Does spark plug wire really go bad

The error codes will come back if it continues to miss.

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Rick C

It's not literally arcing. It is corona that shows the breaks in the insulation. The corona isn't anywhere near the ends. I would see it all along the wire. If it were arcing, the engine would be missing. Get the cracked wires damp and they *will* arc and miss.

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Rick C

On Fri, 20 May 2016 10:26:55 -0700 (PDT), snipped-for-privacy@gmail.com Gave us:

Spark plug terminations are among the most positive, most sturdy, most vibration resistant in the industry. The cinch on the plug is really good, unless you buy some cheap imitation. On the distributor (or coil) end they are held into the cup very good as well, and the boot seal even assists.

Get a good brand and they last.. Get they cheap ones and they do not. But knowing at least a *little bit* about it helps for proper installation and understanding of the mechanical aspects that lead to good electrical aspects.

On Sat, 21 May 2016 04:50:12 +1000, Clifford Heath Gave us:

You are an idiot.

The carbon cores "are resistive" but only so to reduce EM emission. (inductive pulse)

The solid wire cored wires are NOT "inductive" as a function. They pass the spark down to the plug the same way, just via lower 'resistance'. They ARE "inductive" inasmuch as they emit EM pulses, which cause problems with radios and other electronic gear. But that is not how they are designed to get the spark to the plug.

They are BOTH "resistive" connection elements, just one less so than the other.

On Fri, 20 May 2016 15:38:26 -0400, rickman Gave us:

Correct. Removing an established "carbon trail" does NOTHING to negate the situation that allowed it to form to begin with.

On Fri, 20 May 2016 12:39:00 -0700 (PDT), snipped-for-privacy@gmail.com Gave us:

Bullshit. A good solid connection of the wire to the plug is essential, and if you ever owned a high compression engine, you would know that.

Long ago I used 75ohm co-ax with the outer layers stripped off. Probably not allowed now due to RFI. The polythene seemed to be OK with engine heat.

NT

On Sat, 21 May 2016 02:21:10 -0700 (PDT), snipped-for-privacy@gmail.com Gave us:

AM radios are so bad, that there were guys in the sixties... ham radios types who would put full shields on their plug wires in the days before the high R jobs hit the consumer market. Shielded their distributor caps and had grounded shrouds on the spark plugs too.

They are still doing it.

I don't remember the wires, but the plugs are specified for life-time. How ever, auto life-time may be only 5 years. Since the engine recesses 1/3 in to the dash/compartment, they don't really expect easy access to the back p lugs/wires. Perhaps they don't expect the van to last more than 5 to 10 ye ars.

In the older V6 engines they used to fire the injectors three and three and the coils in pairs. As a result they didn't even need a cam sensor, but al so they could not tell which cylinder was failing.

Most cars now fire the injectors individually right when the intake valve i s open. This is not only more efficient but gives them the ability to test and see if any cylinders are not efficient. they just shut off one injector and look for a loss of power. this happens very fast and the driver is una ware of it, somewhat like EGR, which they also test by turning it off once in a while and looking for an increase in power. In fact they are required to have a test for that in the new cars.

Some of these things are pretty sophisticated actually. Soe wirth the dual overhead cams have cam and crank sensors and can tell you when the timing c hain(s) is getting stretched, and if it tell you to change it you better or else. Or else what ? Most of them are interference engines which means if the valve timing is too far off the pistons smack the valves, and there mig ht be 32 of them.

I'd like to drive one of these new super engines. They got variable valve t iming and direct injection. The problem is there is nowhere around here to really drive something like that the way I would want to. Back in the 1970s we could, but these days you would have to go to the Utah salt flats or a racetrack.

It was the centre lead to the distributor so it affected all 4 cylinders the same, and it was old enough to have no cat.

Sounds like an old dog.

NT

Well it probably made your pile of crap look better.

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nd the coils in pairs. As a result they didn't even need a cam sensor, but also they could not tell which cylinder was failing.

plenty of modern engine use wasted spark, it only works for certain bank an gles

they detect misfires by looking at the crank acceleration

is open. This is not only more efficient but gives them the ability to tes t and see if any cylinders are not efficient. they just shut off one inject or and look for a loss of power. this happens very fast and the driver is u naware of it, somewhat like EGR, which they also test by turning it off onc e in a while and looking for an increase in power. In fact they are require d to have a test for that in the new cars.

injectors are fired both before and after the intake is closed, it all depe nds loads of engine parameters

l overhead cams have cam and crank sensors and can tell you when the timing chain(s) is getting stretched, and if it tell you to change it you better or else. Or else what ? Most of them are interference engines which means i f the valve timing is too far off the pistons smack the valves, and there m ight be 32 of them.

timing and direct injection. The problem is there is nowhere around here t o really drive something like that the way I would want to. Back in the 197

0s we could, but these days you would have to go to the Utah salt flats or a racetrack.

aka anything made the last 20 years

Yup, but the laws of thermodynamics say that if if make a 500 HP engine the size of your fist it will burn up quickly.

