Why BOSCH plugs not rrecommended

[brianb9]

Spark Plugs again

I do not think Bosch plugs are bad product I just know their Platinum plugs are not appropriate for alot of higher load truck applications. I have always had good luck with them in my sports cars.

NGK and Motorcraft Platinum plugs are also good choices. I have since used the Motorcraft Platinum plugs in my Explorer and had good results as the electrode is much thicker than the platinum one in the Bosch plugs. I can't really say that performance was any better than the regular Motorcraft plug, but the electrode does not detiorate with use.

As for Motorcraft being junk I have never had one fail even after 50,000 miles which is way longer than their expected lifespan.

 

[Rod Bivens]

Rough Idle when re-starting hot

rprenner54 wrote:

Man I run these plugs and they do make a big differnce when it comes to re-starting the truck when its hot. It no longer tends to die or idle really rough like.

I just changed my plugs to the Bosch Platinums, and it didn't help my Rough Idle when re-starting the truck when its hot. Would I be any better off with the +4s???

 

[William Schumacher]

motorcraft works best for setup !

I tried the regular bosch plats once and after just 15'000 miles I checked one of the plugs and the electrode was pretty worn down ?.
I'll never use these plugs again.
I get the best burn using an increased gap with motorcraft plats.
I'm using a jacobs DIS " ignition" with a gap of 64.

truck is running fantastic !

 

[rpenner54]

Re: Rough Idle when re-starting hot

Originally posted by Rod Bivens


I just changed my plugs to the Bosch Platinums, and it didn't help my Rough Idle when re-starting the truck when its hot. Would I be any better off with the +4s???

Seemed to help mine. I was getting it pretty bad, swapped the plugs to the 4+'s and never have gotten it since.

 

[97BlackX5.0]

I love Bosch Plugs.... I have a 89 Bronco II thats been running them for close to 100k now.... 2 sets of course... it has been through hell and back ... get great gas mileage with them... there 2 bucks a plug versus about 5 for ngk.... i just got an 302 AWD X about 4 months ago...i did bite the bullet and bought a former rental and lawyer owned car that had had the torque converter replaced....well it had 85k on it and i decided to check the plugs and see what they looked like... well im glad i did.... the motorcraft plats looked like ****... the electrode was pitted to hell and the gaps were way off.....since the bosch worked so well in my bronco i put them in the X too... All i can say is WHOA.... i think i must have gained about 20 hp from just changing the plugs and after breaking 2 of the wires put a new set of those on too. All i can say is i love them... they have never failed me and are cheaper for a platinum plug....plus they have a guarentee......i have heard bad things about bosch plugs in turbo or supercharged applications though....

and to finally settle this... or open a new can of worms...i found this on an internet search

BOSCH VERUS NGK

 

[plrs x45]

one of these guys said it perfect in this post. stick with the plugs that came with it. I had a mustang that ran 10.56 in the 1/4 and I used motorcraft spark plugs (not splitfire or crossfire or iridiums). you wont have a dragster with just a plug change.

 

[Opera House]

Bosch Plugs

Sorry, but I used to run Bosch plugs In my Toyota Supra and pieces of the insulator used to break off. First time I thought it was a fluke. I could only get about 25K before I would have problems. Bad running engine? Last I heard it had 250K on it.

When I went to get plugs for my X I told the counter guy I didn't want Bosch. He said a lot of people complain about them in Fords. I really don't understand the concept of multiple electrones. Though with my rotary it was a must. Optimal performance is usually when the electrode is as exposed as possible. High performance engines have their plugs shimed so the open electrode faces the intake valve.

Double platinum plugs are used when the ignition system fires two plugs on one coil. One side of the engine fires from the center electrode to the case electrode and the other side of the engine this is reversed. Look in your owners manual, to save money they used two diferent plugs in the engine with the platinum on one electrode or the other. Platinum wears better. This is like the old days of points where if the condenser was wrong there was a cavity on one side and a peak on the other. I'll stick with Motorcraft double platinums.

 

[01EB5.0]

i think we are beating a dead horse.......

 

[Lifted95X]

I don't really care for BOSCH myself. I have had many issues with their plugs. Last time I took my truck in, my trusted mechanic said that he get many different cars/trucks in there each month that the only thing wrong with it is the plugs. He said "IMO, do not ever put BOSCH in a ford" I changed mine out to Motorcraft double platinum, fine ever since.

