whats wrong with splitfires and slick 50?

[ZcarsRock]

You guys always have the best comments!!!! I dont understand whats the matter with splitfires? I hear they fire better and more constistantly than NGK's. At $6.84 per pair they better do something really good!!! Hey did i tell you about the guy at the auto shop i go to, he is Chinese and he complimented me on my car. Even gave me these two really kool chinese word stickers. Said they mean "Speed Attitude" Think i'll find an appropriate place to put them on my Z and take a pic and post it. Oh one last think, anyone ever use Lucas Oil Stabilizer in there manual tranny? I just dumped a 32 oz bottle in there with 32 oz of Slick 50 80-90wt gear oil. I think i slightly over filled the capacity but should be ok.

Tony

[24OZ]

Hi Tony,

I have heard scary stories about Slick 50.

Read this and judge for yourself......

http://www.zhome.com/ZCMnL/tech/oil.html

[derk]

As the earlier thread pointed out, get the stickers translated at your local college before you stick them on your car. You never know what they really say

[ZmeFly]

if you know what teflon is or what it is commonly referred to as PTFE, just do a google search on the subject or that and internal combustion engine and ptfe or teflon.

it is something that you dont want in your car. unless you want to take the chance of ruining it.

me never use it never will

good oils in my book petroleom(sp?) based, castrol, mobile

synthetics only one that i use or like is mobile one

oh i almost forgot your trusting the parts guy

never ever trust the parts guy, he is there to sell you the highest priced part he can. not necessarilly the best for your car. i used to part time at a parts place. its funny how many people you see buying plugs that dont match there car.

ie Bosch in mitsubishi's or nissans, autolites in toyotas, (though i think they make a good plug), its silly. NGK's were made for your car. split fires are a joke and do nothing for your performance or gas mileage.

i had them in the Z i bought in cali, as soon as i got hom new NGK's. guess what nothing changed except it ran a little better and my mileage did not suffer.

always remember this. a spark can only travel to one point at a time. thats why i think Bosch's +4's are the biggest joke on the market. but hey thats just me. people will glady throw away 5 bucks a plug just because someone says there good.

[beandip]

I installed a jacobs ignition and they specificly stated NOT TO USE SPLIT FIRE BOSH + or any multi tiped sparkplug. I am with Zmefly about the teflon.

[Daniel]

Basic electric lesson.It will travel the path of least resistance.Once you have built up enough carbon(insulator)on the electrodes Mr. electric will determine a single path of least resistance.The factory designed that engine and tested it using ngk.It's hard to beat those guys in the brain department.Bosch are for german cars.NGK for japanese.My old chevy is AC.

[smg1404]

Heck all of this makes good conversation. But unless you drive hard and fast, your plugs will not make much noticible difference. Unless you never change them at all... I have noticed a difference from plug to plug, but I only noticed it when I was pushing the car hard, (which I do alot) . But most people do not drive that way. So if you like splitfires, go for it. Are they the best plug? Probably not,,, It's your car , run Champions, or anything else it your business... If you really want the best plug, I would recomend listening to what the majority of people from a racing background recomend. That is NGK. I am currently running Autolite platinums. (could not find NGK) They seem to work fine. I used to run Champions, and Bosch... They worked from fair to OK... The only way to be sure is to try the different brands and convince yourself. The wrong plug will not likely hurt your engine (as long as it is the correct size) it just may not last as long or provide maximum performance.. Have fun experiment.

[landmizzle]

Hi all,

The issue with Slick50 and Split Fire plugs is they don't live up to their claims. When these products first came out (Slick50, sometime in the late 80's and Split Fires, early 90's.) the internet was not on the publics radar and hence it was much much harder to verify their claims. Marketing hype and testimonials were really all the consumer had unless they were willing to do alot of research on their own. Hence, these products established themselves to some degree. Of course, human nature of "wanting something for nothing" also helps propagate the myth that these products worked.

However, it's now fairly simple to dispel the hype on these products and others like them with a simple web-search. Take the time to check it out and you'll see they have no merit.

BTW, I've used both of them several times in the early 90's, (yes, I was just as much a victim of hype and human nature.) and can attest that I saw nothing that the placebo effect wouldn't account for with regards to "performance,effeciency, improved sex life, and thicker stronger hair.....

It's your money and if you want to buy these things, they probably won't hurt your car but, you'll get the same benefits to your car as if you wrote a check to "Santa Claus" and sent it to the North Pole for the same amount.



Best Regards,


Landmizzle '72 240Z

[Zvoiture]

Ditto. Multi-tip plugs DO NOT create a twin or quad spark. There is still only one arc. It will travel in the direction of the least resistance--to one of the electrodes. Those ads with the furious multiple sparks are a joke. Kinda like the pest-control guy's truck with the black widow spider on the side with the red hourglass ON IT'S BACK!

Repeat after me:

NGK BPR6
NGK BR6
NGK BPR6ES
NGK BPR7
Maybe BPR8, but I doubt it
Possibly BPR5, but I doubt it.