And more than 20 years. I got spoiled by my 1970 Toronado, but actually hav e been somewhat impressed by some later cars. The olman had this 1990 Delta 88 and the radiator went and it wound up needing a top end. Got Felpro Pri ntoseals which were about 0.025" thinner than original. that raised the the oretical compression ratio. At first there was no compression and I said WT F, but then of course it dawned on me, the lifters needed to be pumped down . So I let it go ZZZZZZZZZZZZZ and then ZZZZUGZZZZ and the ZZZZUGHZZZUGH an d so forth. If you ever have to do this, DO NOT TOUCH THE THROTTLE, That is what burns up intake valves, I remember from the day adjusting them on Che vys.

Do you know that some older cars ran so clean that there would be no differ ence if they had a cat ? Do you know that up until recently there was no wa y to test the cat ? Do you know how they test it now ?

They purposely run the engine too rich which costs you money in gas mileage , and then check with a second O2 sensor after the cat to look for less O2 in the exhaust. That extra gas is used to burn up the pollutants.

There was a time when engines were really built well. People who drove Cadi llacs and Oldsmobiles did not want them stinkiing up the place, in fact the y wanted to run them in their (sometimes attached) garage. If you like stin ky cars buy a diesel. When people killed themselves in the garage by runnin g the car, they told you it was carbon monoxide. (CO) It was not, if the ca r was running right it was carbon dioxide. (CO2) They both displace oxygen as well as the other. Of course if someone takes and pulls a spark plug wir e it is all different.

Anyway, with this constantly almost stoichometric air fuel mixture, healthy firing voltage and proper use of EGR you might NEVER have to change spark plugs. As long as those wires do not lose too much voltage.

Really? So computer CPUs running 100 watts in an engine the size of your thumbnail are impossible?

Which cars are you talking about? I think this is a bit of... oral tradition.

You have so little knowledge of chemistry. What are the pollutants in auto exhaust?

The only thing burned in the catalytic converter are hydrocarbons. The trade off in the mixture is to set it lean and produce more N0x pollutants or to set it rich and produce more unburned hydrocarbons. The catalytic converter can burn up the unburned hydrocarbons, so the mixture is set a bit rich and the NOx levels are kept low as well as the unburned hydrocarbons.

Again, showing your lack of knowledge of chemistry as well as medicine. It is impossible for an internal combustion engine to not produce CO. There is a quench zone around the edges of the combustion chamber where the mixture can not rise to a high enough temperature to fully burn the fuel. The result is a mixture of partial combustion products. There may not be a lot of them, but it doesn't take much. CO is hugely noxious. Levels of just 400 ppm are fatal. Your body accumulates CO in the blood because it sticks to hemoglobin 230 stronger than O2. So the hemoglobin in the blood very quickly becomes saturated with CO preventing the delivery of O2. CO releases from hemoglobin slowly so it takes some hours to recover from exposure.

CO2 does not affect hemoglobin in this way. Humans can tolerate a

*much* higher concentration of CO2, over 1% before death.

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Rick C

:

he size of your fist it will burn up quickly.

ave been somewhat impressed by some later cars. The olman had this 1990 Del ta 88 and the radiator went and it wound up needing a top end. Got Felpro P rintoseals which were about 0.025" thinner than original. that raised the t heoretical compression ratio. At first there was no compression and I said WTF, but then of course it dawned on me, the lifters needed to be pumped do wn. So I let it go ZZZZZZZZZZZZZ and then ZZZZUGZZZZ and the ZZZZUGHZZZUGH and so forth. If you ever have to do this, DO NOT TOUCH THE THROTTLE, That is what burns up intake valves, I remember from the day adjusting them on C hevys.

erence if they had a cat ? Do you know that up until recently there was no way to test the cat ? Do you know how they test it now ?

ge, and then check with a second O2 sensor after the cat to look for less O

2 in the exhaust. That extra gas is used to burn up the pollutants.

if you run rich there is no oxygen in the exhaust to begin with

they alternate between slightly rich and slightly lean, the lean part provi ding oxygen for oxidation of CO and HC in the cat, the rich part has to red uces NOx in the cat

dillacs and Oldsmobiles did not want them stinkiing up the place, in fact t hey wanted to run them in their (sometimes attached) garage. If you like st inky cars buy a diesel. When people killed themselves in the garage by runn ing the car, they told you it was carbon monoxide. (CO) It was not, if the car was running right it was carbon dioxide. (CO2) They both displace oxyge n as well as the other. Of course if someone takes and pulls a spark plug w ire it is all different.

it was CO, CO is much more dangerous than CO2

-Lasse

On Sun, 22 May 2016 07:38:30 -0700 (PDT), Lasse Langwadt Christensen Gave us:

Right.. Just a shitload of unburned fuel/combustion products.

Yer an idiot.

DecadentLinuxUserNumeroUno wrote in news:d4n3kb5baruia79vo45qdm5plddhaekqve 4ax.com: