By comparison, iridium plugs have a small wire center electrode, and like platinum plugs may be single iridium (center electrode only) or double iridium (center and ground electrodes).īosch, who introduced the first platinum plug back in 1985, offers several different electrode configurations in their product line. Likewise, Split-Fire offers a platinum version of its split electrode plugs for motorists who want extended life as well as reduced misfiring. ACDelco also offers a platinum version of its "Rapidfire" plug that features a fluted center electrode for improved ignition reliability. With a couple of exceptions, platinum plugs use a conventional electrode configuration with a small platinum plug welded to the tip of the center electrode (single platinum) or the tip of the center electrode and ground electrode (double platinum). Platinum & Iridium Spark PlugsLong-life spark plugs by ACDelco, Autolite, Bosch, Champion, Denso,NGK, and Split-Fire all have platinum or iridium electrodes. Not having to change the plugs so often is a real savings for the vehicle owner, but it's no guarantee the plugs will go the distance. Long-life spark plugs drastically reduce the need for maintenance while helping the engine maintain like-new performance and emissions. Plugs with platinum or iridium on both electrodes ("double" platinum plugs or double iridium plugs) experience even less wear than plugs with only a single platinum or platinum-tipped electrode. The same is true for plugs that use iridium for their center electrode. Most platinum plugs can go up to 100,000 miles before they have to be replaced. With platinum, gold-palladium and iridium (more on this in a minute), electrode wear is greatly reduced. Eventually the point is reached where the ignition system can't generate enough juice to jump the gap, causing the plug to misfire.
This increases the firing voltage needed to jump the gap. As the miles add up, the electrode gap widens and the center electrode becomes rounded and dull. After 35,000 miles of driving, the gap can grow as much as 0.015" or more.Įvery time a spark plug fires, the hot spark blasts a few molecules of metal off the electrodes. With standard nickel alloy electrodes, the spark gap between the center and ground electrodes grows about. Up to this point, electrode wear usually dictated when a set of plugs had to be replaced. The biggest improvement in spark plug technology, though, came in 1985 when the first generation "long life" plugs with platinum or gold-palladium electrodes hit the market. It also reduces the number of plugs needed to cover a range of engine applications because each plug has a broader "heat range." This improves fouling resistance, ignition reliability and plug life. Copper is an excellent conductor of heat and allows plugs to run hotter without causing preignition. In the mid-1980s, spark plug manufacturers started making plugs with copper core center electrodes. As a result, spark plug life more than doubled. Leaded gasoline was gradually phased out because of its damaging effects on converters as well as the environment. Then came the Clean Air Act of 1970, followed by new emissions regulations and the introduction of catalytic converters in 1975. Consequently, tune-ups and spark plug changes were an annual ritual for most motorists. Unfortunately, lead tended to foul spark plugs after 12,000 to 15,000 miles of driving. For the next 70 years, spark plugs were a high maintenance item thanks to tetraethyl lead, which was used as an octane-boosting additive in gasoline. In 1902, spark plugs were first used with a high voltage magneto to provide reliable ignition. Spark plugs have been around almost as long as the internal combustion engine. Spark Plugs Copyright AA1Car Adapted from an article written by Larry Carley for Underhood Service magazine
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