Resistive wires are a matter of noise. To put it as briefly as possible; more resistance = less EM radiation. Ohm out the terminal to tip of a spark plug and you'll often find 3k to 5k ohm resistance inside the plug itself. A 500 ohm difference in cable is nearly invisible to the system. The amount of resistance is a compromise. If you're working with a car with no computer and no radio, you can get away with copper-core wire. But, the noise those put off can scatter a computer's logic at the turn of a crank. So, cable and plug makers integrate resistance into their products at varying amounts to balance stability and performance. In the end, spark is more volts than amps. Resistance is futile.
Amazing comment, thank you. I always thought they were just insulated conductive wire and was horrified when I saw his readings. I must be tired because I just measured a couple of brand new spark plugs 24hrs ago and they were around 6400 Ohms. So of course the wire resistance is summed to that and just becomes insignificant. Great to learn why it's there in the first place though. Much appreciated. I have a better idea why so many youtube mechanics recommend replacing wires now even if there's not really any known fault.
@@chocolate_squiggle thanks! I was looking for this response half way through the video. In my high school 1st car wrenching days I learned this the hard way by buying racing plug wires that unbeknownst to me had solid copper wire conductors, vs the conventional ferrous impregnated type. Suddenly I could hear every ignition coil discharge pulse blaring through my car’s rado, an annoying whining noise that changed with RPM 😅. With my mostly stock NA SBC it made no difference in performance. So went right back to hi resistance “wires” and got the tunes back.
Actually it sounds to me like resistance is silence. That is less interruption in the Airways. And if you are looking at hooking up a CB this could be very important if you are looking at picking up a high quality stereo system this is very important. By the way thank you for letting me know that my spark plugs can be interfering with my radio waves by having less resistance. 👍
I had said to my wife at the time. Come here so i can show you how to change a flat tire incase you ever get flat tire. She said naw thats why i have you and my dad for. 🤔😐
I don't have any proof, but I think your Burban's "engine computer" individually controls each spark plug, and has the capability to compensate for minor differences in plug, and plug wire resistances. As far as replacing the Napa plug wires that were working OK, with new OEM plug wires; I can see both sides of this decision. One side of me says "If it ain't broke, don't fix it". No point in spending money to unecesarily replace a known good component. On the other hand, if it gives you piece of mind to keep your GM vehicle, as "GM" as possible using OEM parts, by all means. One thing's for sure whenever I replace a component on my cars, I always keep the old part, in the new parts box, and store it for a month, six months, or up to a year just in case there's a problem with the new part. Having the old part on hand may help diagnose the malfunction. A wise man once told me, "Just because it's " NEW", doesn't guarantee it's "GOOD".
It can only compensate by advancing or retarding the IC, it can't control the power of the IC itself. So the wire resistance is really no different than how the ECU compensates for a worn plug or weak coil.
Living in a Desert; I used to throw old parts away too. But, I learned the hard way to hang onto old parts for a while. When it comes to things like this, there's a fine line between thinking ahead, and slowly becoming a pack rat hoarder. lol
When you are talking about resistance of electrical or electronic components, 5% variation is minor. 10% should be suspicious. If you come across 20% variation or more I would definitely replace or repair the components in question. But keep in mind that temperature plays a big role in the resistance of a conductor ( along with moisture and connectivity).
Good video, thank you. In my non professional experience, poor insulation is usually more of a problem than the resistance of the wires. Wires may look good, but still have cracks or pinholes that bleed off energy. It is difficult to check insulation on the bench. Shops have oscilloscopes that detect waveform distortion caused by bad insulation , but oscilloscopes are expensive. I go with OEM wires when I can because they have the best chance of matching electrical characteristics. OEM wires are also the correct length. When in doubt, I replace the wires. Once wires are five to ten years old, I usually just replace the wires regardless when I change the spark plugs.
Go with the lowest resistance wire possible. Make sure to use dielectric grease on your boots but not on any connections and then use a fast flashing silicone spray over the complete outside of the wire and boot after installation. All spark plug wires will come apart depending on how they are made the better ones are rebuildable so if one came apart on you is because it is one of the higher quality cables like you said belden, hat is the best you can get without either making a custom set yourself or ordering a custom set and of course custom sets are going to be reportable because are custom tailored to your given specs. That definitely always go with the lowest possible resistance with the best possible insulating materials. With the options you've given us in this video that would be belden. Here's a nice little tidbit for you, belden wires are the only wire that I know of that does not have peanut oil in the material list for manufacturing. And peanut oil being used in the manufacturing process of these other brands of spark plug wires is why rats get under the hood in chew at the wires they smell the peanut oil.
I always try and use OEM parts on my GM vehicles even though they may cost a little more because the OE made parts are always made to a higher standard than aftermarket parts. I'm referring to a stock scenario. I have used the best aftermarket parts and bought the best quality part I could get from AutoZone, NAPA etc. and they are almost always a little cheaper than the OE counterpart with a lifetime warranty but what the warranty does not cover is your labor to replace the parts (not to mention inconvenience) when they go bad and they will go bad if you keep the vehicle usually in about a year or a little more in a lot of cases, I know this from personal experience. Great vid as always Jimmy, keep up the great work.
I had put in plugs other than AC Delco and different wires as well into my 05 Pontiac Montana SV6 several years ago. It missfired like crazy. I used it like that for a while and finally put the AC Delco plugs and wires and the problem went away. I figured it was the one place to not chase things and put what came on it from the factory and it paid off.
When I was a "kid" in my high school days, we could buy "resistive" or "non-resistive" wires. The difference could be heard in your radio... Non-resistive wires would make your radio "scream" as the engine accelerated. Resistive wires made it so the radio was quiet all the time. Of course, resistive wires were more expensive and radios had knobs that turned back in the late 60s to early 70s. You also had to "dial in" your radio to the station to get the best reception... So, resistance equates to noise output. I would think, the higher resistance wires equate to lower Electronic noise output. Cell phones, radios and other radio wave devices will be more effected by lower resistive wires. That is the difference.
I use AC Delco part's as much as possible on my GM's. They all have had well over 200,000 miles on them and run no different than at 100,000 miles... Same with AC Delco oil filters. I use the AC Delco part's designed for my vehicle's and never have an issue...
I'm sorry. it with 5000--15000 volts your car will NOT give a damn. Lower resistance allow better energy flow. but the reason for the ohm differences are the core construction. Where as Belden has different design to maximize electromagnetic interference protection. Lower resistance spiral core wires are better and the Belden are lifetime warranty and AC may also be. It's about preferences I guess. IF you can get AC at reasonable prices fine but replacing those NAPA wires was a redundant and net zero change. as for pulling terminal off THATS cause you pulled at wrong place on boot. the grip point should be on terminal between where it clips to plug and crimps on wire end. then you won't rip the terminal off. but if you do most GOOD wire crimpers have die cuts to crimp both hei and points type terminals.
I like lower personally but remember your computer compensates for many problems. It sounds like some people have had problems with the lower resistance wires quality. You have gotten some of the best suggestions I have heard in a long time from some very experienced people. I guess for an everyday driver I would go for quality and research the technical aspects. Great thinking video.
I'm not a huge fan of OEM. Factory always cuts corners for production efficiency and keeping costs down. Many aftermarket parts are far superior to OEM. Years of Hot Rodding have left me with a certain disdain for factory parts lol.
Quite the opposite really in many cases. A lot of aftermarket parts are noticeably inferior and shorter lived. There are some cases this is true, but the majority of the time with the majority of components OEM tends to both outperform and outlast, and is often cheaper.
Don't confuse upgrade parts with replacement parts. OEM parts are generally designed as best they can to last the life of the vehicle. Replacement parts are generally designed for whatever short life the vehicle has left, or put it back in service as soon as possible. Upgrade parts are things designed to outperform OEM.
Why i miss the days of having an oscilloscope type tune up machine with vacuum hook ups, timing light etc. Could see how each cylinder performed before and after and great views of wavelengths. Much info revealed. Great subject and video and comments generated. thanks! And yes, can still obtain a digital reading on new style scanners and use that now, yet old wave form patterns on an old tube type screen where high tech back in the day and worked very well, lol
I did my plugs on my 1997 Mercury Cougar 4.6L. I would randomly get this shudder and bucking when I was driving, it would last under a second but I never could pin point what it was, its under light throttle, I eventually got the car to do this for about 10 seconds and it was a misfire. The plugs and coil packs were recently changed so I knew it had to be the wires. I've only used Motorcraft plugs on the car because I wanted a perfect seal. Here were my findings. As I was replacing the wires I measured the resistance running through them. I had my multimeter set on 20k Ohms or 2k Ohm, I can't remember now but these were my readings Cylinder 1 Wire - New Reading 10.62, Old 5.16 Cylinder 2 Wire - New Reading 21.6, Old 10.0 Cylinder3 Wire - New Reading 15.0, Old 7.12 Cylinder4 Wire - New Reading 25.1, Old 15.33 Cylinder5 Wire - New Reading 19.65, Old 12.38 Cylinder6 Wire - New Reading 22.21 Old 11.14 Cylinder7 Wire - New Reading 15.51 Old 7.6 Cylinder8 Wire - New reading 15.17 Old 9.06 After changing the wires the car ran extremely smooth with no shuddering or bucking.
