Back in the day, Autolite was the go-to plug because they were built around "Fire-Ring" technology. That was a center electrode with fine splines around the outside which presented a series of "points" for the spark to jump from. So they would light a fire with a somewhat wider gap w/o missing a beat. A wider gap made for a bigger corona and a bigger flame kernel. That made for a more consistent clean ignition all the way up to 6~7K, even though the dwell time was shrinking and the coil(s) was struggling. Autolite have since done away with fire ring plugs (too bad), but they are still very reliable plugs for street engines of any king. For race motors I generally use fine wire plugs because they start with a very small alloy center electrode that sort of does what the Fire Ring used to do - small point for the spark to jump off of. The next good "trick" is to make a dedicated ground wire for the distributor body. That current that fired the plug has to return, so the coil must be cleanly connected to the engine block/head and the distributor body/point plate must too. I used #6 wire with crimped and soldered connectors grounded from an extra long condenser screw to a clean bolt on the engine. You will pick up some spark energy with clean ground paths :)
@@johnwilburn I've used both Champions and Autolite, best results (by memory) were Autolite. That said, I have magneto engines many decades old, which still have their original Champions in them.
Excellent comment. I`ve had engines that absolutely would not run with champion spark plugs even though they were the correct ones for the application, new and sparking blue. Change to a different plug and they would fire right up. I`ve also had the same thing happen with different brands of ignition points. I`ve had two motorcycles, a KZ 1000 and a KZ 900 that just wouldn`t run at all on any common plug. Change them to a NKG or a Nippendenso and they would run just fine. The 1000 wouldnt run on anything other than a high quality Accel brand or a Nippendenso Hot U-Tip. (Granted the 1000 was modified a little bit). That Nippendenso Hot U-Tip was a fine plug which I don`t think is in production anymore either.
Tony, Thanks for your tremendous knowledge and energy behind your voice and presentations... But more than anything, your true honesty, & passion behind your videos... I have just acquired a 66 Fairlane GTA big block and along with my 14 yr. old son Drew, we have been learning a great deal from you and your followers. BIG SHOUTOUT TO ALL OF YOU from Los Angeles, CALI!!!
Uncle Tony, I'm a man with classic tastes. When I saw that this video was freshly posted a few minutes ago, I turned off Beethoven's Sixth Symphony to learn about spark plugs. Went from one genius to another!
Thank you Uncle Tony, I definitely got good knowledge out of this video. I learned a lot, well, relearned it, since as you were teaching, I recalled my Dad saying the same things. I look forward to each of your videos.
Uncle Tony... YOU are hard core Mopar and all that it represents. Thank you for passing on your knowledge and cool stories. The hot rod world forever thanks you.
I really appreciate your honesty on knowledge of what you know and what you don’t and how you even say you need to read up on info, im so In love with classics it’s addicting
Tony, I am 73, years ago I ran a 68 Charge RT, I tried Champion plug's, AC plug's and Autolite. The car ate plug's. My dad had a friend who had a Taxie company and used Molars. So as a young fellow I went down to speak with the older fellow. When it told him my problem, he said son, I only use AGe's Autolite!! Problem solved. Still have the car and used NGK now!! Willard
Somebody needs to send David Freiburger a message to see if he can do an Engine Masters test on side gapping plugs. I've never seen anyone do that before
@@srednadahlberg agreed but he's generally laying out the facts of the tests or explaining why some tests aren't what they seem due to certain factors, etc. He doesn't just talk for the he'll of if.
Years ago when I was in tech school a GM engineer gave us a very short talk about parts. I will always remember when he said, "We make parts to fit our cars."
Not to throw dirt in uncle Tony's face by no means, Have done side gapping and indexed the plugs to face toward the Exhaust valve, noticeable idle quality and get up and go! Done on a 361 BB Chrysler. Other notes: Left more of a complete burn of the A/F mixture little to no fouling of any kind aside from oil burning, Pretty good performance for a 'Tired" engine with compression ranging from 119 to 124 across the eight cylinders.
I've tried them all over the years, even the "gimmick" plugs (Does anyone else remember the Accel U-groove plugs?). These days, I run OEM plugs in my drivers because I've found that they work best. For my performance engines, I stick with NGK. In my experience, I've also found that (except for my roto tiller) Autolite is tops for small engines such as lawn/garden equipment, generators etc. My tiller has a Honda engine and likes NGK plugs.
BS on the Accel Plugs. I have several sets of them and in fact one set is still in use in my BBC right now. Some of the best plugs I have ever used. The set that's in the BBC have just over 75 passes on them.
Just watched this video again, and also just remembered how my late father preferred Autolite plugs. He swore they lasted longer & didn't foul as easily as other brands.
Tony please show people how to use that gapping tool , there are so many people who don’t know how use that specific tool , I learned from an old timer when I was in my 40s .
I'm definitely a fan of those good old Bosch platinums, over 100k miles without any problems from them back when with my Datsun L-20B engine that I flailed constantly. ported head, cam, offy intake, weber, header etc.. it was putting an honest 165-170 hp to the wheels, not bad for what it was.
@@rebelcowboy5.7l98 Yeah. Stay away from champion cooper spark plugs. Champions don't even last 15,000 miles or one year of driving. Champions are only good for small generators nowadays.
I just came across your channel a few days ago and I must say I enjoy your content and subbed you. Thanks for the enjoyable vids! I drive a modern mopar. A 2014 challenger R/T but my love of Mopar’s will always be the classics!
About a month ago I had a miss, under a load, in my Dodge ram. I pulled the plugs, and #5 center electrode porclin was cracked and loose. The only thing stopping it from dropping into the cylinder and making an expensive mess, was the ground strap.
Very interesting, thanks. I tried indexing the plugs on my 1984 P.O.S. carby GM 6 cylinder and I did find a noticeable difference in responsiveness. I rotated the open part of the gap towards the inlet valve on each cylinder. I've yet to try it on my Mopar V8s but will look forward to that as well as the side gapping trick which I had heard about but did not know what it actually entailed.
