Spark Plugs
#11
10-12-2018, 10:34 AM
Road Captain
#12
10-12-2018, 11:44 AM
Seasoned HDF Member
The plugs are used for a feature called ION Sense. The plugs are actually used as sensors. If they are wrong resistance, the ECM may think it misfired or think it knocked when it did not. It then will manipulate fuel and spark to compensate for a ghost condition. This usually results in lost power. You can't go wrong just installing a set of stock plugs. The aftermarket high dollar plugs aren't necessarily the best for this application.
HD spark plugs are made by Champion. In all my years of drag racing cars, modifying engines for performance, and motorcycles too...Champion has consistently been THE worst brand out there. They are ok for a stock engine in good operating condition, but they are of cheaper quality IMHO. I don't want to turn this into an "oil" argument; just stating my personal experience. I like NGK for bikes because they are used as OEM plugs in many sport bikes that are high-performance based. They have great performance and longevity in those applications, and that has proven to be the case in my own travels.
The following users liked this post:
moose545 (10-12-2018)
#13
10-12-2018, 11:53 AM
Stellar HDF Member
The plugs are used for a feature called ION Sense. The plugs are actually used as sensors. If they are wrong resistance, the ECM may think it misfired or think it knocked when it did not. It then will manipulate fuel and spark to compensate for a ghost condition. This usually results in lost power. You can't go wrong just installing a set of stock plugs. The aftermarket high dollar plugs aren't necessarily the best for this application.
Keep helping us to understand the facts Ed. You are a treasure here and thanks for your experienced comments. Hopefully they will be respected rather than refuted.
Thanks again Ed,
Bob
The following users liked this post:
Ed Ramberger (10-13-2018)
#14
10-12-2018, 12:09 PM
Road Captain
Not quite. The system senses ignition secondary voltage and uses that as a way to detect detonation by the changes in that voltage. Every time you start your bike the system uses that voltage as the baseline. It doesn't matter what plugs you have in there; the baseline will simply be different if you have plugs with a different resistance. The function, however, will be unaffected.
HD spark plugs are made by Champion. In all my years of drag racing cars, modifying engines for performance, and motorcycles too...Champion has consistently been THE worst brand out there. They are ok for a stock engine in good operating condition, but they are of cheaper quality IMHO. I don't want to turn this into an "oil" argument; just stating my personal experience. I like NGK for bikes because they are used as OEM plugs in many sport bikes that are high-performance based. They have great performance and longevity in those applications, and that has proven to be the case in my own travels.
HD spark plugs are made by Champion. In all my years of drag racing cars, modifying engines for performance, and motorcycles too...Champion has consistently been THE worst brand out there. They are ok for a stock engine in good operating condition, but they are of cheaper quality IMHO. I don't want to turn this into an "oil" argument; just stating my personal experience. I like NGK for bikes because they are used as OEM plugs in many sport bikes that are high-performance based. They have great performance and longevity in those applications, and that has proven to be the case in my own travels.
#15
10-12-2018, 12:49 PM
Seasoned HDF Member
A colder plug has the tip and electrode further out in the air flow. Though was a hotter plug burnt off deposits. With no lead in fuel, fuel injection making an almost perfect 14.7-1 stoichiometry mixture, hot and cold plugs are history.
The following users liked this post:
moose545 (10-12-2018)
#16
10-12-2018, 02:10 PM
Seasoned HDF Member
Unfortunately, I haven't. You have to find an online parts source that has a year/make/model-style lookup, and that carries NGK spark plugs. Amazon actually works fairly well for this, and eBay too.
The following users liked this post:
moose545 (10-12-2018)
#17
10-12-2018, 09:39 PM
Here is a short NGK video on heat range:
#18
10-13-2018, 03:26 PM
Stellar HDF Member
Join Date: May 2015
Location: Then Wisconsin, now North Carolina
Posts: 3,172
Received 887 Likes
on
621 Posts
Not quite. The system senses ignition secondary voltage and uses that as a way to detect detonation by the changes in that voltage. Every time you start your bike the system uses that voltage as the baseline. It doesn't matter what plugs you have in there; the baseline will simply be different if you have plugs with a different resistance. The function, however, will be unaffected.
HD spark plugs are made by Champion. In all my years of drag racing cars, modifying engines for performance, and motorcycles too...Champion has consistently been THE worst brand out there. They are ok for a stock engine in good operating condition, but they are of cheaper quality IMHO. I don't want to turn this into an "oil" argument; just stating my personal experience. I like NGK for bikes because they are used as OEM plugs in many sport bikes that are high-performance based. They have great performance and longevity in those applications, and that has proven to be the case in my own travels.
HD spark plugs are made by Champion. In all my years of drag racing cars, modifying engines for performance, and motorcycles too...Champion has consistently been THE worst brand out there. They are ok for a stock engine in good operating condition, but they are of cheaper quality IMHO. I don't want to turn this into an "oil" argument; just stating my personal experience. I like NGK for bikes because they are used as OEM plugs in many sport bikes that are high-performance based. They have great performance and longevity in those applications, and that has proven to be the case in my own travels.
The system sends 80v through the plug after the combustion event and based on the atmosphere in the cylinder the ECM makes a decision on what happened. It is actually traveling the ION trail between the electrodes. The 80V crosses the gap without sparking (it travels the ionized path) and the ECM looks at the signal which correlates to the combustion quality.
The system does not adapt to different spark plugs from a baseline and the incorrect plug will cause the ION sense to think it knocked or misfired if it altered the signal due to different resistance values. Some plugs will work fine, others will not. Many aftermarket wires will mess the system up as well.
I know this firsthand.
Also - while some plugs are awesome for some applications they can be terrible for others. The Harley OE plugs work just fine.
Last edited by Ed Ramberger; 10-13-2018 at 05:23 PM.
The following users liked this post:
jbarr1 (10-14-2018)
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post