I’m watching this video because I am looking for a plug wire brand with the TM slogan “wired for life” I had them on my Xterra over five years, up until I replaced them in august 2022. Today I’m replacing wires again. Now I know what brand to buy. Come to think about it the person they got the car from shopped at Napa. Thanks for sharing.
Low resistance means better spark. Higher resistance is for eliminating radio interference. If you had no radio interference the low resistance leads are probably a better choice. OEM isn't always the best option. The manufacturer makes compromises because they have to try to please everyone. Doesn't necessarily mean they work better in all circumstances. That's why we have a high performance parts industry! BTW I hope that you're not putting that oil/transmission fluid displayed on the shelf in your vehicle. You can get MUCH better oli than that.
If it ain’t broke… don’t fix it. Rule applies to non wearing components like these wires. On the other hand if you are bent on fixing something for fun… replace the spark plugs… and the tires… and the filters… for these items newer is always better…. I suppose new fuel injectors could also be beneficial… its always best to replace wearing components before they fail. Cheers man… great video. 😊👍🏼
Just replaced a set of Belden Premium 7mm wires in my 7.4L 454 TBI. I had 1 wire tear all the way around about 1/2in from end of the boot. I always use Super lube in the end of the boots prior to install. It doesn't necessarily work given the temp the BBC engines run. What plug wires did I use to replace them? Belden 8.5mm heavy duty ceramic. Along with Autolite plugs gapped at .035. The engine purrs like a kitten. The old plugs (Delco) and wires had 24K on them. Another tip...when checking wire/s after you hook up the volt meter you want to manipulate the wire while watching the volt meter. If there is a break in the wire this is how you find it.
I have a 1994 GMC 5.7L, the old wires had about 4500 ohms per ft (one was broke and bad) . The new wires ( all 8) had about 1500 ohms per ft. Good right?! Wrong, the new wires have only 7 mm diameter which lead to arcing at cylinder #2 right thru the new wire!. I had to install one of the old wires to get it to run correctly and not miss. What is also critical is to get at least the same diameter of insulation (in my case at least 7.5 mm).
High resistance wires (measured in ohms/foot) are used to reduce magnetic interference with sensors and the car radio. Like you, I've noticed that new wires sometimes don't meet manufacturer specs when compared to the standard outlined in the OEM dealers manual. However using an ohmeter to judge RFI interference from high voltage wires is not an exact science. The last set of wires I replaced didn't meet specs, not even close. However I decided not to return them, and they are working fine....
@@howie119 I'm 23, married, and I work in sales....I get the point, just disagree with the premise of sexualizing your wife or any woman to sell something or make money. Just wanted to make sure that was what this guy was getting at before I disagreed
It is very common when removing for these terminals to come apart. I have repaired many as shown in your video. I was taught that resistance was originally added to plug wires to reduce radio interference. Solid wire acts as a transmitting antenna and the square wave of the spark interferes with all frequencies. While the spark voltage is high, the Amperage in the wire is low, making the voltage and power loss through a few ohms negligible. 400 vs 150 ohms are very low resistances compared to the open plug gap of your resistor spark plug. (Volts = Ohms / Amps) (Power = Volts x Amps)
ACDelco Professional is NOT the OEM part that was installed at the factory. “Professional” is their aftermarket equivalent line. Professional is the stuff they make for all makes and models. OEM parts will say something like “Genuine GM” on the packaging. They are different.
The insulation cracks after getting hot and cold a million times. Then the wires spark like lightning to the closest metal hooked to ground. They will still pass an ohms test but not fire plugs like they should. Take an old car that needs a tune up and watch it run at night under the hood, you will see stray voltage going everywhere. It is cool to see, like watching a tesla coil. This is why we change wires and no i don't care if the wires ohm out or not. A bare copper wire will pass an ohms test too.
I use Delco on all Delco equipped machinery. They did the research with OEM and have never failed premature. I have some big blocks that use Delco on the ignition, but spec Champion plugs.... Spec it OEM no matter the brand. And now, is story time.... Once upon a time there was a redneck (me) that had a riding mower that through much of an odd happening, had a magneto plug wire get shorted. As a 10-11 year olds mind works, and reading many hot rod/racing magazine ads, I thought I had the ultimate cure with items in the big shed. Copper wire, a.bit larger than the OEM core, Ohm test told me that it will be better than stock. A spool of heat shrink of various sizes, to help guard against abraison. Ok, we have low resistance firing 30 times/second (camshaft actuated points, the old cast iron Briggs). She picked up a lot of pert.... Until, she died. The mag coil died. It looked like the coil over heated. I then had a spare 12v car coil and a pull off plug wire. She still lives and mows. It is a '71 model Montgomery Wards garden tractor. She is the oldest of four, the newest being '06. Take care from Oklahoma, Mike and Vee
That‘s crazy, I‘ve replaced the ignition wires on my 1994 Mercedes E-Class a couple of weeks ago and the resistance on the factory wires was 2k Ohms. Isn‘t that quite high in comparison to your 450 Ohms OEM-wires? I‘ve replaced mine with 2k aftermarket ones because I was afraid it could damage something if I swap them out for ones with a different resistance. Should I‘ve swapped them for ones with a lower resistance or would it have made no difference at all?
The resistance of the wire is only there to make the HT connection inductive, basically it works like a current spike limiter, higher resistance will slow the coils current discharge through the plug from a few nanoseconds to a few tens of nanoseconds, effectively lengthening the spark duration, but also slightly reducing it's energy. If the resistance becomes too high the spark may not happen at high gas load, too low resistance will burn away your plug electrodes faster and cause more emi noise around the ignition system, possibly causing radio noise. I run lower resistance 'performance' leads on high compression performance engines, and oem on stock for maximum plug life.
Wire resistance is less important then insulation, and unless you have a megger you are not equipped to test it. In general less resistance is better. Don't delude yourself that GM is designing the wires and specifying the spark plug wire restance.
Markus R. True, if you leave the spark gap at the factory spec. Open them up a bit to cool the spark just a hair. 10% would be a good start. (Slavish devotion to the dictates of a corporation’s engineering dept is ridiculous when that corp’s purpose is to separate you from your money in the biggest and most frequent ways possible, as far as I’m concerned)
More resistance means higher voltage and lower current. Higher current means ignition coil degradation and magnetic fields that send stray signals to all the touchy sensors that the ECM relies on to keep the engine running correctly. The spark is created by high voltage, not high current. Higher current (caused by too little resistance) through the spark plug will overheat them causing pre-ignition and excessive electrode wear. If the ignition coils are OE, use AC Delco wires, or matching specs. Otherwise, plan on changing ignition coils often. They degrade stealthily. The ECM will just advance the ignition timing to compensate for old coils. This makes for bad performance at higher rpm. And you will get no misfire DTCs to alert you of the problem, only an underperforming truck.
So West AC Delco plug wires specifically for my Yukon AC Delco makes a professional wire set and a OEM wire set which is almost double the price. So just because it says AC Delco does not mean it’s OEM.
Keep the Beldons as long as you are not getting radio interference. This is fundamental. There's no point in you using a Volt/ohm meter if you are going to ignore the results and use new AC Delco that are demonstrated to be not as good new. Use Dielectric Grease in the boots so you won't pull the wires out of the connectors. It will keep the boots from sticking to the plugs.
A lot of AC Delco stuff lately is just re-badged from other manufactures. I don't put any stock in AC Declo stuff anymore. I bought an AC Delco professional t-stat and in the box was a motorad. I reached out to AC Delco who said that was correct they must all be owned by the same parent company.
A plug wire is a plug wire. It conducts electricity from the coil to the spark plug. As long as you insulate it properly you could use a coat hanger. You can use whatever brand you want but anyone thinking they "need" to use OEM plug wires probably thinks they "need" to use OEM windshield washer fluid as well. It is literally a piece of wire wrapped in insulation, as far as parts go there isn't much on a vehicle as simple as a plug wire. There are some cases (mopar electronics) where OEM is the only thing that works. Aftermarket parts will fit and function properly for a little while and then mysteriously fail. You can keep putting aftermarket parts on one after the other and they all fail within 30 to 90 days. Then you buy a "Genuine Mopar" part from the Dodge dealer and it lasts for years. I've never seen it from any other manufacturer besides Chrysler. If I had to guess I would say they have a way for their parts to identify themselves to the PCM/ECM/BCM as genuine and aftermarket parts can't do that so it overloads the part until it fails. There is no legitimate explanation for aftermarket parts from companies who have been building these things for years to keep constantly failing and then an OEM part lasts forever. So unless you are working on a late model Chrysler vehicle going OEM is just spending more money where you don't have to. It's your money and if it gives you peace of mind open your wallet as wide as you want. I'll keep using aftermarket parts and spending 1/3 or 1/4 what the parts guy at the GM dealer wants for the OEM AC Delco part. The belief that OEM parts are better is an old wives tale.
