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Spark Plugs and wires

L

lawadm1

New member
2005 GTP, and the only mod so far is the CAI

With that said. I'm trying to figure out the best plugs to get. I have done research, but I still can't seem to come up with the correct answer. I just hit 96K miles, and I still have the stock plugs/wires, and I'm thinking it's time to change them.

If I look at auto part stores, they say Autolite 606's ONLY. Anything else is flagged as "Will not fit your car". I've seen message boards where the 605's would be fine as well. But if I get the 605's, is there anything that I need to do with them? Is the gap fine on the 605's?

Wire recommendations?

One last thing....If I ratchet the engine forward, where is the best place to hook the ends? I've seen someone use the alternator bracket at one end, and the other end close to the hood release. And I've seen someone use the motor lift mount on one end, and take the other end over the front bumper, and somewhere underneath the car.

Thanks,
Jeff
 


First off: parts store smart people are trained to read a computer, that's all. They're generically uneducated. Literally when I worked at Autozone the first thing from the trainers mouth was: You don't need to know anything about cars to work here.

No lie.

Secondly; The number you're referencing is just the model number (606, 605, etc).

If you don't plan on going past an intake or exhaust, 605's gapped @ .050" will be just fine.

Dropping a pulley size on it, I'd run 104's with the same gap.

If you do something silly, like heads/cam, etc...run 103's gapped @ .040".

Wires? Stock. Or if you don't care about price...MSD's. Just keep the stock coil packs.

As for moving the engine, you shouldn't need to really ratchet it forward, just remove the engine cover and the MAP bracket on the backside of the blower and you should have plenty of room to do what you need to do. If not, you can take off the dog bones, run the bolts back through the bracket on the coils or on the bracket to the right; and hook them to the holes in the core support up front.

Simple as that.
 
Many years ago when I was a young whippersnapper and I first got my '98 GS, I was going to drop a pulley on it, so I go to Advance and ask them for Autolite 104s. It went very much like this:

Advance Auto Moron: What car are they for?
Me: I have no idea I just need 6 Autolite 104s.
Moron: I can't sell them without knowing what car they're for.
Me: I have no clue what they're supposed to go in, I just need that specific plug.
Moron: You can't just swap spark plugs around, they're specific for the car.
Me: I know, I need them because they're the right heat range.
Moron: Your stock ones would be the right heat range.
Me: I understand that. The car isn't stock. Can you just entertain me and go find 6 Autolite 104s and sell them to me?
Moron: I'll try to find them, but you do understand we can't guarantee it will work and it won't hurt your engine.
Me: I'll take my chances.

I may be simplifying it, but that is nearly verbatim the argument I had. I hate chain parts store jockeys.
 
Thanks for the replies. I went to Advanced Autoparts and picked up the Autolite Copper 605's, and the AC Delco wires. Hopefully the back plugs won't give me too much trouble. I don't want to have to ratchet if I don't have to.

Jeff
 
My local Advance actually hires people that have knowledge. They also don't give you crap for telling them a part number without vehicle information. They actually encourage it, because it saves them time from having to look it up.
 


That's exactly what I did. I had a piece of paper with all of the part numbers on it, handed it to the guy, and 5 minutes later I was out the door with my 605's and wires. :)
 
digitaloutsider said:
Many years ago when I was a young whippersnapper and I first got my '98 GS, I was going to drop a pulley on it, so I go to Advance and ask them for Autolite 104s. It went very much like this:

Advance Auto Moron: What car are they for?
Me: I have no idea I just need 6 Autolite 104s.
Moron: I can't sell them without knowing what car they're for.
Me: I have no clue what they're supposed to go in, I just need that specific plug.
Moron: You can't just swap spark plugs around, they're specific for the car.
Me: I know, I need them because they're the right heat range.
Moron: Your stock ones would be the right heat range.
Me: I understand that. The car isn't stock. Can you just entertain me and go find 6 Autolite 104s and sell them to me?
Moron: I'll try to find them, but you do understand we can't guarantee it will work and it won't hurt your engine.
Me: I'll take my chances.

I may be simplifying it, but that is nearly verbatim the argument I had. I hate chain parts store jockeys.
Click to expand...

For future reference...any 4.0 V6 Ford Ranger from the mid 90's to the mid 00's...or something like that take 103/104's.

Just like an intercooler setup belt with a 3.0/3.1" on a GenIII with a full size core is a serp. belt for a V6 Isuzu Rodeo/Nissan Pathfinder.
 
So I checked the gap on the 605's, and it's around .055. Should I leave them, or make the gap .050 like suggested?
 
**Update

So I changed the plugs and wires today, and damn that was a knuckle buster. And this was my first time doing this on this car. The worst part of the whole thing for me was getting those damn original boots off the plugs. Specifically #4 and #6. #2 actually came off much easier. Then there's the snap on the wire separator in the back. I ended up just pulling that one out of the bracket that it snapped into.

I gapped the 605's @ .050, and I did end up releasing the dog bones to allow for some play when working on the back plugs. I didn't ratchet the engine forward, but I did use a small piece of 2x4 (about 3-4 inches). I manually pulled the engine forward and then wedged the 2x4 piece between the alternator bracket and the firewall. It worked.

Below are the plugs that I pulled out. I'm sure they are the originals, and the car has 96K miles.
attachment.php


And now it's time for my hands and arms to heal up.
 
I'm sure if they're Delco's then they're the factory plug.

100k is usually the time they sh1t out, so they got their use.

The smaller gap is just less of a chance of a misfire is all because I'm lazy and that's how I always did them.

Stock gap is .060", but I never saw any difference in the .010" of a drop.
 


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