Got to your local Car Quest or NAPA autoparts store and ask to see the NGK book nonmenclature. It is on the first page of the catalogue. It explains all the codes. If you have a seriously shaved head and/or domed pistons, you might want a 3/8 projection. Or go to sparkplugs.com.

To quote one of my favorite people on here, "Bosch plugs belong in German cars. Autolites belong in Fords. Champions belong in lawn mowers."

steve

[hls30.com]

When I was young and an easy mark for marketing campaigns, I tried all of the stuf that came out and said it was better, I don't remeber how much money I spent to find this out(but I'm sure I could have had one hell of a paintjob.): If the rest of your ignition system is up to par, L-series engines run best on clean NGK plugs.

Will

[Bruce Palmer]

... several years ago, walking the pits by the Splitfire pits. Multiple cars, monster car hauler, big graphics, Splitfire this slitfire that, yadda yadda yadda. NGK boxes opened and empty lying everywhere. Thought that was pretty funny. We'll sped your money but we won't use your product. They should have at least hidden the boxes after they put the plugs in.

[ChrisA]

I run NGK BP6EY V Power Plugs, here's why according to NGK's website:

The V Groove "Forces the spark to the outer edge of the ground electrode, placing it closer to the air/fuel mixture. This allows the spark to more quickly ignite the mixture, providing more complete combustion....NGK's patented v-groove design allows the ignition system to easily spark in these dense air/fuel mixtures. The flame kernel will quickly grow and allow the engine to potentially make more power since it now is operating more efficiently. As an added bonus, the v-groove forcing the spark to the outer edge of the ground electrode helps reduce the "quenching" effect, reducing misfires caused by high cylinder pressures "blowing out" the spark."

When I put the L28E in my 72 I decided to try these plugs. No, you can' tell any difference really, but they are NGK so what the heck!

Chris

[240ZX]

I just think it's funny as all get out, that the spark plug marketing people have lead the consumer to beleive that spilfire, V-tip, and other multi-electrode plugs are better than the single electrode plugs for performance.......wow!!!! If one electrode works good then two or more are going to really improve my performance!!!! The only performance improvement that you will get is from weight lose..........less weight in your wallet that is, because now the plug manufacture has your hard earned $$$!!!

P.S. Sheep are always going to follow......................

[Bruce Palmer]

.... group of marketing folks that stuffed Front Wheel Drive up our collective butts a nickle at a time. Talk about hang a bell on the lead goat!!!

Say anything often enough and loud enough and shazam, you have fact!!!

[240ZX]

Thank you Bruce! You are so right. When are these people going to learn that we just want the truth.........not hipe and BS. One of my favorite sayings is....."It's mind over matter! But, if you have no mind then it doesn't really matter!!!"

[Zvoiture]

Born before 1970=Memory lane
Born after 1970=History lesson:

Remember when Slick50 was not available on every Kragen or Safeway shelf? It was sold personally by 'authorized representatives'--NOT stores. Like Amway! I'm not sure if it was structured pyramid-like, but I can remember the first few people I knew who sold it were definitely--how do I say this nicely--in the catagory of those who are constantly looking for that THING. That magical thing that will finally put them over the top. They were people we didn't give a large amount of credence to. It was $50 a quart and one quart would "coat the inside of your engine with Teflon". I don't remember there being 1st time treatments or supplements or boosters or fuel treatments or tranny additives. Just Slick50 for $50/quart. One quart would protect your engine for ever and make it last forever. Not exactly marketing for 'job security'!

steve

[Bruce Palmer]

..over substance actually. If you know nothing about cars, the front wheel drive thing can be spun very nicely to sound like te answer to a maiden's prayer.

NASCAR is another screaming example of the same thing. The less you know about the history & spirit behind racing or the fact that there is nothing stock in stock car racing, the easier it is to sit and watch 43 spec racers drive around in circles for 3 or 4 hours. Butts in seats is what that is all about.

CART racing in Portland on race day. 50,000 people there in years past 47,000 of which didn't know diddly about what was going on but did want to know which hospitality tent they belonged in.

Bottom line, none of this stuff is being marketed to those among us who "get it". They long ago figured out they could sell 50 times more widgets by going after the totally uninformed. Package a message about multiple electrodes or some cap'n Willy whiz bang piece of fluff that makes sense at first glance (SEE FWD) and wait for the cash register to light up.

Wow, this little venting episode felt pretty good. I'll go take my meds now.......

[sblake01]

Any additive that boasts about 'teflon' is a scam anyway. Back in the early 70s in a metallurgy class, I learned about the intense heat it would take to fuse teflon to any type of metal. So that stuff basically floats around in your engine and is dumped out with every oil change. Teflon in a liquid form is kind of a stretch anyway. True teflon is a solid. Just like the claims made about multiple electrode spark plugs. I have tried the single electrode platinum plugs and the only thing I can say is that the last a little longer, cost more, but do not develop any precivable performance gain. Conclusion: Use a good petroleum based motor oil changed at proper intervals, use the correct spark plugs (NGK) changed at the proper intervals. It has always worked for me.