Thanks. I'm having a Napa auto shop install new spark plug wires in the 2012 Chevy impala next week. Seems really costly. Something about the coil is on the plug wires. I'd never heard of this.
Friend of mine, mechanic, Steve Costello never did replace plug wires unless ohms were astronomical. Don't remember what the number was but I will say, this was going on 40 years ago
Resistance isn't always a bad thing in a plug wire I know everybody always wants a zero ohm resistance but you do need some resistance in order to make a good connection they have one ohm spark plug wires but when you put a tester on it okay yeah super low resistance but when you try to force a shitload of current through it as you do with any performance application you can end up burning the little cables in there I don't know what they're called but AC Delco plug wires are the way to go. I put low resistance plug wires in my truck and it rang great for about a thousand miles and then after that I had smoke issues and burned plugs and couldn't figure out what was going on can't be the plug wires they're brand new put the old AC Delco plug wires back on ran perfect. 50 miles later pull the spark plugs back out they were all cleaned up ran like a champ so that's just my experience. I'm running a performance HEI distributor they call it the stealth distributor it's capable of 9,000 RPM. Why I don't know why not. I've honestly never had my engine stop pulling and I've had it up to 6,900 RPM and then tack went crazy so I let out. I personally built my engine but I did not do any of the sizing and balancing it went to the machine shop for that and so it was balanced and blueprinted I also had them do the ring Gap. Unfortunately I had to install the rings that sucked.
Resistance in plug wires is to eliminate radio interference. Less resistance means more fire to the plugs. Either of these will work just fine for you.
what matter is the HOT resistance as WIRES heat up they make more resistance the napa will have higher HOT resistance he only showed the COLD resistance . I can make wires near ZERO resistance with dry ice aka super conductor.. :O
I think guys miss out on some excellent products getting stuck on "OEM". Like Motorcraft. Lol there are guys out there that think Motorcraft sparkplugs are superior. Thanks for the video. It was great
I’d stick to OEM cables. The resistance in spark plug cables is there for a reason. It helps prevent interference with electronics, which can cause problems with the radio or the engine computer. I once tried making my own spark plug cables using solid copper wires. I only replaced one of the cables to test it, but the massive EMI it put out caused the engine to stall. If it’s an old carbureted engine and you don’t care about the radio, then low resistance cables are OK. They’re also needed for some special high compression engines where a normal spark would get blown out.
Go with the AC Delco if nothing's feels off then keep running them if not you can always switch back. Personally I'm running blue Taylor's 8mm wires on my 69C20
even new wire sets should be checked. I have purchased sets in the past that were all over the place as far as ohms go. I always ended up going with ford racing wire sets or MSD. Not sure if gm makes performance parts other than oem replacement. I also index the plugs when possible. Now vehicles dont even have plug wires. I would do research before buying new COP as well. OEM is not always best.
I think what you’re asking is are we brand snobs??? To an extent, yes. For fit, finish and functionality, I use AC Delco or Delphi for GM. Motorcraft for ford and it doesn’t matter for Chrysler, it’s all crap. For most all import stuff I try to use Beck/Arnley, they have always provided a good aftermarket for imports. Plugs themselves I will use Delco motorcraft and the only thing I use a champion in is a Chrysler or my lawnmower. I will also use NGK Or Denso in place of any of the above, and only use NGK or Denso in an import.
1. Stick with the low resistance wires. 2. Some parts are ACDelco, some are Delphi. The fuel rail on my 06 Silverado is Delphi. 3. More resistance (higher Ohms) leads to less current reaching the spark plug leading to weaker spark, less fuel burned (ECM has to provide more fuel which means worse gas mileage), and reduced power. Racing vehicles many times use low resistance wires (at or under 100 Ohms per foot) to ensure the least resistance along that path. For stock (fuel injected, 1 coil per cylinder) engines, anything under 1000 Ohms per foot should be good enough to run well and not affect power. For older carburated distributor vehicles, more resistance (higher Ohms) can lead to misfire in the coil, spark jumping in the distributor, points not firing properly, etc. This is why many of them made a lot less power despite being larger engines. Many standard plug wires from the 70s and 80s were rated in the 12,000-20,000 Ohm PER FOOT range, except the performance wires came in at/under 1000 per foot (meaning 3000 Ohm reading for a 3 foot wire). Technology has helped advance this aspect to provide much lower resistance wires for standard pricing, so that 150 Ohm 6 inch wire would be 300 Ohm per foot resistance wire, the AC Delco Pro wires he got at 400-500 Ohm is 800-1000 Ohm per foot wires, which is still the standard, but nothing special. 4. Also, if a coil is dying/weak, the added resistance (1000+ per ft) can actually accelerate the death of the coil since it cannot discharge all of the energy each time leading to a build up and increased heating of the coil(s). 5. For other engines with a "waste spark" and secondary spark plugs, like a previous 2004 Durango Hemi I owned, I never worried about the plugs or wires it with the secondary spark, it is minimal benefit on good running engines so I only dealt with the primary plugs and coils.
Mike K4ISR E = I x R and P = I x E. If resistance increases then voltage drop increases there for lower voltage to the spark plug. Current decreases which means a decrease in power to the plugs and just like you said causes the ecu to adjust the lower power thus needing more fuel to compensate ad lower gas mileage. No resistance equals max power but also creates a direct short for the coil which creates more heat and would need to increase the physical size of the coil. The ecu can compensate for this by shortening the spark duration. Man, computer controls are the way to go. Great comment my friend.
Lower resistance wires put more of the ignition energy at the spark gap, burning more of the fuel for higher efficiency (greater mileage). If that appeals, get Granatelli MPG+ wires, which are verifiably Zero ohms. I have them on my Buick and the fuel savings paid for them in very short order.
@@anthonysandoval965 my mileage improved, not insignificantly, when I changed to the make of wires I mentioned. Further, while swapping them, I measured wire-to-wire resistance with my DMM and the OEMs were in the low 1000s of ohms range, and the new ones never topped 0.2 ohms. A huge difference, especially on a waste-spark ignition. All of the voltage went to where it matters, rather than to waste heat. Fatter, stronger sparks burn more of the fuel in the charge, and the computer trims delivery back without a loss of power. You could even open the gap over stock. My Buick is at 260k km (160k miles) on the original converter and sensors because the exhaust is so clean, and I’m getting better mileage than the window sticker that came on it at the dealership. Don’t take anything for granted! It’s good you’re sceptical and researching; take your newfound knowledge and put it to use. A better life for you and it helps the planet too.
@1ROAD Ohm's law is V=IR, where V is voltage, I is current, and R is resistance. Let's assume the ignition coil is supplying 25kV like one commenter suggests. 25,000 V = I x 200 Ohms for the Belden wires. Solve for I by dividing 25,000 V by 200 Ohms. The answer is 125 Amps. Use 400 Ohms for the ACDelco wires, and you get 62.5 Amps. Now, 25kV is clearly to high an estimate, 1000 - 2000 volts is probably more realistic, but that's not my point. My point is that if you increase the resistance, you decrease the current. Those ignition coils are only so big, and controlling the current output of the things will help prevent premature failure. The same goes for the spark plugs. Less current = cooler spark, and your plugs will thank you. Furthermore, the theory that resistive wires cut down on radio interference holds water. Electromagnetic fields are generated by current moving through a conductor. If you reduce the current, you weaken the electromagnetic field. Radio waves are an electromagnetic field, and pulsed DC electric currents, such as in the spark plug wire, emit a rather broad spectrum of radio waves. Reducing the field should reduce radio interference.
Also not that AC Delco wires are minimum GM spec wire for that car. as AC Delco has several levels of wires you may NOT be getting same as OEM, may be better or lesser(read that as not lower or worse) but the bottom level may be bare minimum spec for that application. See it's like this, Belden sets it's spec so high they surpass OEM levels on specs THUS they can sell to everyone. now the box for your truck MAY have one or two long wires a bit longer than OEM but honestly if I custom loom some times I will actually shorten a wire. Never had any warranty issues as long as still looked like out of the box. Most companies would only investigate warranty claims if it was like 500 sets of same part number. Not cause tech made wire bit shorter some time in its life.
