Indexing...sidegapping...reducing the gap...

takza · Post by **takza** » Fri Jul 22, 2005 5:51 pm

Doing some research on aftermarket plugs:

E3 plugs: $7 each at Autozone and Jegs...etc

Halo na

DIY sidegapped V point plugs... $2 each using NGK V-power

* right click and click view pic or paste URL in address bar and hit ENTER

http://www.nonags.org/members/nijqk/sidegappedV.jpg

> carefully bend the ground strap back just enough to use dikes to cut the V...gap at .035" ??

Super Sonic plugs... $7.50 each

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Use of these plugs MIGHT help gas mileage and power.

The Super Sonic and DIY V point should be indexed.

......

I'm putting this here so it can be found.

Since upgrading the ignition system on the 3AC might be difficult with the coil inside the dist cap....doing the following mods SHOULD help increase the effectiveness of the ignition system....with little cost...just some time.

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"Some studies have shown 1-2% of total engine power can be lost through poor spark direction."

http://www.fordmuscle.com/archives/2000 ... ndex.shtml

After looking at the spare head I have....here is the DIRECTION to point the plug gaps....

Tercel 3AC engine...indexing the plugs...

From Front to Back:

* this is with the orientation of the side OPPOSITE the ground...the open side...towards the center of the Exhaust Valve

1.....UP...30' from Vertical pointed to the back

2.....UP...30' from Vertical pointed to the front

3.....UP...30' from Vertical pointed to the back

4.....UP...30' from Vertical pointed to the front

"I feel it is not critical to be 'dead on' with the plug orientation. Within 20 to 30 degrees, either way, should be satisfactory. The main idea is to have the gap open to the chamber, so that the air/fuel charge is exposed to the maximum spark intensity in order to facilitate a fast burn."

So somewhere between VERTICAL and off to one side up to 30'....depending on the cylinder involved.

Sidegapping the plugs....

http://performanceunlimited.com/documen ... pping.html

This takes a steady hand to get them right...

Reducing the plug and plug wire overall resistance...

http://www.lubedev.com/articles/flameout.htm

"My recent experiment with resistance levels, for example, showed absolutely no missing occurred with NGK plugs. Some other good brands of acceptable plugs were only 5500 to 9800 ohms. The NGK plugs, at 4800 ohms, offered the best performance in any weather. I proved this by taking an 8,000 mile trip through the Western United States with my son. We drove through all kinds of climates, altitudes and even through a flood in Idaho. Not one single misfire occurred. The trip included endless high deserts, mountain passes and continental divides up to 10,000 feet. We drove freeways flowing at 90 miles per hour and also creeping Los Angeles traffic. My mileage ranged between 40 and 45 miles per gallon. For consistency I used the same gasoline, always Texaco or Shell. Not a single miss occurred.

In testing the plug cables, the plug cables themselves each had 4,500 to 5,700 ohms resistance. Thus the final (good) total resistance of plug and cable was about 10,000 ohms for the secondary for each cylinder. The secondary is merely a term for the path followed by high voltage that goes to the spark plug. So I concluded that about 10,000 ohms total resistance to each spark plug satisfied the necessary resistance level for good radio reception, proper secondary ignition and smooth operation."

* resistance of plugs should be tested when new....

Reducing the plug gap...

http://www.lubedev.com/articles/tips.htm

"Use NGK spark plugs because they have a proper resistance level that will not short out the high voltage secondary during moist or very cold weather. Other plugs have way excessive resistance. Set the gap to 0.025 for best results. Too wide a gap causes a needless waste of amperage. The milliamps actually fire the mixture rather than the voltage."

* this is a drop from .035" to .025"....for the Tercel the OEM gap is .043"...so maybe a drop to .033"?

Pencil Flame Plugs

http://fueleconomytips.com/content/view/31/2/

"So itÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s time for a tune-up & youÃ¢â‚¬â„¢re interested in better mileage and perhaps a bit more power. YouÃ¢â‚¬â„¢d like to maximize both the expense of the spark plugs and the time spent changing them. Well hereÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s a magic trick that has shown up to 22% increases in torque and similar increases in fuel efficiency. While many of you have heard about indexing the spark plugs, we're going to go even further and turn the plugs into pencil torches This will make it virtually impossible to have misfires and promote a much more complete combustion, yielding more torque and mileage.