Hey UNC keep on doing this it will keep helping u more then any of us. Also plenty of smart asz s on here for further research good dayz unto u big UNC
Hello Unk , Tony... I'm also a Tony from South West Detroit area ( Taylor ) grew up in a Ford employee family . The recession hit in 1989 when it was my turn what a bummer that was! my grandfather was pretty much a car nut in a suburb area had 7 to 8 antique and muscle cars in the garage driveway and all around the house at all times including a being converted Greyhound bus for a few years to our neighbors work are nuts to a hemi 68 roadrunner on one side and a 59 Ford ranchero with a 427 tunnel port on the other so I was in good company I had to 7428 Cobra jet for speed Mach 1 before that first car was a 68 Shelby GT350 fastback also had 69 Dodge dart 440 what's up 5-speed lenco I'll stop there cuz it goes on and on but I will say that presently I don't drive a Ford or a Mopar I've got a 1976 Chevy Laguna mildly built 350 it's my daily driver nobody in Seattle has one and so I'm in constant communication with those that appreciate it even though 99% have no idea what it is lol I really appreciate your knowledge and your personality and if I was back there I would enjoy working on any vehicle with you I'm sure keep up the good work and I'll keep watching ! PS - your old school buddy with the original King Cobra he's a good old dude - He knows more about cars in his left ear than I know in my whole body ( and not a whole lot of people got that on me😊) Tony and the Laguna-tic
I never thought about breaking the ceramic during gapping. Learn something new every day. Don't know if they still do these days, but NASCAR crew chiefs & their engine builders used to pay a lot of money to have actual engineers from the spark plug manufacturer to read their spark plugs under super magnification. I always found that very interesting. Also: For all you guys running Japanese motors: I bought a new Tacoma 4x4 in 2000 with the ultra-durable 3RZ-FE engine. Over 361,000 miles now, and still running strong. I befriended a Toyota dealership tech/mechanic. He told me NEVER run an American made spark plug in a Japanese motor. "You can", but for whatever reason, the USA plugs will give you poorer fuel economy in Japanese engines, plus they foul out rather soon. You should run ND or NGK in a Japanese motor. I've had several other mechanics for Honda & Toyota say the same thing since then. What's funny, is American engines take a Japanese plug just fine. Go figure.
@@rebelcowboy5.7l98 If you're running a Japanese engine, especially Toyota, I would just stick with ND or NGK. I'm assuming Bosch plugs cost more, and whether they do or not, why try something that may not work as well as what's already proven. Here's an interesting tid bit/short story: My buddy "Charles" living down the road who is now deceased, was a fairly experienced mechanic. He was standing there when my Toyota "guru" buddy warned me about the above information. Immediately, Charles replied: "I believe you, because my ex-wife bought new plugs for her Tacoma & asked if I would install them. Those plugs fouled very soon & I wondered what the hell was going on because they were the correct plug, but they were USA made plugs".....end quote. So there ya have it.
@@rebelcowboy5.7l98 All I'm saying is American plugs for whatever reason, don't work so well in Japanese engines. Well, "they work", but fuel economy suffers and they foul out fairly quickly. But I never really had a problem with American plugs in any of my American vehicles, ( I used mostly Autolite because my dad was a good mechanic & he liked em ), and all of my vehicles were American, until I bought my 2000 Tacoma 4x4 new. Still driving & beating on it to this day, 21 yrs later, with 370,000 miles on original engine & drivetrain. I live in Florida ( not on the beach ), so I don't have those rust issues like they do up north with salted winter roads. Yet the Japanese plugs supposedly work fine in American vehicles. Go figure.
When it comes to spark plugs in basically stock cars/trucks, I have always recommended what the manufacturer calls for! Otherwise I go by the rule of japan cars japanese plugs, German car Bosch plugs and so on.
Many years ago I had an alpha romeo and they used a brand called “golden lodge” and four plugs was about 200 bucks the instructions said after installing them to a cold motor start the motor and let it run at 2000 RPM for 20 minutes and if you don’t do that it didn’t cure the glue internally and it didn’t cure the ceramic in the and it shortened the life so you basically had to run in the spark plugs......!!!! I thought it was BS myself they had four tangs on them.... You can still buy on eBay if you check em out....
Asked you about side gapping plugs in a live stream once and you said you didn't think it helped much. I had already tried and it had a pretty big effect on both my 360 in my Satellite daily and my 305 in my TA. I gap them first and then cut them with a small cutting wheel on a dremel tool.
I know that in TIG welding, you grind the tungsten in the the direction of electron flow for better spark. Would that be something worth doing after cutting the ground strap?
We tried it too and saw a whole high 2 hp average. Considering the time and extra thread wear, the return isn't worth it. Side gapping proved MUCH more beneficial where we saw about 5 hp.
Autolites and AC Delco Pro Conventional are the best no bullshit plugs for your dollar, it's sad to see so many people buying plugs that are $20 each thinking they'll do wonders for their stock daily driver.
I ran Autolites in my Mopars for many years, but with my current '68 GTX, I've been running the original P34 Mopar (J11 Champion) plugs that I pick up off eBray - a new set every year in the ol' 440. (Champion doesn't make them anymore and Autolites I've bought in recent years just aren't made like they used to be, sadly). Nary a problem running original stuff and the cost isn't too bad, usually around $50 shipped. Gives me the warm and fuzzies on the originality front, too. -Ed on the Ridge
I use ACDelco in my Ecotec and AutoLites in my Pentastar. They run real nice. Always had good luck with motors in my used cars. I remember my Lumina had a 3.1 l and it ran like a song. I had friends that had some and they ran real rough. That was the car that I broke the plugs. Did a tune-up and didn't run right. Pulled the plugs and found out that I broke 2 of them.