1)Spark plug wires are not made for DC current. 2) There is high frequency high voltage power that doesn't care about this resistance. The spark plug wire is a long inductor. 3) Spark plug has approx 0.4 - 1mm of an air gap that is seen as a large resistor equivalent to 2*10^13 Ohm. So 99.9999% of power will go into that HUGE "resistor" and won't be wasted in 100-500 ohm wire. (largest voltage drop in a circuit develops across the largest resistor) 4) If you test other cars wires you might get surprised by their resistivity. For example original Subaru wires are 5000-17000 Ohm. NGK wires for subaru are approx 400-600 ohm. Bosch wires you won't even be able to measure properly with multimeter because Bosch wires have high capacitance so you'll measure anywhere between 1000-200000 Ohm or Open Circuit. That's because multimeters use Direct current to measure resistance, and capacitors block DC current. Some multimeters (e.g. Fluke) use low power pulses to measure resistance - they will measure resistance in this case but the number won't be consistent and/or accurate because the pulse isn't strong enough to overcome capacitance. 5) Finally, what you should care about in Spark plug wires: 1) propagation delay (how fast high freq. signal gets from one end of wire to another). You can test it if you have a function generator and an oscilloscope 2) quality of external insulation and how well the end boots are sealed.
I presume the lower the resistance the better, though electronic circuits sometimes work better with a resistive load i.e. the lead itself. I just checked the 4 silicone leads on my Honda Type R and 3 leads measured 140 ohms, yet the 4th lead gave a 3,000 ohm reading. However, performance doesn't seem to have been affected. Perhaps this is because we are dealing with very high voltages via the plugs and such a discrepancy in the readings may be negligible
Should not put a gob of grease in the boot, take a Q-Tip and put a thin swipe around the inside of the boot. Remember this grease is not conductive, it is an insulator, plus it helps with condensation. It is only to be able to take the boot off easier only when it comes to low voltage electrical connecters then you can coat the metal contacts with a thin coat to keep the connection from corroding from condensation or water that may get in. Know that the connection is made from metal-to-metal contact not because the grease is there, when pushing the connectors together the two metal contacts scrap the grease off down to the bare metal, if it did not there would not be current flow.
Why even change wires if they're in spec? Still running original wires with over 300K miles. Every time I check, they've been in spec, so I leave em alone.
They changed the recommended plugs and gapping from the factory design... So I don't think OEM is always the best choice in every case. Besides, aftermarket plug wires come in color choices.
My experience with many GM vehicles, AC Delco mechanical parts are great! No disputing that. BUT... their electronics suck so bad!!! Most of the GM problems I encounter are from poor connectors and poorly engineered electronics. My pro opinion is stick with NAPA wires. Low resistance is better power delivery to plugs and more precise spark timing. Yes, the ECM compensates for variances but, why rely fully on that.
Another thought, okay maybe at least 3, on the steering cover, you replaced the turn signal, etc switch and I have same but the plastic legs for the screws are broken and missing. They have these for Auto trans trucks but not the manual. Any suggestions?
The higher the resistance the lower the current therefore less electromagnetic interference on the radio, The spark plugs do not need a lot of current to operate, they require a very high voltage at low current.
The spark plugs have a much higher resistance. So if you're wires or one ohm it's still only going to have to make it past the spark plugs. It used to be the higher resistance would have an increased durability because less power his past. But now with metals like iridium, and platinum being used, so the resistance can be lowered for more power to flow. If I were you I would continue to enjoy putting the OEM brand that you like so much on your vehicle. Only difference between those OEM wires and the off brand is that your OEM brand will last longer due to its higher resistance.
specification for spark plug wires for the GM 5.3L V8 is 800 ohms plus-or-minus 500 (300 to 1300 ohms.. you just got lucky napa has poor QC on those plug wires that is why it broke I bet they are 1kohm when warmed up
I'm wondering why there's difference more than anything. Seems to me the only possible explanation is the conductors have to made out of different materials or there's a difference in mass/gauge of the conducting material.
Try comparing them with a Megger at 1000V and see what the resistance difference is? Not sure if that's acceptable but it would be interesting to see what the the out come would be.
I'd get rid of them all and buy some Taylor or a good aftermarket wire, the one that came apart is no big deal, they make universal sets where you put vall the ends on! I'd stick with least resistance!!!
Dielectric grease is an insulator and is being improperly used here. If you want to put some on the ceramic part of the plug, that's o.k. and the outside of the cap where the boot goes, that's o.k. too. It should not be smeared on the conductor parts of an electrical circuit, typically.
Napa it is,keep the gm as a just in case.If it was a race car it would be a no brained.Napa wires can break down a ways and still be better but I am like you in the aspect that usually the Oem parts have a hidden benefit that is not apparent
The value of resistance of a lead can be up to 1,000 ohms per foot, which means that both sets of leads are functional, and so worth keeping. Consider that a pulse of 20,000 volts reaches the electrode of the spark plug, the resistance you have measured and compared is effectively very small, given the DC resistance of the ignition coil (secondary winding) can be as high as 10 kilohms as a new and functional item.
check the resistance after warming them up drive like 20 miles on both you will be 100% surprised the napa have higher resistance..... COLD resistance means nothing ... What matters is the HOT operating temperature resistance..... you will see 1kohm to 8kohm with the napa and the acdelco will be under 600ohm ( or with in specification). That is the only way to tell for sure if they are better or not
I tested for 1 year, 20,000 miles. OEM did not preform. Had to replace cap rotor and plugs every about 4000 miles. Tended to create moisture in the distributor cap, and make my engine miss. And, yes, I used the dielectric lube. Best to go factory spec, and leave it as is.
Totally out of leftfield, I love your hood light, "looks" like a florescent overhead light, jiggered ? Can you do a video on it, or let us know if you just "bought" it or what ? COOLIO txs
@@1RoadGarage looks like, you've maybe opened up one of the hanger clips, and just used it as a hook ? difficult to tell as that part is not obvious from the vid, txs again
B17 wingman . you want resistance. The wires are resistor type as well as plugs. o/e wires are always best. resistor type ignition was designed for low R F I, RADIO FREQUENCY INTERFERENCE..
First, AC Delco does not produce anything after the whole GM bankruptcy thing. Delphi is GM’s producer of electrical components now. Second, the Napa wires could be using a different technology to suppress the EMF radiation. Induction versus resistance. I vote for the lowest resistance.
says who? ac delco is very much still GM...however Delphi is now called Aptiv and was sold by GM yrs ago. so its the complete opposite of what you said. GM talked of selling AC Delco but it never happened.
![[UNCUT]"ทักษิณ" โชว์ฤทธิ์-ครอบครอง "อุ๊งอิ๊ง" ประเทศไทยมีนายกฯ 1แถม1 I คนดังนั่งเคลียร์ I 23 ส.ค.67](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Uyl4y59R-Sk/mqdefault.jpg)
Resistive wires are a matter of noise. To put it as briefly as possible; more resistance = less EM radiation. Ohm out the terminal to tip of a spark plug and you'll often find 3k to 5k ohm resistance inside the plug itself. A 500 ohm difference in cable is nearly invisible to the system.
The amount of resistance is a compromise. If you're working with a car with no computer and no radio, you can get away with copper-core wire. But, the noise those put off can scatter a computer's logic at the turn of a crank. So, cable and plug makers integrate resistance into their products at varying amounts to balance stability and performance.
In the end, spark is more volts than amps. Resistance is futile.
Amazing comment, thank you. I always thought they were just insulated conductive wire and was horrified when I saw his readings. I must be tired because I just measured a couple of brand new spark plugs 24hrs ago and they were around 6400 Ohms. So of course the wire resistance is summed to that and just becomes insignificant. Great to learn why it's there in the first place though. Much appreciated. I have a better idea why so many youtube mechanics recommend replacing wires now even if there's not really any known fault.
Resistance is futile. LOL.
I will assimilate this knowledge. Your technological and biological distinctiveness has been added to my own.
@@chocolate_squiggle thanks! I was looking for this response half way through the video. In my high school 1st car wrenching days I learned this the hard way by buying racing plug wires that unbeknownst to me had solid copper wire conductors, vs the conventional ferrous impregnated type. Suddenly I could hear every ignition coil discharge pulse blaring through my car’s rado, an annoying whining noise that changed with RPM 😅. With my mostly stock NA SBC it made no difference in performance. So went right back to hi resistance “wires” and got the tunes back.
Actually it sounds to me like resistance is silence. That is less interruption in the Airways. And if you are looking at hooking up a CB this could be very important if you are looking at picking up a high quality stereo system this is very important.
By the way thank you for letting me know that my spark plugs can be interfering with my radio waves by having less resistance. 👍
dude, kudos on the wife! Edit: You're a great guy too, transparent, cheerful, and candid. God bless
Aww she's cute. Love how she looked back at you for reassurance about the ohms. Lol. My wife won't step foot in my garage lol
Mine will, but only to tell me lunch is ready. 😂
Real World Garage mine too, or to say Are you done yet!
I had said to my wife at the time. Come here so i can show you how to change a flat tire incase you ever get flat tire. She said naw thats why i have you and my dad for. 🤔😐
Yeah. He should definitely be holding the camera.
I don't have a wife but I if I did I'd want one of those ones
I don't have any proof, but I think your Burban's "engine computer" individually controls each spark plug, and has the capability to compensate for minor differences in plug, and plug wire resistances.
As far as replacing the Napa plug wires that were working OK, with new OEM plug wires;
I can see both sides of this decision. One side of me says "If it ain't broke, don't fix it". No point in spending money to unecesarily replace a known good component.
On the other hand, if it gives you piece of mind to keep your GM vehicle, as "GM" as possible using OEM parts, by all means.
One thing's for sure whenever I replace a component on my cars, I always keep the old part, in the new parts box, and store it for a month, six months, or up to a year just in case there's a problem with the new part. Having the old part on hand may help diagnose the malfunction.
A wise man once told me, "Just because it's " NEW", doesn't guarantee it's "GOOD".
It can only compensate by advancing or retarding the IC, it can't control the power of the IC itself. So the wire resistance is really no different than how the ECU compensates for a worn plug or weak coil.
Living in a Desert;
I used to throw old parts away too. But, I learned the hard way to hang onto old parts for a while.
When it comes to things like this, there's a fine line between thinking ahead, and slowly becoming a pack rat hoarder. lol
Budget Panther Fan 🐬🐊🐙🐖🐡
When you are talking about resistance of electrical or electronic components, 5% variation is minor. 10% should be suspicious. If you come across 20% variation or more I would definitely replace or repair the components in question.
But keep in mind that temperature plays a big role in the resistance of a conductor ( along with moisture and connectivity).
Spark plugs run at 25,000 volts and are pulsed. A 200-ohm difference is generally not a huge barrier in the grand scheme.
Good video, thank you. In my non professional experience, poor insulation is usually more of a problem than the resistance of the wires. Wires may look good, but still have cracks or pinholes that bleed off energy. It is difficult to check insulation on the bench. Shops have oscilloscopes that detect waveform distortion caused by bad insulation , but oscilloscopes are expensive.
I go with OEM wires when I can because they have the best chance of matching electrical characteristics. OEM wires are also the correct length. When in doubt, I replace the wires. Once wires are five to ten years old, I usually just replace the wires regardless when I change the spark plugs.
Go with the lowest resistance wire possible. Make sure to use dielectric grease on your boots but not on any connections and then use a fast flashing silicone spray over the complete outside of the wire and boot after installation. All spark plug wires will come apart depending on how they are made the better ones are rebuildable so if one came apart on you is because it is one of the higher quality cables like you said belden, hat is the best you can get without either making a custom set yourself or ordering a custom set and of course custom sets are going to be reportable because are custom tailored to your given specs. That definitely always go with the lowest possible resistance with the best possible insulating materials. With the options you've given us in this video that would be belden. Here's a nice little tidbit for you, belden wires are the only wire that I know of that does not have peanut oil in the material list for manufacturing. And peanut oil being used in the manufacturing process of these other brands of spark plug wires is why rats get under the hood in chew at the wires they smell the peanut oil.
I always try and use OEM parts on my GM vehicles even though they may cost a little more because the OE made parts are always made to a higher standard than aftermarket parts. I'm referring to a stock scenario. I have used the best aftermarket parts and bought the best quality part I could get from AutoZone, NAPA etc. and they are almost always a little cheaper than the OE counterpart with a lifetime warranty but what the warranty does not cover is your labor to replace the parts (not to mention inconvenience) when they go bad and they will go bad if you keep the vehicle usually in about a year or a little more in a lot of cases, I know this from personal experience. Great vid as always Jimmy, keep up the great work.
I had put in plugs other than AC Delco and different wires as well into my 05 Pontiac Montana SV6 several years ago. It missfired like crazy. I used it like that for a while and finally put the AC Delco plugs and wires and the problem went away. I figured it was the one place to not chase things and put what came on it from the factory and it paid off.
On factory vehicle, oem is fine. They may have a little more resistance to help with radio noise. But I'm a big MSD fan or Mallory
When I was a "kid" in my high school days, we could buy "resistive" or "non-resistive" wires. The difference could be heard in your radio... Non-resistive wires would make your radio "scream" as the engine accelerated. Resistive wires made it so the radio was quiet all the time. Of course, resistive wires were more expensive and radios had knobs that turned back in the late 60s to early 70s. You also had to "dial in" your radio to the station to get the best reception... So, resistance equates to noise output. I would think, the higher resistance wires equate to lower Electronic noise output. Cell phones, radios and other radio wave devices will be more effected by lower resistive wires. That is the difference.
I stress about the same type of stuff. As for your wife in the garage, you lucky man. Wow
First time viewer and i fast forwarded to his wife part. Wow she’s gorgeous. Lucky man
It was no accident putting her in the video 🙄
I'm a life long subscriber! As long as you promise to let your wife guest host every once in a while. Lucky you!
I use AC Delco part's as much as possible on my GM's. They all have had well over 200,000 miles on them and run no different than at 100,000 miles... Same with AC Delco oil filters. I use the AC Delco part's designed for my vehicle's and never have an issue...
I'm sorry. it with 5000--15000 volts your car will NOT give a damn. Lower resistance allow better energy flow. but the reason for the ohm differences are the core construction. Where as Belden has different design to maximize electromagnetic interference protection. Lower resistance spiral core wires are better and the Belden are lifetime warranty and AC may also be.
It's about preferences I guess. IF you can get AC at reasonable prices fine but replacing those NAPA wires was a redundant and net zero change.
as for pulling terminal off THATS cause you pulled at wrong place on boot. the grip point should be on terminal between where it clips to plug and crimps on wire end. then you won't rip the terminal off.
but if you do most GOOD wire crimpers have die cuts to crimp both hei and points type terminals.
I like lower personally but remember your computer compensates for many problems. It sounds like some people have had problems with the lower resistance wires quality. You have gotten some of the best suggestions I have heard in a long time from some very experienced people. I guess for an everyday driver I would go for quality and research the technical aspects. Great thinking video.
Love the Belden wires. Nice construction dont come apart and nothing seems to stain or stick to them
For late model SFi cars I use the OEM stuff.
I'm not a huge fan of OEM. Factory always cuts corners for production efficiency and keeping costs down. Many aftermarket parts are far superior to OEM. Years of Hot Rodding have left me with a certain disdain for factory parts lol.
Ariyana Dumon you got a point there
Quite the opposite really in many cases. A lot of aftermarket parts are noticeably inferior and shorter lived. There are some cases this is true, but the majority of the time with the majority of components OEM tends to both outperform and outlast, and is often cheaper.
Don't confuse upgrade parts with replacement parts. OEM parts are generally designed as best they can to last the life of the vehicle. Replacement parts are generally designed for whatever short life the vehicle has left, or put it back in service as soon as possible. Upgrade parts are things designed to outperform OEM.
Why i miss the days of having an oscilloscope type tune up machine with vacuum hook ups, timing light etc. Could see how each cylinder performed before and after and great views of wavelengths. Much info revealed. Great subject and video and comments generated. thanks! And yes, can still obtain a digital reading on new style scanners and use that now, yet old wave form patterns on an old tube type screen where high tech back in the day and worked very well, lol
I did my plugs on my 1997 Mercury Cougar 4.6L. I would randomly get this shudder and bucking when I was driving, it would last under a second but I never could pin point what it was, its under light throttle, I eventually got the car to do this for about 10 seconds and it was a misfire. The plugs and coil packs were recently changed so I knew it had to be the wires. I've only used Motorcraft plugs on the car because I wanted a perfect seal. Here were my findings.
As I was replacing the wires I measured the resistance running through them. I had my multimeter set on 20k Ohms or 2k Ohm, I can't remember now but these were my readings
Cylinder 1 Wire - New Reading 10.62, Old 5.16
Cylinder 2 Wire - New Reading 21.6, Old 10.0
Cylinder3 Wire - New Reading 15.0, Old 7.12
Cylinder4 Wire - New Reading 25.1, Old 15.33
Cylinder5 Wire - New Reading 19.65, Old 12.38
Cylinder6 Wire - New Reading 22.21 Old 11.14
Cylinder7 Wire - New Reading 15.51 Old 7.6
Cylinder8 Wire - New reading 15.17 Old 9.06
After changing the wires the car ran extremely smooth with no shuddering or bucking.
I’m watching this video because I am looking for a plug wire brand with the TM slogan “wired for life” I had them on my Xterra over five years, up until I replaced them in august 2022. Today I’m replacing wires again. Now I know what brand to buy. Come to think about it the person they got the car from shopped at Napa. Thanks for sharing.
MDS or Taylor wires 😎. Plus they come in bigger sizes and cooler colors
I’ve used MDS wires and was happy that I did.
