NGK BKR7EIX for the best price? I got the ZFR6FIX-11 from the local store but I don't think that is the correct one right?

also, is denso better plug that NGK, if yes, what is the denso part # equivalent to BKR7EIX??

[Stormtrooper77]

IK22 (Denso)

ps. Good luck finding any of these plugs here. I asked if they can be specially ordered and their responses were "they don't even come up with a part number on file, how can we order them?"

[phantom]

IK22 (Denso)

ps. Good luck finding any of these plugs here. I asked if they can be specially ordered and their responses were "they don't even come up with a part number on file, how can we order them?"
I know, I'd already experienced from PartSource saying the only Iridium they can order is the ZFR6FIX-11 (which I'd brought), but then I found out I actually need the 7 heat range...

that's why I want to find out where I can buy them....


anyone?

[Stormtrooper77]

ebay

[Spooled]

Damn, this thing was brought back from the dead

[BOOSTR]

No shit. I replaced my plugs with the stock type again. Use whatever you want. I have had no problems with the stock plugs.