Iridium plugs

[Black Knight]

I have a mate in USA who is quite heavily involved in the Nascar scene.He recently put me on to Autolite Iridium plugs as the plug that all the Nascar guys are running,he also has them on his own bike and is getting great mileages.NGK Iridiums run out to close on $30 here,but on Tard Me Autolites are there for around $11/$12 each in packs of four which I reckon is great value.I know some guys reckon that Iridiums are too good which makes "reading" a plug difficult,I fitted a pair of Autolites to one of my bikes and they really do seem to perform better than a standard plug.
For what its worth guys.

[Saarg]

I've heard 2 stories about iridium plugs. I am currently running them in the family wagon. Since putting them in the engine performance is Orsum but the post o2 sensor doesn't know how to read it for some reason.
They burn the fuel and o2 mix at a hotter spark temp and are less inclined to create carbon dump less than a standard plug. But the iridium breaks down after 10,000k's
So what I've heard is

1. In theory...
After the (supposed) 10,000k mark there operating like a normal plug

That's why there replaced in race cars after every race. (Cheap enough)

2. No cleaning...
You can't just clean them up. When they do die there dead. Hope it happens in the driveway.

3. They can melt the coil.
Dunno about that one, suppose if the coil is on the plug end instead (like a car) of the other like a bike

I've done about 60,000k in the family wagon, still working strong, clean as a whistle

Be interested to hear how it goes


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[nzspokes]

Ive heard that Iridiums degrade quickly but keep functioning. And that they are more to get cars through warranty periods. Also that a standard plug give better power but obviously needs far more regular changes. Just got standard plugs for my bike to see.

Not ridden it yet to see. All hearsay but for $8 a plug worth a crack.

[AllanB]

I consider them as long life lazy plugs. If you don;t want to change your plugs every 24,000 or so (bike) or 35-50 car go iridium (generally stated as good for 90-100).


Now - people put them in and say the car runs better. BUT I bet a tank of gas if they replace the nackered standards with new standards they would also proclaim how much better the car/bike runs.

Seat of the pants you will notice absolutely no difference on a well maintained vehicle.

[Black Knight]

All good comments guys,but if you get the claimed 4 times the mileage for only one third more in price then why not.Would be a good plug to use on those bikes with hard to access plugs.Geez AllanB,I wish I could get 24K from a standard plug without cleaning.

[Duncan74]

Now - people put them in and say the car runs better. BUT I bet a tank of gas if they replace the nackered standards with new standards they would also proclaim how much better the car/bike runs.
.

My old petrol pajero ran iridium plugs. Needed to get them changed each 100k. Sadly fantastic design meant there was the need to take half the engine off to get to the plugs, meaning a $600 bill to fit 6 $12 parts. I can confirm that it ran just as well after as before. The only difference was the lighter feeling in my wallet.

However, longevity seemed there.

[george formby]

I consider them as long life lazy plugs. If you don;t want to change your plugs every 24,000 or so (bike) or 35-50 car go iridium (generally stated as good for 90-100).


Now - people put them in and say the car runs better. BUT I bet a tank of gas if they replace the nackered standards with new standards they would also proclaim how much better the car/bike runs.

Seat of the pants you will notice absolutely no difference on a well maintained vehicle.

Concur. I have iridiums in my TDM purely for longer service life and a tad hotter spark. They may work better with the aftermarket scaffolding pipes posing as exhausts. Having said that, I had not changed the standard plugs since I bought it, I did 20'000km's on those. No idea how long they had been in before I got it. No comment on performance enhancement, the bike had a host of love as well as the plugs, but it does go like a cut cat

I also had an iridium plug in my 2t DT 230, purely because it was the only plug I could get my hands on and also after re-jetting the bike I thought a hotter spark would do no harm. After a few hours of trail riding without the bike getting opened up it fouled. Just as I was heading home. Quite bizarre, bike fired up and rode off perfectly, 50 mtrs down the road it died. Dead, shrugged off this mortal coil etc. Normal plugs always give a clue when something is not right on a 2t IMHO.

Yeah, na. I can't measure a benefit and the plug that went bung in the DT was $40.

Will try another iridium in the DT and carry a spare normal just in case. Best way to learn IMHO.

[AllanB]

.Geez AllanB,I wish I could get 24K from a standard plug without cleaning.

Hornet 900, inspect at 12 and if Ok replace at 24. Mine were mint at 24,000 but I had the buggers out so in went a new set. Standards just like the originals.

My Ducati book states replace at 12,000. Front one is is easy - the rear appears to be some where in the middle of the bike hidden... on the bright side there are only two.