Low resistance means better spark. Higher resistance is for eliminating radio interference. If you had no radio interference the low resistance leads are probably a better choice. OEM isn't always the best option. The manufacturer makes compromises because they have to try to please everyone. Doesn't necessarily mean they work better in all circumstances. That's why we have a high performance parts industry! BTW I hope that you're not putting that oil/transmission fluid displayed on the shelf in your vehicle. You can get MUCH better oli than that.
If it ain’t broke… don’t fix it. Rule applies to non wearing components like these wires. On the other hand if you are bent on fixing something for fun… replace the spark plugs… and the tires… and the filters… for these items newer is always better…. I suppose new fuel injectors could also be beneficial… its always best to replace wearing components before they fail.
Cheers man… great video. 😊👍🏼
Just replaced a set of Belden Premium 7mm wires in my 7.4L 454 TBI. I had 1 wire tear all the way around about 1/2in from end of the boot. I always use Super lube in the end of the boots prior to install. It doesn't necessarily work given the temp the BBC engines run. What plug wires did I use to replace them? Belden 8.5mm heavy duty ceramic. Along with Autolite plugs gapped at .035. The engine purrs like a kitten. The old plugs (Delco) and wires had 24K on them. Another tip...when checking wire/s after you hook up the volt meter you want to manipulate the wire while watching the volt meter. If there is a break in the wire this is how you find it.
AC Delco performance better. I'm a GM guy myself. On your next turn up. Would you put performance wire's and spark plugs in?
I have a 1994 GMC 5.7L, the old wires had about 4500 ohms per ft (one was broke and bad) . The new wires ( all 8) had about 1500 ohms per ft. Good right?! Wrong, the new wires have only 7 mm diameter which lead to arcing at cylinder #2 right thru the new wire!. I had to install one of the old wires to get it to run correctly and not miss. What is also critical is to get at least the same diameter of insulation (in my case at least 7.5 mm).
High resistance wires (measured in ohms/foot) are used to reduce magnetic interference with sensors and the car radio. Like you, I've noticed that new wires sometimes don't meet manufacturer specs when compared to the standard outlined in the OEM dealers manual. However using an ohmeter to judge RFI interference from high voltage wires is not an exact science. The last set of wires I replaced didn't meet specs, not even close. However I decided not to return them, and they are working fine....
Dude!! Take that beautiful woman to Tahiti, and quit fixing something that’s not broke !!!
You want a million views let her be on a lot more
let her do the video you hold the camera and like Nugget said.
Why is that?
Well Joe; its because pretty women sell videos. And some day when your older you'll understand.
@@howie119 I'm 23, married, and I work in sales....I get the point, just disagree with the premise of sexualizing your wife or any woman to sell something or make money. Just wanted to make sure that was what this guy was getting at before I disagreed
I was leaning more toward her being pretty and thought you were a little slow. it is what it is.
It is very common when removing for these terminals to come apart. I have repaired many as shown in your video. I was taught that resistance was originally added to plug wires to reduce radio interference. Solid wire acts as a transmitting antenna and the square wave of the spark interferes with all frequencies. While the spark voltage is high, the Amperage in the wire is low, making the voltage and power loss through a few ohms negligible. 400 vs 150 ohms are very low resistances compared to the open plug gap of your resistor spark plug. (Volts = Ohms / Amps) (Power = Volts x Amps)
ACDelco Professional is NOT the OEM part that was installed at the factory. “Professional” is their aftermarket equivalent line. Professional is the stuff they make for all makes and models. OEM parts will say something like “Genuine GM” on the packaging. They are different.
yes you are correct
The insulation cracks after getting hot and cold a million times. Then the wires spark like lightning to the closest metal hooked to ground. They will still pass an ohms test but not fire plugs like they should. Take an old car that needs a tune up and watch it run at night under the hood, you will see stray voltage going everywhere. It is cool to see, like watching a tesla coil. This is why we change wires and no i don't care if the wires ohm out or not. A bare copper wire will pass an ohms test too.
I use Delco on all Delco equipped machinery. They did the research with OEM and have never failed premature. I have some big blocks that use Delco on the ignition, but spec Champion plugs.... Spec it OEM no matter the brand.
And now, is story time....
Once upon a time there was a redneck (me) that had a riding mower that through much of an odd happening, had a magneto plug wire get shorted. As a 10-11 year olds mind works, and reading many hot rod/racing magazine ads, I thought I had the ultimate cure with items in the big shed. Copper wire, a.bit larger than the OEM core, Ohm test told me that it will be better than stock. A spool of heat shrink of various sizes, to help guard against abraison.
Ok, we have low resistance firing 30 times/second (camshaft actuated points, the old cast iron Briggs). She picked up a lot of pert.... Until, she died. The mag coil died. It looked like the coil over heated. I then had a spare 12v car coil and a pull off plug wire. She still lives and mows.
It is a '71 model Montgomery Wards garden tractor. She is the oldest of four, the newest being '06.
Take care from Oklahoma,
Mike and Vee
That‘s crazy, I‘ve replaced the ignition wires on my 1994 Mercedes E-Class a couple of weeks ago and the resistance on the factory wires was 2k Ohms. Isn‘t that quite high in comparison to your 450 Ohms OEM-wires? I‘ve replaced mine with 2k aftermarket ones because I was afraid it could damage something if I swap them out for ones with a different resistance. Should I‘ve swapped them for ones with a lower resistance or would it have made no difference at all?
I think the high resistance to reduce Radio static.
OEM
Thanks Jimmy and Wife! very good info.
The resistance of the wire is only there to make the HT connection inductive, basically it works like a current spike limiter, higher resistance will slow the coils current discharge through the plug from a few nanoseconds to a few tens of nanoseconds, effectively lengthening the spark duration, but also slightly reducing it's energy. If the resistance becomes too high the spark may not happen at high gas load, too low resistance will burn away your plug electrodes faster and cause more emi noise around the ignition system, possibly causing radio noise. I run lower resistance 'performance' leads on high compression performance engines, and oem on stock for maximum plug life.
Wire resistance is less important then insulation, and unless you have a megger you are not equipped to test it. In general less resistance is better. Don't delude yourself that GM is designing the wires and specifying the spark plug wire restance.
I'm a die hard AC Delco guy too but resistance is resistance. If it performs better, I'll use anything.
I suggest dry ice it will cool the cables and make a super conductor out of them
Go OEM. A lower resistance means higher current which can give you a stronger spark, but the stronger spark can also wear your plugs out a bit faster
Markus R. True, if you leave the spark gap at the factory spec. Open them up a bit to cool the spark just a hair. 10% would be a good start.
(Slavish devotion to the dictates of a corporation’s engineering dept is ridiculous when that corp’s purpose is to separate you from your money in the biggest and most frequent ways possible, as far as I’m concerned)
But OEM has much higher resistance. So now what
Love your videos and I have 2002 GMC Yukon XL and you are very helpful to me thx and do what your doing
i love prepandemic uploads!
Sometimes non-OEM wires wont fit right and/or wont click into place on the spark plugs. Also, they are more prone to breakage. OEM is the way to go
Yes. Lower resistance is much better. Yields in better, hotter spark
More resistance means higher voltage and lower current. Higher current means ignition coil degradation and magnetic fields that send stray signals to all the touchy sensors that the ECM relies on to keep the engine running correctly.
The spark is created by high voltage, not high current. Higher current (caused by too little resistance) through the spark plug will overheat them causing pre-ignition and excessive electrode wear.
If the ignition coils are OE, use AC Delco wires, or matching specs. Otherwise, plan on changing ignition coils often. They degrade stealthily. The ECM will just advance the ignition timing to compensate for old coils. This makes for bad performance at higher rpm. And you will get no misfire DTCs to alert you of the problem, only an underperforming truck.
I my self don't mind Napa parts. In my opinion they are right up there with OEM!
At high voltage, this resistance is negligable and it helps reduce AM radio interference.
So West AC Delco plug wires specifically for my Yukon AC Delco makes a professional wire set and a OEM wire set which is almost double the price. So just because it says AC Delco does not mean it’s OEM.
Keep the Beldons as long as you are not getting radio interference. This is fundamental. There's no point in you using a Volt/ohm meter if you are going to ignore the results and use new AC Delco that are demonstrated to be not as good new. Use Dielectric Grease in the boots so you won't pull the wires out of the connectors. It will keep the boots from sticking to the plugs.
A lot of AC Delco stuff lately is just re-badged from other manufactures. I don't put any stock in AC Declo stuff anymore. I bought an AC Delco professional t-stat and in the box was a motorad. I reached out to AC Delco who said that was correct they must all be owned by the same parent company.
