So I installed the ITV22's tonight. I came across a thread that showed the Ford shop manual called for 8 ft-lb of torque when tightening the plugs. I did this using a torque wrench; and strange question, but is it supposed to feel like its not super tight? It was maybe another 1/4 of a turn and the wrench "clicked".

 

Spark plugs shouldn't be super tight. Just tight.

siht daer nac uoy fi revo em lloR

 

so still running 2 steps colder with the COBB 91 oct stage 1... Car is running great and plugs look good.

 

You still have the factory intercooler right?

 

been doing plugs for many years, tension should be firm (in lieu of a tension wrench), that is my guide. It will always feel like more effort to break the seal than firmly seat.

 

Since there has been so much discussion about the effect of plugs on KR, currently running a tune that is too aggressive for the fuel and I am getting consistent timing being pulled. Just swapped in NGK 1 step colder gapped at 0.026 - thanks Edge! - (same as I had regapped the OEMs to) to verify differences in knock resistance.

 

Same level of ignition correction happened with the step colder plugs. Like I was mentioning earlier colder plugs prevent pre-ignition which is actually silent (not picked up by knock sensor) and more dangerous than detonation if it occurs.

 

Swapped in some Denso ITV22s with the Steeda stage 2, seems like the car is happy, maybe a peace of mind mod more or less for me anyway.

 

I saw ZERO difference from one set of plugs to the other, I think like Alex is saying is that the testing conditions arnt the same between stock and colder plugs..

The colder plugs are not a bad idea in anyway but also not a way to fix KR, UNLESS your oem plugs were fouled or not performing well


2013 TS3 RANDY tuned

 

an engine that is run with heavy detonation over long periods of time will over heat and lose power. pre ignition, just call for a rollback

 

so far with all my testing spark plugs #22's (1 step colder) and #24's (2 steps colder), I have NOT found any down sides to running either of them. The car runs great, spark plugs are still the correct color and clean of any build up.

 

If that is in fact the case. Shouldn't we be running 24's as added safety measure as long as they aren't fouling from being too cold?

 

You get the best performance from running the hottest plug possible without pre-ignition.

 

I understand that, but isn't it a fairly marginal power difference?

I'm not building a race car where a few HP is going to make or break my build. I'm building a street car that needs to drive everyday, in every weather, regardless of conditions.

In my opinion, for myself and possibly most of us who will daily drive these cars, it's cheaper to sacrifice any marginal amount of HP than it is to replace a whole motor cause you tried to walk the ragged edge of performance in a car that most likely operates at full power less than 5% of the time.

Not trying to be rude, I'm just saying I think sometimes we forget we aren't building dedicated race cars on sponsored budgets. We get so hung up on dyno power numbers that we forget that reliability is ultimately what keeps all these cars on the road in our budgets.

 

That was back in December and not a lot of STs in the area at the time. I was a guest with the Porcshe club. A few people knew about the car and were curious. By the end of the day car was a big hit with people who have some serious disposable income. Since then the ST scene has exploded and were getting more organized out here in Phoenix. Next track day is this Saturday. By next season we hope to have a club formed and become a track day auto x force recognized by other established clubs in our area.

 

GO Kevin. Change your forum name to "The Ambassador"

 

DD, Are you going to run the 2 step colder Denso's with your Mountune setup? JP

 

Question... My mod list has been growing, and after my install day tomorrow, will be as follows:

Green Filter
Torrie V5A 91oct or 91B
Boomba BOV
Muffler Delete
FSWerks FMIC
Unleashed Tuning Catless DP

Is there any reason to be concerned about pre-ignition with the OEM plugs on my setup? I figure that the FMIC will greatly help stabilize the charge temps, reducing the threat of pre-ignition. Should I go 1 step colder?

Thanks.

 

I would still probably go with 1 step colder since the FFRP tune requires them.

 

Thx skizzo

 

Some expertise would be greatly appreciated. This stock plug has 15500 miles on it, it was gapped at 31. They all looked the same and we're gapped between 30/34. I've regapped all to 28 and car runs smooth all the way to wot with no miss firing that I can feel. Been running a tuned since 5000 mile mark. Thx

Jeff

 

looks fine to me.

 

All this spark plug talk has me thinking about them!! Thought I would take a look and check the gaps, thinking about going step colder but maybe not?

 

Are the denso ITV22 5340 the correct plug to get? I'm going to order off of amazon and just need to make sure I get the right ones.

 

Order from edge, I'm pretty sure they can beat or match any prices. Plus, they are vendors here...

 

Agree with kent. It is your money but amazon provides no technical help to the forum. Edge is always helping.

 

What is the actual desired gap suppose to be on the plugs?

What I'm seeing is a lot of stock plugs in the .030 to .034 range, so that would mean .032 should be the actual gap from the factory but .028 is where some of the issues go away.

Am I missing anything?

 

From post #1:
The factory spark plug for the focus ST is an NGK plug PN: LTR6DI-8. If you break down the part number this is what you get.
LT (Long thread reach plug Tapered seat type 25mm) R (Resistor) 6 (heat range) D (Metal Shell Plating Spec Change) I (Laser Iridium) - 8 (0.8mm or .032")

Stock plugs seem to vary a bit -- Mine were up to .033-.035 range at about 10k miles (not sure where they started but they were not even)
Denso ITV22s & ITV24s look to be closer to .030 out of the box
Stock tunes should probably use stock plug heat range and gap
Generally the higher the boost, a smaller gap and colder heat range is necessary

I have been running .028 gap ITV24s for a couple thousand miles now. No issues.

 

I just installed my ITV24's yesterday, they all came gapped at .032, I did gap them at .029
The stockers (just had 6000miles on the engine) were gapped at .035, the idle seems smoother, and I haven't feel any misfires.

 

I'm preparing for the install of my COBB Stage 3 kit and am debating on what, if anything, I should do about my spark plugs. I read through this entire thread (that took awhile!) and there seems to be a ton of great information and discussion, but no clear cut consensus on NGK vs Denso or when or if a plug upgrade is necessary. I plan on running the OTS COBB Stage 3 map for now, but eventually may take the car to Surgeline and have them do a pro tune on their dyno.

The car has just a little over 8K miles, so I figure I have several options: I could leave the plugs alone, pull them and regap them down to ~0.028", or spring for a colder plug gapped to 0.026 - 0.028. After going through all the posts, if I did go to a colder plug, I'd likely go the Denso route since they seem to be gapped closer to spec out of the box and people that have run them seem to like them. So the next question is, do I go one step colder to the ITV22s or go all in and drop two steps colder to ITV24s? It seems like my best bet may be the ITV22s to gain the insurance of a slightly colder plug without the risk of possible fouling, yet it seems like no one has been able to foul a ITV24 so far, even with near stock power levels.

Any input is appreciated! I figure it would be easier to drop in the plugs now when I have the engine bay already torn apart to install the Stage 3 kit versus later and having to remove the intake and a few other parts to gain access.

Thanks!

 

I have noticed very little if any difference between the 22's and 24's... I will be going back to the 22's after the end of this 10k mile test.

 

I would recommend at least a one step colder plug. Even with the upgraded intercooler, the Ko3 is a flame thrower at the stage 3 power levels.

 

Do you recommend new plugs for stage 1 tune? If so which ones?

 

Yes, any tune it is suggested 1 step colder


siht daer nac uoy fi revo em lloR

 

Should the map be retuned to accommodate the new plugs?

 

No it doesn't need to be

 

Cool thanks guys