Thank you I have had issues with my Turbo car spitting out the spark, Cannot go above 9PSi right now. Once the spark is correct I should definitely feel the boost
Good job Ton also I may add with all my years experience on the inertia wheel Dyno in the blown engines the side cutting the ground strap depending on your ignition has a small advantage we've actually tested it and I still have some of the dino sheets like you said you must know your engine! In the hemis's b9es was the standard and then when number six would give you a fit we would throw a number b10 sixes and number fives are weird on the hemi! Your egts can fail you must know how to read your plugs! Y'all have a good day
since your doing experiments on the dart try these plugs - NGK ZFR5N for a 2002 jeep cherokee 4.0 these plugs have a longer tower / electrodes ALLPAR.COM did an article . they will work for slant 6 ,273 -360 or 383 440 . they move the arc away from the head to prevent arcing from plug to head and move the spark closer to the center of the pistion in the path of fuel/ air creating a better burn and HP . Wouldnt hurt to try ? Appreciate your time and videos Tony 😎🤘✌🇺🇸
I’ve always gone by the manufacturer. If it’s GM I use either Autolite or AC Delco. If it’s Ford, I use motorcraft. If it’s dodge, Mercedes, etc I use NGK. Had a friend use Bosch in his GMC. He had a P0300 afterwards (misfire on multiple cylinders). He went back to AC Delco and had no issues. My 81’ F150 ran like crap on Autolite but runs well with Motorcraft. Im curious about E3 plugs. Also, thank you for the information. Crazy how much there is behind a simple spark plug.
I've had issues with Bosch too but I think it's certain ones. Just tossed a set of R45 equivalents in my Buick and they run like a champ. My 460 Ford fuel injected has Bosch in it and they run good too. These are the cheepie copper, not fancy platinum.
AC Delco R44TX gapped at .40 in the old '75 C-20 since Dad bought it new. Changed every six months, when he did his tune ups, oil and filter changes. which always left boxes of good, runable plugs on the shelf. And damn they made good spark in the 389 when I was a teenager and the damn '66 GTO needed plugs.
@@rebelcowboy5.7l98 her engine has 75754.8 miles on it for the sixth time I know of. And I have been driving her since she was brand new in Oct of 74. She's an early '75. So maybe the old man was on to something. All I know is she starts every time, the oil gauge comes up to normal as always,the gas gauge goes down as it always does, She drives,and she has always got me home. No matter how bad I've hurt her. And she's two day's older than my wife.
Mr tony. How do you determine what car is a classic and what car will be a classic?? I have an 1987 442 that I bought for my sons 16th. Then I bought it back from him when he wanted to sell it. It’s sat in my garage for the last 15 yrs. Some people tell me it’s a classic and some say it’ll never be a classic. Without removing the carpet, I’d say it’s about 75% 85% solid. Is the 87 442 worth the restoration????
So trim the ground strap to improve the relationship between the spark and the fuel mix. On any engine? Is this something only to do on hot rod engines or would you do this on your old commuter with 300,000 plus miles on it? Does it increase temperature inside the combustion chamber or just improves relationship between fuel and ignition source?
You know, I HAVE been struggling with what plug to use in my diesels; can’t seem to get them to color right and they always run off-temp...😃😄🤣🖖😎👍 @2:34 don’t know about you...but that sounds like a better night than I’ve had in TOO long 😳😜
@@MrTheHillfolk I buy them pre-gapped all my small blocks and big blocks run .35 even my 355 that melts normal plugs.. they all run great also with older engines a lot of people don't know this but new fuel burns different. Don't run 12 degrees initial bump it up till it starts sounding right and pull the plugs for color check.
After 45+ years of doing auto and truck work, I’ve decided that manufacturers plugs work better in their engines.When was running hard in the early 60s my small block Chevy did it’s best with 44 s in her.....
My Vauxhall (GM of England) was recommended to use Delco plugs. I had a misfire at low RPM. Got another set of plugs and had a misfire at higher RPM. Went to NGK and never had a problem. My parents had a near new GM car that also developed a misfire after a plug change...
I use dremels to cut 2 of the 3 ground straps off the E3s because they are a none adjustable gap plug. And file the last remaining ground strap and gap appropriately to experiment with them E3s
Thanks - I never knew that forcing the gapping tool to open the gap could crack the insulator - makes sense though - that thin electrode is cantilevered from way down in the plug body and even moderate force on the end towards the side could bend it, causing the brittle ceramic insulator to crack.
I have a heavily modified 1968 307 and I only run copper core autolites. They burn hot, don't seem to foul up as easy. Usually I change mine yearly (I take them out and clean them by putting urethane reducer or laqure thinner on them and burning any soot or carbon off them, wiped them off with the same thing, dry them, sand tbe contacts with sandpaper, check tbe GAP just so I feel safe and then I blow them out really good with the air compressor, then put them back) I do this seasonally but I swear by them. We used to only use acdelco and accel but we've found for a fraction of tbe price, you get an equally great, if not better, spark plug. And before anyone takes a huge dump on me having a built 307, bet you didn't know straight from GM 1968 back CHEVY engines had a steel crank, and "H beam" style connecting rods did you? Oh it's 2 bolt main? Yea but the rod caps are HUGE, have alot meat around tbe bolt holes and in some ways equal, if not, maybe stronger than 4 bolt main. SMALL CUBIC INCHES? You're damm right. Less stress to get from one end to the other at the track. We only have 1/8th mile close to me. Same bore as a 283, same stroke as a 327, and mines punch 40. And decked. It's the "little boat anchor that could " forsure
Call me whatever, I typically stick with the plug the factory chose UNLESS I've changed the tune in a way the original choice doesn't cut it. In the case of direct fuel injection, if I'm inclined (in some cases the OEM recommends it), I'll index the opening of the plug toward the injector.
That's the way to go. I've thrown out too many basically new sets of Autolites from factory-spec rides because they were misfiring. Unless the engine has crazier stuff than a mild cam (and forget bolt-ons), the OEM plugs are going to run best.
Great video as always! And more videos pls! You're my favorite channel, next to Nick's (and I'm a Ford guy- go figure). Love the esoteric, old school tuning stuff you're so good at.
NGK NON RESISTER ftw. NON resister is key. Dead on consistent running 12:1 and VP113 . Not any more noticeable power but I've noticed about a few thousandths in consistency
Tony I have the duel point distributor that came new in my 70 340 dart swinger and I have been thinking about putting pertonix in it. Can I use Pertronix in that distributor?
I watched as stock plugs on a 5.7 Hemi (16) gap taken from .030 to .012. substantial HP gain. I was Amazed. So, question about side gapping, are you measuring an exact amount off each ground? Or eyeballing at the edge of the electrode, then gap it in?
I like Autolite and NGK. Never had any problems from either, mostly NGK. They were oe on all my bikes when I was little and first learning, and used them in my trucks and stuff as they branched out and became more visible in that market. When my 2000 f150 was new, the ONLY option was motorcraft platinums, for 5 or 6 bucks a pop. No wonder people wanted to stick with the 100k service interval... But, ya see how that worked on most of em? 5.4's are junk cause I was too cheap to change my plugs at a logical mileage. I changed mine at 60k, and it's a wonder it was still running. Had like .60" gaps on all of em, but at least it was consistent... Then, Autolite and NGK started coming out with options for that engine, and were about a third of the price. I ran other platinums, and regular copper cores, didn't see much difference. Platinums would maybe last a bit longer, but they didn't justify the added cost.
I am a GM guy, tryed other plugs never worked out.. always used AC delco plug never a problem..one more lesson I learned that a new plug is not necessary a good one...
He probably found it in his shed next to a couple more 383s lol! I'm kidding of course but I find stuff like that all the time at swap meets and flea markets whether they're automotive related or not. Yes, I buy up all of the stuff that I find too.
ive never snipped a side strap to create such a change but just carefully filed the strap back exposing the centre electrode about 50%,i still gap them with a flat feeler blade then.
I've seen people cut the ground strap away so it doesn't cover the electrode, and instead has the gap between the side of the strap and electrode. I've even seen them grind 'V's' into the ground strap so they are like a splitfire plug, I havent seen much testing of this on the dyno though
It's actually very easy. Get cheap copper core, file off 2MM from the ground strap terminal to improve ignition. Personally I use a triangle file but the cutters are certainly faster. Don't worry about wear, the center pole wears faster than the ground. Unless you buy iridium this is the best, Possibly even better than iridium.
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I had some NGKs in an old Ford Courier so long the center electrode was worn below the center insulator and they never misfired. I was amazed.
Back in the day, Autolite was the go-to plug because they were built around "Fire-Ring" technology. That was a center electrode with fine splines around the outside which presented a series of "points" for the spark to jump from. So they would light a fire with a somewhat wider gap w/o missing a beat. A wider gap made for a bigger corona and a bigger flame kernel. That made for a more consistent clean ignition all the way up to 6~7K, even though the dwell time was shrinking and the coil(s) was struggling. Autolite have since done away with fire ring plugs (too bad), but they are still very reliable plugs for street engines of any king.
For race motors I generally use fine wire plugs because they start with a very small alloy center electrode that sort of does what the Fire Ring used to do - small point for the spark to jump off of.
The next good "trick" is to make a dedicated ground wire for the distributor body. That current that fired the plug has to return, so the coil must be cleanly connected to the engine block/head and the distributor body/point plate must too. I used #6 wire with crimped and soldered connectors grounded from an extra long condenser screw to a clean bolt on the engine. You will pick up some spark energy with clean ground paths :)
One aspect I like about GM HEI is dwell increases with RPM.
Autolite was the go-to plug because it was 69 cents and the Champions were well over a $1 each.
@@johnwilburn I've used both Champions and Autolite, best results (by memory) were Autolite. That said, I have magneto engines many decades old, which still have their original Champions in them.
Excellent comment.
I`ve had engines that absolutely would not run with champion spark plugs even though they were the correct ones for the application, new and sparking blue.
Change to a different plug and they would fire right up.
I`ve also had the same thing happen with different brands of ignition points.
I`ve had two motorcycles, a KZ 1000 and a KZ 900 that just wouldn`t run at all on any common plug. Change them to a NKG or a Nippendenso and they would run just fine.
The 1000 wouldnt run on anything other than a high quality Accel brand or a Nippendenso Hot U-Tip. (Granted the 1000 was modified a little bit).
That Nippendenso Hot U-Tip was a fine plug which I don`t think is in production anymore either.
good advice..thanks
Tony,
Thanks for your tremendous knowledge and energy behind your voice and presentations... But more than anything, your true honesty, & passion behind your videos... I have just acquired a 66 Fairlane GTA big block and along with my 14 yr. old son Drew, we have been learning a great deal from you and your followers. BIG SHOUTOUT TO ALL OF YOU from Los Angeles, CALI!!!
Uncle Tony, I'm a man with classic tastes. When I saw that this video was freshly posted a few minutes ago, I turned off Beethoven's Sixth Symphony to learn about spark plugs. Went from one genius to another!
Thank you Uncle Tony, I definitely got good knowledge out of this video. I learned a lot, well, relearned it, since as you were teaching, I recalled my Dad saying the same things. I look forward to each of your videos.
Uncle Tony... YOU are hard core Mopar and all that it represents. Thank you for passing on your knowledge and cool stories. The hot rod world forever thanks you.
I really appreciate your honesty on knowledge of what you know and what you don’t and how you even say you need to read up on info, im so In love with classics it’s addicting
I side gapped my plug in my push mower 😂😂 it actually runs better now, starts easier as well
Tony, I am 73, years ago I ran a 68 Charge RT, I tried Champion plug's, AC plug's and Autolite. The car ate plug's. My dad had a friend who had a Taxie company and used Molars. So as a young fellow I went down to speak with the older fellow. When it told him my problem, he said son, I only use AGe's Autolite!! Problem solved. Still have the car and used NGK now!!