A plug wire is a plug wire. It conducts electricity from the coil to the spark plug. As long as you insulate it properly you could use a coat hanger. You can use whatever brand you want but anyone thinking they "need" to use OEM plug wires probably thinks they "need" to use OEM windshield washer fluid as well. It is literally a piece of wire wrapped in insulation, as far as parts go there isn't much on a vehicle as simple as a plug wire.
There are some cases (mopar electronics) where OEM is the only thing that works. Aftermarket parts will fit and function properly for a little while and then mysteriously fail. You can keep putting aftermarket parts on one after the other and they all fail within 30 to 90 days. Then you buy a "Genuine Mopar" part from the Dodge dealer and it lasts for years. I've never seen it from any other manufacturer besides Chrysler. If I had to guess I would say they have a way for their parts to identify themselves to the PCM/ECM/BCM as genuine and aftermarket parts can't do that so it overloads the part until it fails. There is no legitimate explanation for aftermarket parts from companies who have been building these things for years to keep constantly failing and then an OEM part lasts forever.
So unless you are working on a late model Chrysler vehicle going OEM is just spending more money where you don't have to. It's your money and if it gives you peace of mind open your wallet as wide as you want. I'll keep using aftermarket parts and spending 1/3 or 1/4 what the parts guy at the GM dealer wants for the OEM AC Delco part. The belief that OEM parts are better is an old wives tale.
I second that guy
I third...
As you age you begin to appreciate old wives tail.
Thanks for sharing, i like your under hood shop light, I was about to purchase a " under hood light ". Saving money. Take care.
Thanks. I'm having a Napa auto shop install new spark plug wires in the 2012 Chevy impala next week. Seems really costly. Something about the coil is on the plug wires. I'd never heard of this.
Resistor plug, resistor wire, all made to stop interference, hotter spark with lower resistance
From what I understand...in past readings... less that 200ohms/ft. linear resistance is desirable in plug wires. That, and spiral-wound wire cores.
Friend of mine, mechanic, Steve Costello never did replace plug wires unless ohms were astronomical. Don't remember what the number was but I will say, this was going on 40 years ago
Resistance isn't always a bad thing in a plug wire I know everybody always wants a zero ohm resistance but you do need some resistance in order to make a good connection they have one ohm spark plug wires but when you put a tester on it okay yeah super low resistance but when you try to force a shitload of current through it as you do with any performance application you can end up burning the little cables in there I don't know what they're called but AC Delco plug wires are the way to go. I put low resistance plug wires in my truck and it rang great for about a thousand miles and then after that I had smoke issues and burned plugs and couldn't figure out what was going on can't be the plug wires they're brand new put the old AC Delco plug wires back on ran perfect. 50 miles later pull the spark plugs back out they were all cleaned up ran like a champ so that's just my experience. I'm running a performance HEI distributor they call it the stealth distributor it's capable of 9,000 RPM. Why I don't know why not. I've honestly never had my engine stop pulling and I've had it up to 6,900 RPM and then tack went crazy so I let out. I personally built my engine but I did not do any of the sizing and balancing it went to the machine shop for that and so it was balanced and blueprinted I also had them do the ring Gap. Unfortunately I had to install the rings that sucked.
I'd stick with OEM. The ECU, ignition, OEM plugs are all geared for it.
Resistance in plug wires is to eliminate radio interference. Less resistance means more fire to the plugs. Either of these will work just fine for you.
what matter is the HOT resistance as WIRES heat up they make more resistance the napa will have higher HOT resistance
he only showed the COLD resistance .
I can make wires near ZERO resistance with dry ice aka super conductor.. :O
Wife is ohm-azing! Well done Sir.
I think guys miss out on some excellent products getting stuck on "OEM". Like Motorcraft. Lol there are guys out there that think Motorcraft sparkplugs are superior. Thanks for the video. It was great
I’d stick to OEM cables. The resistance in spark plug cables is there for a reason. It helps prevent interference with electronics, which can cause problems with the radio or the engine computer. I once tried making my own spark plug cables using solid copper wires. I only replaced one of the cables to test it, but the massive EMI it put out caused the engine to stall. If it’s an old carbureted engine and you don’t care about the radio, then low resistance cables are OK. They’re also needed for some special high compression engines where a normal spark would get blown out.
Go with the AC Delco if nothing's feels off then keep running them if not you can always switch back. Personally I'm running blue Taylor's 8mm wires on my 69C20
even new wire sets should be checked. I have purchased sets in the past that were all over the place as far as ohms go. I always ended up going with ford racing wire sets or MSD. Not sure if gm makes performance parts other than oem replacement. I also index the plugs when possible. Now vehicles dont even have plug wires. I would do research before buying new COP as well. OEM is not always best.
I think what you’re asking is are we brand snobs??? To an extent, yes. For fit, finish and functionality, I use AC Delco or Delphi for GM. Motorcraft for ford and it doesn’t matter for Chrysler, it’s all crap. For most all import stuff I try to use Beck/Arnley, they have always provided a good aftermarket for imports. Plugs themselves I will use Delco motorcraft and the only thing I use a champion in is a Chrysler or my lawnmower. I will also use NGK Or Denso in place of any of the above, and only use NGK or Denso in an import.
1. Stick with the low resistance wires.
2. Some parts are ACDelco, some are Delphi. The fuel rail on my 06 Silverado is Delphi.
3. More resistance (higher Ohms) leads to less current reaching the spark plug leading to weaker spark, less fuel burned (ECM has to provide more fuel which means worse gas mileage), and reduced power. Racing vehicles many times use low resistance wires (at or under 100 Ohms per foot) to ensure the least resistance along that path. For stock (fuel injected, 1 coil per cylinder) engines, anything under 1000 Ohms per foot should be good enough to run well and not affect power. For older carburated distributor vehicles, more resistance (higher Ohms) can lead to misfire in the coil, spark jumping in the distributor, points not firing properly, etc. This is why many of them made a lot less power despite being larger engines. Many standard plug wires from the 70s and 80s were rated in the 12,000-20,000 Ohm PER FOOT range, except the performance wires came in at/under 1000 per foot (meaning 3000 Ohm reading for a 3 foot wire). Technology has helped advance this aspect to provide much lower resistance wires for standard pricing, so that 150 Ohm 6 inch wire would be 300 Ohm per foot resistance wire, the AC Delco Pro wires he got at 400-500 Ohm is 800-1000 Ohm per foot wires, which is still the standard, but nothing special.
4. Also, if a coil is dying/weak, the added resistance (1000+ per ft) can actually accelerate the death of the coil since it cannot discharge all of the energy each time leading to a build up and increased heating of the coil(s).
5. For other engines with a "waste spark" and secondary spark plugs, like a previous 2004 Durango Hemi I owned, I never worried about the plugs or wires it with the secondary spark, it is minimal benefit on good running engines so I only dealt with the primary plugs and coils.
Mike K4ISR E = I x R and P = I x E. If resistance increases then voltage drop increases there for lower voltage to the spark plug. Current decreases which means a decrease in power to the plugs and just like you said causes the ecu to adjust the lower power thus needing more fuel to compensate ad lower gas mileage. No resistance equals max power but also creates a direct short for the coil which creates more heat and would need to increase the physical size of the coil. The ecu can compensate for this by shortening the spark duration. Man, computer controls are the way to go. Great comment my friend.
Lower resistance wires put more of the ignition energy at the spark gap, burning more of the fuel for higher efficiency (greater mileage). If that appeals, get Granatelli MPG+ wires, which are verifiably Zero ohms. I have them on my Buick and the fuel savings paid for them in very short order.
Is this fact or opinion. Im filter thru what everyone is saying not trying to offend sir TIA.
@@anthonysandoval965 my mileage improved, not insignificantly, when I changed to the make of wires I mentioned. Further, while swapping them, I measured wire-to-wire resistance with my DMM and the OEMs were in the low 1000s of ohms range, and the new ones never topped 0.2 ohms. A huge difference, especially on a waste-spark ignition. All of the voltage went to where it matters, rather than to waste heat. Fatter, stronger sparks burn more of the fuel in the charge, and the computer trims delivery back without a loss of power. You could even open the gap over stock. My Buick is at 260k km (160k miles) on the original converter and sensors because the exhaust is so clean, and I’m getting better mileage than the window sticker that came on it at the dealership.
Don’t take anything for granted! It’s good you’re sceptical and researching; take your newfound knowledge and put it to use. A better life for you and it helps the planet too.
@1ROAD Ohm's law is V=IR, where V is voltage, I is current, and R is resistance. Let's assume the ignition coil is supplying 25kV like one commenter suggests. 25,000 V = I x 200 Ohms for the Belden wires. Solve for I by dividing 25,000 V by 200 Ohms. The answer is 125 Amps. Use 400 Ohms for the ACDelco wires, and you get 62.5 Amps. Now, 25kV is clearly to high an estimate, 1000 - 2000 volts is probably more realistic, but that's not my point. My point is that if you increase the resistance, you decrease the current. Those ignition coils are only so big, and controlling the current output of the things will help prevent premature failure. The same goes for the spark plugs. Less current = cooler spark, and your plugs will thank you. Furthermore, the theory that resistive wires cut down on radio interference holds water. Electromagnetic fields are generated by current moving through a conductor. If you reduce the current, you weaken the electromagnetic field. Radio waves are an electromagnetic field, and pulsed DC electric currents, such as in the spark plug wire, emit a rather broad spectrum of radio waves. Reducing the field should reduce radio interference.