Tools neededThe project starts with a brand new set of copper core spark plugs. This trick doesn not work with platinum, iridium, split, halo, multi-electrode, or anything other than conventional spark plugs. You will need a drill, drill press, or lathe (which is what I use), with a drill bit the same diameter as your center electrode (3/32Ã¢â‚¬

Typrus · Post by **Typrus** » Fri Jul 22, 2005 8:43 pm

I don't know where my gapper measure is..
I'm side-gapped (all are shaved equally and it feels like it runs better for them)
I'm indexed to within 5' of Vertical
All plugs are NGK Type R
Need to test my leads.

shogun · Post by **shogun** » Sat Jul 23, 2005 7:28 pm

im going to try it soon at least the gapping, and the indexing, im using avgas at the moment so sidegapping is not worth the risk

takza · Post by **takza** » Sun Jul 24, 2005 6:03 am

I think the NGKs...low resistance wires...and indexing are the easiest & best combo?

One guy tried the gap down to 025" (from .035")...claimed no gain in mpg...just one person though. Since the OEM gap for the Tercel is .043"...a drop to .033" would be the gap to test?

Sidegapping might help...but you'd have to watch the gap pretty close. And it takes some practice...those ground electrodes are smaller than you think.

I've only done the sidegap thing on a push B&S lawnmower so far...runs. Didn't index it. Also use acetone. It starts better.

We could start an NGK V-power plug exchange program...send plugs back and forth to find some that will index right? :blink:

Typrus · Post by **Typrus** » Sun Jul 24, 2005 10:36 am

I just had a few extra "R" type's sitting around and it turned out I had the right ones for the gappage.
I heard split-fires were not a good plan?
Even the Subaru SVX guys in town use Denso Iridium's and say the Bosch Platinum series is the devil.

clbolt · Post by **clbolt** » Sun Jul 24, 2005 11:21 pm

Typrus wrote: Even the Subaru SVX guys in town use Denso Iridium's and say the Bosch Platinum series is the devil.

Bosch Platinums are a total waste of money for most cars on the road, but they're great in 2.3 liter turbo Fords. A buddy of mine suggested them for my old Merkur XR4Ti, and they worked wonders. Damn, those cars were hard on plugs.

takza · Post by **takza** » Mon Jul 25, 2005 4:33 am

Those who run modded Nissan 3 L turbos don't like the Bosch plugs...but they work just fine in the nonturbos though.

takza · Post by **takza** » Mon Jul 25, 2005 4:31 pm

The job isn't as easy as theory would have it...I tried 8 plugs in cylinder no 1 before finding one that lined up OK.

How I did it:

* Bought (2) sets of 4 NGK V-power plugs.

* Labeled the (4) plug wires at the plugs.

* Took 2 plugs out of each package...and 4 plugs out of the head.

* Along with the old plugs (same type and with 8K miles)...I now had 8 plugs that I proceeded to gap to .032".

* Using a marker....I marked the location of the open gap on the end of the white insulator.

* Used a bottle brush to clean the threads in the head.

* Then screwed the plugs in hand tight only...expecting to to tighten the new ones by 1/2 to 2/3s turn...the old ones by maybe 1/4 to 1/2 turn?

* Ended up with 2 plugs close to vertical...2 were off vertical by 10 to 15 degrees....they weren't pointed exactly at the exhaust valves.

* For whatever reason....I probably tried at least 16 plugs before getting it right...these would have all been pointing down for the most part....if tightened. Probability theory says...no way!

coltarms · Post by **coltarms** » Thu Aug 17, 2006 3:34 pm

I think I may try this sidegapping thing.

To those of you who already have tried it, any improvements?

takza · Post by **takza** » Thu Aug 17, 2006 5:28 pm

Tried one in a lawn mower...seemed at least to start easier.

The plug that people seem to be getting better mpg using is the Halo plug.

Typrus · Post by **Typrus** » Thu Aug 17, 2006 9:19 pm

They ran hotter. Dunno if there was too much of a difference. Maybe though. It made my Roto-Tiller start easier. Still have to start it with a shot of Methyl-Ethyl-Ketone though lol