Willard
Somebody needs to send David Freiburger a message to see if he can do an Engine Masters test on side gapping plugs. I've never seen anyone do that before
Got a better shot with Richard holdener. Less busy, in a good way
@@pewdsbetterthantseires84 good point and he checks all his comments
I was gonna say the same
@@Moparmaga-1 He does go on a bit.
@@srednadahlberg agreed but he's generally laying out the facts of the tests or explaining why some tests aren't what they seem due to certain factors, etc. He doesn't just talk for the he'll of if.
Love the UTG adjectives, "Tighten somewhere between cute and gorilla."
Years ago when I was in tech school a GM engineer gave us a very short talk about parts. I will always remember when he said, "We make parts to fit our cars."
Years later, now we can buy AC Delco labeled parts for a Ford, Dodge, or whatever, and the "we" listed on the box says Made in China. Sellouts.
@@Freedomquest08 I've worked in manufacturing since 1990. I've seen many of lazy people in my day. No wonder they moved to China...
Too bad GM doesn't manufacture spark plugs.
@@vorpalblades AC Delco
@@Stantonv Made by Nippondenso.
Thanks a bunch these vids have been helping me to dial in my hot rods for old school perfection.
Not to throw dirt in uncle Tony's face by no means, Have done side gapping and indexed the plugs to face toward the Exhaust valve, noticeable idle quality and get up and go! Done on a 361 BB Chrysler. Other notes: Left more of a complete burn of the A/F mixture little to no fouling of any kind aside from oil burning, Pretty good performance for a 'Tired" engine with compression ranging from 119 to 124 across the eight cylinders.
wow I totally forgot about the old school Mopar sparkplug packages - damn I'm old
Tony ever sense you blew away the mixed up Boss I've been a true believer in everything you say!
I've tried them all over the years, even the "gimmick" plugs (Does anyone else remember the Accel U-groove plugs?). These days, I run OEM plugs in my drivers because I've found that they work best. For my performance engines, I stick with NGK. In my experience, I've also found that (except for my roto tiller) Autolite is tops for small engines such as lawn/garden equipment, generators etc. My tiller has a Honda engine and likes NGK plugs.
I do. Used them in '63 383. They would foul quick. But advertising made them sound good
BS on the Accel Plugs. I have several sets of them and in fact one set is still in use in my BBC right now. Some of the best plugs I have ever used. The set that's in the BBC have just over 75 passes on them.
I used the Accel plugs in my AMC Gasser back in the 70s with Endele mechanical injection....only plugs that didn't foul!
Just watched this video again, and also just remembered how my late father preferred Autolite plugs. He swore they lasted longer & didn't foul as easily as other brands.
Side gapped vs. standard. Sounds like a good test for the Dart.
Tony please show people how to use that gapping tool , there are so many people who don’t know how use that specific tool , I learned from an old timer when I was in my 40s .
Bosch single platinums work great with the Mopar 318/360 magnum engine cylinder heads!
Going to get some for a 98 Ram 5.2 magnum (318). U say this is the one to get?
I'm definitely a fan of those good old Bosch platinums, over 100k miles without any problems from them back when with my Datsun L-20B engine that I flailed constantly. ported head, cam, offy intake, weber, header etc.. it was putting an honest 165-170 hp to the wheels, not bad for what it was.
@@rebelcowboy5.7l98 Yeah. Stay away from champion cooper spark plugs. Champions don't even last 15,000 miles or one year of driving. Champions are only good for small generators nowadays.
I just came across your channel a few days ago and I must say I enjoy your content and subbed you. Thanks for the enjoyable vids! I drive a modern mopar. A 2014 challenger R/T but my love of Mopar’s will always be the classics!
About a month ago I had a miss, under a load, in my Dodge ram. I pulled the plugs, and #5 center electrode porclin was cracked and loose. The only thing stopping it from dropping into the cylinder and making an expensive mess, was the ground strap.
Wow what brand plug was that? And r u sure nobody caused the crack?
@@rebelcowboy5.7l98 Champion plugs. I bought the truck in 2013 and put about 20 thousand miles on it.
@@mcenforcer566 so 1 more reason to avoid champions i guess. Glad u got lucky with it
uncle tony thank the gods your a mechanic and not a dentist :)
Autolites for sure. Especially in a Mopar. Don't know why, but Mopars love em.
Autolites in all my cars/trucks, NGKs in every motorcycle.
Yes Definitely Ngk in All bikes lol
Iridium spark plugs for 2 stroke engines are like butter on toast
Efficient... is so nice and purdy. Music to my ears
You are a legend. Thanks for highlighting the basics youre a good teacher. Time to go play with the spark plugs!
Can’t wait for the plug reading video
Very interesting, thanks. I tried indexing the plugs on my 1984 P.O.S. carby GM 6 cylinder and I did find a noticeable difference in responsiveness. I rotated the open part of the gap towards the inlet valve on each cylinder. I've yet to try it on my Mopar V8s but will look forward to that as well as the side gapping trick which I had heard about but did not know what it actually entailed.
Got alot out of this uncle tony thanks!!
Hey UNC keep on doing this it will keep helping u more then any of us. Also plenty of smart asz s on here for further research good dayz unto u big UNC
Hello Unk , Tony... I'm also a
Tony from South West Detroit area ( Taylor ) grew up in a Ford employee family .
The recession hit in 1989 when it was my turn what a bummer that was!
my grandfather was pretty much a car nut in a suburb area had 7 to 8 antique and muscle cars in the garage driveway and all around the house at all times including a being converted Greyhound bus for a few years to our neighbors work are nuts to a hemi 68 roadrunner on one side and a 59 Ford ranchero with a 427 tunnel port on the other so I was in good company I had to 7428 Cobra jet for speed Mach 1 before that first car was a 68 Shelby GT350 fastback also had 69 Dodge dart 440 what's up 5-speed lenco I'll stop there cuz it goes on and on but I will say that presently I don't drive a Ford or a Mopar I've got a 1976 Chevy Laguna mildly built 350 it's my daily driver nobody in Seattle has one and so I'm in constant communication with those that appreciate it even though 99% have no idea what it is lol
I really appreciate your knowledge and your personality and if I was back there I would enjoy working on any vehicle with you I'm sure keep up the good work and I'll keep watching !
PS - your old school buddy with the original King Cobra he's a good old dude - He knows more about cars in his left ear than I know in my whole body ( and not a whole lot of people got that on me😊) Tony and the Laguna-tic
Looking forward to the reading video.
Always so excited when I see a new uncle tony video pop up!! And your a legend for making over 25 minutes worth of videos about spark plugs .
I never thought about breaking the ceramic during gapping. Learn something new every day. Don't know if they still do these days, but NASCAR crew chiefs & their engine builders used to pay a lot of money to have actual engineers from the spark plug manufacturer to read their spark plugs under super magnification. I always found that very interesting. Also: For all you guys running Japanese motors: I bought a new Tacoma 4x4 in 2000 with the ultra-durable 3RZ-FE engine. Over 361,000 miles now, and still running strong. I befriended a Toyota dealership tech/mechanic. He told me NEVER run an American made spark plug in a Japanese motor. "You can", but for whatever reason, the USA plugs will give you poorer fuel economy in Japanese engines, plus they foul out rather soon. You should run ND or NGK in a Japanese motor. I've had several other mechanics for Honda & Toyota say the same thing since then. What's funny, is American engines take a Japanese plug just fine. Go figure.
Of course a quality plug will work well in a (relatively) substandard engine but not visa versa.
What about the bosch plugs? Tho i do like ngk best i think
@@rebelcowboy5.7l98 If you're running a Japanese engine, especially Toyota, I would just stick with ND or NGK. I'm assuming Bosch plugs cost more, and whether they do or not, why try something that may not work as well as what's already proven. Here's an interesting tid bit/short story: My buddy "Charles" living down the road who is now deceased, was a fairly experienced mechanic. He was standing there when my Toyota "guru" buddy warned me about the above information. Immediately, Charles replied: "I believe you, because my ex-wife bought new plugs for her Tacoma & asked if I would install them. Those plugs fouled very soon & I wondered what the hell was going on because they were the correct plug, but they were USA made plugs".....end quote. So there ya have it.
@@howabouthetruth2157 ok just bought some ngk plugs for a Hemi. The basic copper ones tho
@@rebelcowboy5.7l98 All I'm saying is American plugs for whatever reason, don't work so well in Japanese engines. Well, "they work", but fuel economy suffers and they foul out fairly quickly. But I never really had a problem with American plugs in any of my American vehicles, ( I used mostly Autolite because my dad was a good mechanic & he liked em ), and all of my vehicles were American, until I bought my 2000 Tacoma 4x4 new. Still driving & beating on it to this day, 21 yrs later, with 370,000 miles on original engine & drivetrain. I live in Florida ( not on the beach ), so I don't have those rust issues like they do up north with salted winter roads. Yet the Japanese plugs supposedly work fine in American vehicles. Go figure.
When it comes to spark plugs in basically stock cars/trucks, I have always recommended what the manufacturer calls for! Otherwise I go by the rule of japan cars japanese plugs, German car Bosch plugs and so on.
Many years ago I had an alpha romeo and they used a brand called “golden lodge” and four plugs was about 200 bucks
the instructions said after installing them to a cold motor start the motor and let it run at 2000 RPM for 20 minutes and if you don’t do that it didn’t cure the glue internally and it didn’t cure the ceramic in the and it shortened the life
so you basically had to run in the spark plugs......!!!!
I thought it was BS myself
they had four tangs on them....
You can still buy on eBay if you check em out....
Yes, Abarth plugs were like that as well.
Ah, the good old days...
Asked you about side gapping plugs in a live stream once and you said you didn't think it helped much. I had already tried and it had a pretty big effect on both my 360 in my Satellite daily and my 305 in my TA. I gap them first and then cut them with a small cutting wheel on a dremel tool.
where did you get the crank to make a 305?
@@Tumbleweed_Tx 305 is a stock small block chevy
@@Tumbleweed_Tx I have an 1981 305 SBC
NGK are probably the best plug sold in Australia outside of Denso, which are brilliant OEM plugs for Toyota/Lexus. Rarely see autolite down here
I've been using Denso awhile now. They just look and feel so much better quality than today's autolites.
R those made in Japan?
I know that in TIG welding, you grind the tungsten in the the direction of electron flow for better spark. Would that be something worth doing after cutting the ground strap?
The NGK are my go to plug
When I was in technical school we ran comparisons before/after indexing plugs and saw 5 to 7 horsepower gains.
We tried it too and saw a whole high 2 hp average. Considering the time and extra thread wear, the return isn't worth it. Side gapping proved MUCH more beneficial where we saw about 5 hp.
Autolites and AC Delco Pro Conventional are the best no bullshit plugs for your dollar, it's sad to see so many people buying plugs that are $20 each thinking they'll do wonders for their stock daily driver.
I put E3 plugs in my 96 Buick Roadmaster LT1. I don't know if it made any difference, but I got them pretty cheap. Runs great
The problem with them is the spark is inconsistent. Some engines lose power depending on the application
Thanks again Tony. Love ya vids mate. From Australia.
I ran Autolites in my Mopars for many years, but with my current '68 GTX, I've been running the
original P34 Mopar (J11 Champion) plugs that I pick up off eBray - a new set every year in the ol'
440.
(Champion doesn't make them anymore and Autolites I've bought in recent years just aren't made
like they used to be, sadly).
Nary a problem running original stuff and the cost isn't too bad, usually around $50 shipped.
Gives me the warm and fuzzies on the originality front, too.
-Ed on the Ridge
Generally, I do it in a way that I match the origin of the spark plug with the origin of the engine. Usually works quite well.
Me too
I use ACDelco in my Ecotec and AutoLites in my Pentastar. They run real nice. Always had good luck with motors in my used cars. I remember my Lumina had a 3.1 l and it ran like a song. I had friends that had some and they ran real rough. That was the car that I broke the plugs. Did a tune-up and didn't run right. Pulled the plugs and found out that I broke 2 of them.
Denso wfs-u indexed on my flathead briggs. No problems at all.
Thanks for another great info filled video! Yeah I gained .007 hp by indexing my plugs mister!
Been using Champion plugs in my Hart Carr steamer for years and never a problem. Oh and I feed the fire with cubed bullshit. Seems to burn cleaner.
Thank you I have had issues with my Turbo car spitting out the spark, Cannot go above 9PSi right now. Once the spark is correct I should definitely feel the boost
Good job Ton also I may add with all my years experience on the inertia wheel Dyno in the blown engines the side cutting the ground strap depending on your ignition has a small advantage we've actually tested it and I still have some of the dino sheets like you said you must know your engine! In the hemis's b9es was the standard and then when number six would give you a fit we would throw a number b10 sixes and number fives are weird on the hemi! Your egts can fail you must know how to read your plugs! Y'all have a good day
since your doing experiments on the dart try these plugs - NGK ZFR5N for a 2002 jeep cherokee 4.0 these plugs have a longer tower / electrodes ALLPAR.COM did an article . they will work for slant 6 ,273 -360 or 383 440 . they move the arc away from the head to prevent arcing from plug to head and move the spark closer to the center of the pistion in the path of fuel/ air creating a better burn and HP . Wouldnt hurt to try ? Appreciate your time and videos Tony 😎🤘✌🇺🇸
I know you said 273-360, but don't throw shade at my boy the 318
@@williamapodaca8614 318 is between those numbers just didn't list it to save typing room
I’ve always gone by the manufacturer. If it’s GM I use either Autolite or AC Delco. If it’s Ford, I use motorcraft. If it’s dodge, Mercedes, etc I use NGK.
Had a friend use Bosch in his GMC. He had a P0300 afterwards (misfire on multiple cylinders). He went back to AC Delco and had no issues.
My 81’ F150 ran like crap on Autolite but runs well with Motorcraft.
Im curious about E3 plugs. Also, thank you for the information. Crazy how much there is behind a simple spark plug.
What about ford's that came from the factory with Autolite 🤷🤔
I've had issues with Bosch too but I think it's certain ones. Just tossed a set of R45 equivalents in my Buick and they run like a champ. My 460 Ford fuel injected has Bosch in it and they run good too. These are the cheepie copper, not fancy platinum.
AC Delco R44TX gapped at .40 in the old '75 C-20 since Dad bought it new. Changed every six months, when he did his tune ups, oil and filter changes. which always left boxes of good, runable plugs on the shelf. And damn they made good spark in the 389 when I was a teenager and the damn '66 GTO needed plugs.
Plugs twice a year? I cant imagine that to be
@@rebelcowboy5.7l98 her engine has 75754.8 miles on it for the sixth time I know of. And I have been driving her since she was brand new in Oct of 74. She's an early '75. So maybe the old man was on to something. All I know is she starts every time, the oil gauge comes up to normal as always,the gas gauge goes down as it always does, She drives,and she has always got me home. No matter how bad I've hurt her. And she's two day's older than my wife.
@@mudduck754 hey thats what matters i guess.
@@rebelcowboy5.7l98 and I am still using the original factory issue set of key's.
All I use in the 86 and 89 is the Autolite 764 but never thought doing the side gap thing until now.
Can't wait to learn how to read sparkpluges
NGK FTW!! Cheers from England!
@Uncle Tony's Garage I have found that the current Mopar Champion copper plugs gives the best result in my 5.2 Magnum 94 ZJ Grand Cherokee.
Mr tony.
How do you determine what car is a classic and what car will be a classic?? I have an 1987 442 that I bought for my sons 16th. Then I bought it back from him when he wanted to sell it. It’s sat in my garage for the last 15 yrs. Some people tell me it’s a classic and some say it’ll never be a classic. Without removing the carpet, I’d say it’s about 75% 85% solid. Is the 87 442 worth the restoration????
“Like a gentleman”. Hah! 🤣
So trim the ground strap to improve the relationship between the spark and the fuel mix. On any engine? Is this something only to do on hot rod engines or would you do this on your old commuter with 300,000 plus miles on it? Does it increase temperature inside the combustion chamber or just improves relationship between fuel and ignition source?
Autolite makes Motorcraft plugs too. I have had zero problems with either brand over 35+ years of using them in my Fords and my Dodge.
That was worth the entire 11:01 to see the NOS Mopar spark plug at 10:50
You know, I HAVE been struggling with what plug to use in my diesels;
can’t seem to get them to color right and they always run off-temp...😃😄🤣🖖😎👍
@2:34 don’t know about you...but that sounds like a better night than I’ve had in TOO long 😳😜
Ultrasonic cleaner for cleaning plugs and O2 sensors.. Perfect.
And carbs 👌
Been considering getting one for a long time & this might be what convinces me.
Loved, the old Mopar Champion.
I got a lotta questions about spark plugs. Gonna hit a forum...
🙂
AWESOME info vid UT....MOPAR 4 EVER.
I use the E3 plugs makes it way easier to start and unlike most split prong plugs they don't break up just pull.
Don't use em in a gaseous fueled engine , you can't gap em and it'll run like shit
@@MrTheHillfolk I buy them pre-gapped all my small blocks and big blocks run .35 even my 355 that melts normal plugs.. they all run great also with older engines a lot of people don't know this but new fuel burns different. Don't run 12 degrees initial bump it up till it starts sounding right and pull the plugs for color check.
After 45+ years of doing auto and truck work, I’ve decided that manufacturers plugs work better in their engines.When was running hard in the early 60s my small block Chevy did it’s best with 44 s in her.....
Nice job love your work god bless you !