Also not that AC Delco wires are minimum GM spec wire for that car. as AC Delco has several levels of wires you may NOT be getting same as OEM, may be better or lesser(read that as not lower or worse) but the bottom level may be bare minimum spec for that application.
See it's like this, Belden sets it's spec so high they surpass OEM levels on specs THUS they can sell to everyone. now the box for your truck MAY have one or two long wires a bit longer than OEM but honestly if I custom loom some times I will actually shorten a wire. Never had any warranty issues as long as still looked like out of the box. Most companies would only investigate warranty claims if it was like 500 sets of same part number. Not cause tech made wire bit shorter some time in its life.
1)Spark plug wires are not made for DC current.
2) There is high frequency high voltage power that doesn't care about this resistance. The spark plug wire is a long inductor.
3) Spark plug has approx 0.4 - 1mm of an air gap that is seen as a large resistor equivalent to 2*10^13 Ohm. So 99.9999% of power will go into that HUGE "resistor" and won't be wasted in 100-500 ohm wire. (largest voltage drop in a circuit develops across the largest resistor)
4) If you test other cars wires you might get surprised by their resistivity. For example original Subaru wires are 5000-17000 Ohm. NGK wires for subaru are approx 400-600 ohm. Bosch wires you won't even be able to measure properly with multimeter because Bosch wires have high capacitance so you'll measure anywhere between 1000-200000 Ohm or Open Circuit. That's because multimeters use Direct current to measure resistance, and capacitors block DC current. Some multimeters (e.g. Fluke) use low power pulses to measure resistance - they will measure resistance in this case but the number won't be consistent and/or accurate because the pulse isn't strong enough to overcome capacitance.
5) Finally, what you should care about in Spark plug wires: 1) propagation delay (how fast high freq. signal gets from one end of wire to another). You can test it if you have a function generator and an oscilloscope 2) quality of external insulation and how well the end boots are sealed.
I presume the lower the resistance the better, though electronic circuits sometimes work better with a resistive load i.e. the lead itself. I just checked the 4 silicone leads on my Honda Type R and 3 leads measured 140 ohms, yet the 4th lead gave a 3,000 ohm reading. However, performance doesn't seem to have been affected. Perhaps this is because we are dealing with very high voltages via the plugs and such a discrepancy in the readings may be negligible
Should not put a gob of grease in the boot, take a Q-Tip and put a thin swipe around the inside of the boot. Remember this grease is not conductive, it is an insulator, plus it helps with condensation. It is only to be able to take the boot off easier only when it comes to low voltage electrical connecters then you can coat the metal contacts with a thin coat to keep the connection from corroding from condensation or water that may get in.
Know that the connection is made from metal-to-metal contact not because the grease is there, when pushing the connectors together the two metal contacts scrap the grease off down to the bare metal, if it did not there would not be current flow.
AC Delco wires have been crap for as long as I can remember.
Why even change wires if they're in spec? Still running original wires with over 300K miles. Every time I check, they've been in spec, so I leave em alone.
They changed the recommended plugs and gapping from the factory design... So I don't think OEM is always the best choice in every case. Besides, aftermarket plug wires come in color choices.
Thanks for a video with the 03 can we get a towing video next on it?
My experience with many GM vehicles, AC Delco mechanical parts are great! No disputing that. BUT... their electronics suck so bad!!! Most of the GM problems I encounter are from poor connectors and poorly engineered electronics. My pro opinion is stick with NAPA wires. Low resistance is better power delivery to plugs and more precise spark timing. Yes, the ECM compensates for variances but, why rely fully on that.
Another thought, okay maybe at least 3, on the steering cover, you replaced the turn signal, etc switch and I have same but the plastic legs for the screws are broken and missing. They have these for Auto trans trucks but not the manual. Any suggestions?
The higher the resistance the lower the current therefore less electromagnetic interference on the radio, The spark plugs do not need a lot of current to operate, they require a very high voltage at low current.
The spark plugs have a much higher resistance. So if you're wires or one ohm it's still only going to have to make it past the spark plugs. It used to be the higher resistance would have an increased durability because less power his past. But now with metals like iridium, and platinum being used, so the resistance can be lowered for more power to flow. If I were you I would continue to enjoy putting the OEM brand that you like so much on your vehicle. Only difference between those OEM wires and the off brand is that your OEM brand will last longer due to its higher resistance.
specification for spark plug wires for the GM 5.3L V8 is 800 ohms plus-or-minus 500 (300 to 1300 ohms..
you just got lucky napa has poor QC on those plug wires
that is why it broke I bet they are 1kohm when warmed up
Packard 440 wire and make your own with Rajah terminals
I'm wondering why there's difference more than anything. Seems to me the only possible explanation is the conductors have to made out of different materials or there's a difference in mass/gauge of the conducting material.
Try comparing them with a Megger at 1000V and see what the resistance difference is? Not sure if that's acceptable but it would be interesting to see what the the out come would be.
I'd get rid of them all and buy some Taylor or a good aftermarket wire, the one that came apart is no big deal, they make universal sets where you put vall the ends on! I'd stick with least resistance!!!
Dielectric grease is an insulator and is being improperly used here. If you want to put some on the ceramic part of the plug, that's o.k. and the outside of the cap where the boot goes, that's o.k. too. It should not be smeared on the conductor parts of an electrical circuit, typically.
Switch to MSD wires. 50 ohms or less per foot.
Napa it is,keep the gm as a just in case.If it was a race car it would be a no brained.Napa wires can break down a ways and still be better but I am like you in the aspect that usually the Oem parts have a hidden benefit that is not apparent
The value of resistance of a lead can be up to 1,000 ohms per foot, which means that both sets of leads are functional, and so worth keeping. Consider that a pulse of 20,000 volts reaches the electrode of the spark plug, the resistance you have measured and compared is effectively very small, given the DC resistance of the ignition coil (secondary winding) can be as high as 10 kilohms as a new and functional item.
check the resistance after warming them up drive like 20 miles on both you will be 100% surprised the napa have higher resistance.....
COLD resistance means nothing ... What matters is the HOT operating temperature resistance..... you will see 1kohm to 8kohm with the napa and
the acdelco will be under 600ohm ( or with in specification). That is the only way to tell for sure if they are better or not
I'm gonna try this!
I tested for 1 year, 20,000 miles. OEM did not preform.
Had to replace cap rotor and plugs every about 4000 miles.
Tended to create moisture in the distributor cap, and make my engine miss.
And, yes, I used the dielectric lube.
Best to go factory spec, and leave it as is.
Totally out of leftfield, I love your hood light, "looks" like a florescent overhead light, jiggered ? Can you do a video on it, or let us know if you just "bought" it or what ? COOLIO txs
Costco 4 ft led shop light. On sale for $20. Love them!!!
@@1RoadGarage nice, I'll look it up, I've played with different forms of lighting, especially for my you tube channel, but I do like that,! txs
@@1RoadGarage so, sorry, how do you attach the "hangers" to your hood ? I guess is what I'm really asking
@@1RoadGarage looks like, you've maybe opened up one of the hanger clips, and just used it as a hook ? difficult to tell as that part is not obvious from the vid, txs again
How do you know ACDelco is the oem for GM? This is really good information I'm trying to find the same for Honda/Acura & Toyota
Toyota OEM parts are usually Denso brand.
B17 wingman . you want resistance. The wires are resistor type as well as plugs. o/e wires are always best. resistor type ignition was designed for low R F I, RADIO FREQUENCY INTERFERENCE..
resistance is only part of the equation, the insulation could still b old n broke down which could cause weaker spark by arcing
I just picked up that same ac/dc amp clamp, at the Homer, works pretty good and has a clean display. You liking it?
It's the cl800 and I love it!! Had to buy this one because it tests for DC amperage...
Although many items should be oem like sensors, I think spark plug wires isn’t as critical But if the Delco’s don’t cost a lot why not?
but is that low resistance caused by their age? do you have some old ACDelco to compare to?
First, AC Delco does not produce anything after the whole GM bankruptcy thing. Delphi is GM’s producer of electrical components now. Second, the Napa wires could be using a different technology to suppress the EMF radiation. Induction versus resistance. I vote for the lowest resistance.
says who? ac delco is very much still GM...however Delphi is now called Aptiv and was sold by GM yrs ago. so its the complete opposite of what you said. GM talked of selling AC Delco but it never happened.