My Vauxhall (GM of England) was recommended to use Delco plugs. I had a misfire at low RPM. Got another set of plugs and had a misfire at higher RPM. Went to NGK and never had a problem. My parents had a near new GM car that also developed a misfire after a plug change...
FWIW, I believe NGK has been making the Delco plugs several years now. Thumbs-up for NGK, good plugs! There are fake NGK plugs out there, I've heard.
I use dremels to cut 2 of the 3 ground straps off the E3s because they are a none adjustable gap plug. And file the last remaining ground strap and gap appropriately to experiment with them E3s
what a waste of money haha
Cabral is at an all time high stalker mode. Posted a mirror video to this in record time. Certifiable head case.
Who?
I gave away a set of 1963 NOS spark plugs for a 413 about 20yrs ago. But that's me, a DA.
Thanks Tony
I found 2 of those nos mopar plugs in my charger. they were up inside the dash
Thanks - I never knew that forcing the gapping tool to open the gap could crack the insulator - makes sense though - that thin electrode is cantilevered from way down in the plug body and even moderate force on the end towards the side could bend it, causing the brittle ceramic insulator to crack.
Drove an s10 for years that had the ceramic broke halfway off one one plug 😂 never missed
I have a heavily modified 1968 307 and I only run copper core autolites. They burn hot, don't seem to foul up as easy. Usually I change mine yearly (I take them out and clean them by putting urethane reducer or laqure thinner on them and burning any soot or carbon off them, wiped them off with the same thing, dry them, sand tbe contacts with sandpaper, check tbe GAP just so I feel safe and then I blow them out really good with the air compressor, then put them back) I do this seasonally but I swear by them. We used to only use acdelco and accel but we've found for a fraction of tbe price, you get an equally great, if not better, spark plug.
And before anyone takes a huge dump on me having a built 307, bet you didn't know straight from GM 1968 back CHEVY engines had a steel crank, and "H beam" style connecting rods did you?
Oh it's 2 bolt main? Yea but the rod caps are HUGE, have alot meat around tbe bolt holes and in some ways equal, if not, maybe stronger than 4 bolt main.
SMALL CUBIC INCHES? You're damm right. Less stress to get from one end to the other at the track. We only have 1/8th mile close to me. Same bore as a 283, same stroke as a 327, and mines punch 40. And decked. It's the "little boat anchor that could " forsure
And might I add SBC is a very VERY affordable platform for activities...
Call me whatever, I typically stick with the plug the factory chose UNLESS I've changed the tune in a way the original choice doesn't cut it. In the case of direct fuel injection, if I'm inclined (in some cases the OEM recommends it), I'll index the opening of the plug toward the injector.
That's the way to go. I've thrown out too many basically new sets of Autolites from factory-spec rides because they were misfiring. Unless the engine has crazier stuff than a mild cam (and forget bolt-ons), the OEM plugs are going to run best.
Great video as always! And more videos pls! You're my favorite channel, next to Nick's (and I'm a Ford guy- go figure). Love the esoteric, old school tuning stuff you're so good at.
NGK NON RESISTER ftw. NON resister is key. Dead on consistent running 12:1 and VP113 . Not any more noticeable power but I've noticed about a few thousandths in consistency
Tony I have the duel point distributor that came new in my 70 340 dart swinger and I have been thinking about putting pertonix in it. Can I use Pertronix in that distributor?
I was waiting for you to say.......checking the color of the tail pipes Mr. Old School
I watched as stock plugs on a 5.7 Hemi (16) gap taken from .030 to .012. substantial HP gain. I was Amazed. So, question about side gapping, are you measuring an exact amount off each ground? Or eyeballing at the edge of the electrode, then gap it in?
I like Autolite and NGK. Never had any problems from either, mostly NGK. They were oe on all my bikes when I was little and first learning, and used them in my trucks and stuff as they branched out and became more visible in that market. When my 2000 f150 was new, the ONLY option was motorcraft platinums, for 5 or 6 bucks a pop. No wonder people wanted to stick with the 100k service interval... But, ya see how that worked on most of em? 5.4's are junk cause I was too cheap to change my plugs at a logical mileage. I changed mine at 60k, and it's a wonder it was still running. Had like .60" gaps on all of em, but at least it was consistent... Then, Autolite and NGK started coming out with options for that engine, and were about a third of the price. I ran other platinums, and regular copper cores, didn't see much difference. Platinums would maybe last a bit longer, but they didn't justify the added cost.
I am a GM guy, tryed other plugs never worked out.. always used AC delco plug never a problem..one more lesson I learned that a new plug is not necessary a good one...
I've always ran ac delco too until recently when they started manufacturing in China. They still work fine but that just rubbed me the wrong way.
@@konnerkramer329 good for you we. Need more Americans to think like this
@@konnerkramer329 Same with Autolite.
Great video brother 👊👍
Did you run champion in your mopar's in the old days? My pop's said they were best in Mopar. May have been before your time. Just curious.
MoPar all the way Tony! I’m a Factory MOPAR rep here in Mississippi. Thanks for sharing this little tip! Where did you find that old factory plug btw?
He probably found it in his shed next to a couple more 383s lol! I'm kidding of course but I find stuff like that all the time at swap meets and flea markets whether they're automotive related or not. Yes, I buy up all of the stuff that I find too.
I actually have a set of 70s Mopar champion spark plugs in my 73 duster.
ive never snipped a side strap to create such a change but just carefully filed the strap back exposing the centre electrode about 50%,i still gap them with a flat feeler blade then.
The old days during my apprenticeship we had a champion sandblaster, 1978.
I've seen people cut the ground strap away so it doesn't cover the electrode, and instead has the gap between the side of the strap and electrode. I've even seen them grind 'V's' into the ground strap so they are like a splitfire plug, I havent seen much testing of this on the dyno though
It's actually very easy. Get cheap copper core, file off 2MM from the ground strap terminal to improve ignition. Personally I use a triangle file but the cutters are certainly faster. Don't worry about wear, the center pole wears faster than the ground. Unless you buy iridium this is the best, Possibly even better than iridium.