 

[danniexp]

86' Trans Am, 93' Buick Skylark, 94' Mazda Miata, 94' Explorer, 95' Trans am, 97' Explorer.. all with bosch platinum +4's.. never had any problems, always gained a bit of gas mileage (could have been because old plugs bad)... just my $.02

 

[William Schumacher]

my X didn't like the bosch plugs.

I wasn't sure if it was because I had the Jacobs dis ignition with increased gap on plugs {.064} ?
but,they sure went fast ???I tried them and I needed to change them within a few months time.
I couldn't try the +4's however,the use of muti-electrode plugs can't be used by the Jacobs ignition.
my best results/longevity came from the motorcraft double plats.

 

[Jefe]

Another reason not to use Bosch

Started the truck the other day, and after warming up I noticed a ticking noise that was quite loud at times. I also noticed it was missing occasionally. Plugged in the OBD-II scanner and found it was cylinder #3. Pulled the #3 plug, 16,000 mi on it:

 

[Lifted95X]

WOW...that sucks.

 

[410Fortune]

I run the +4's, the price on them has come down quite a bit. They are not much more then the NGK platinums or the Motocraft platinums. I ran the +4's in my hopped up 2.9L engine for 30K miles or so, no problems, ran great.

I have run the +4's in my 4.0L since it went in. They work better then the Autolites that were in there. YOU CAN TELL A DIFFERENCE WITH THE +4's.

Never had a problem with them, love them. I have noticed eaasier starting and smoother idle with the +4's.

It is true that the spark may only use 1 of the 4 electrodes. However the point behind them is to expose the tip of the plug to the combustion chamber. When you dont have the "prong" blocking the direct path of the spark to the combustion chamber it makes it that much easier to burn everything and it happens that much faster....hense increased performance.

I run NGK's in my 2 stroke's
I run Bosch +4's in my cars/trucks

Oh and whoever said you should use american plugs in an american car, the Cologne family of engines is German, at least they started life in Germany as the 2.6L, 2.8L, 2.9L, then the 4.0L. Ever wonder why your engine is metric?????

 

[DocVijay]

Ever wonder why your engine is metric?????

It's not just the engine. Most of the nuts and bolts of my Explorer are metric. Could it be that it just makes more sense for everyone to use metric? I'm not saying the engines aren't German, just that that's not necessarily why it's metric.

 

[410Fortune]

Sorry Doc but thats exactly why the 4.0L uses metric.....
because the 60 degree cologne family of engines was designed and built by Merkur in Germany.

Is the 5.0L metric? How about the 4 bangers are they metric?

 

[DocVijay]

But my pint is that the suspension and many other parts of my Explorer are all in mettric. The bolts that hold the seat, the little bolts that hold my dash together, pretty much everything is metric. Was the suspension developed in Germany. As in my previous post, I didn't say the engine was not made in Germany, I merely said that metric is easier for Ford to use. They are a global company. For them to make cars in sevaral continents, they need to standardize. That is why our Explorers are metric. Pretty much all engines now are metric, whether they were developed in Germany or any other place. Every Ford engine is listed as liters of displacement. They may have cid on the sticker too, but it's all metric. You don't buy a 287, 350, 454 etc anymore. Now it's 4.0L, 4.6L, 5.7L.

The engines are not metric because they were designed in Germany, they are metric because pretty much everything is metric. It just happens that this particular breed of engine is German. It would still be metric even if it were 100% designed in the USA.

 

[410Fortune]

Man I wish they would just go to the metric system. I work in Autocad all day long designing elevators. We have soft and hard metric, and imperial (standard). I can work in all of them no problem but the metric system just makes more sense. Plus I wouldnt have to carry double the tools.
My truck is like 1/2 and 1/2. Most of the suspension is standard, spring retainers, lug nuts, shock mounts, etc....all standard. The sway bar 18mm. hahahaha! It can drive you crazy!

I am with you, make it all the same, no more guesswork.

I prefer to design elevators oversea's because metric is better. The problem comes when you have jobs for like the US gov. (like a courthouse or embassy) they want all the drawings in soft metric however they are going to buy American equipment so basically they are putting a elevator that is built in feet and inches into a building that is designed in meters and it just gets ridiculous! I imagine that the original plans for my truck, look something similar.

 

[94ZebraRanger]

my take on the +4s is that with 4 electrods takes 4 times the energy to provide the spark equal to a standardd plug, I personaly would run them

Tim

 

[mahieber]

I like a good pissin contest.

I ran stock plugs for 50k.

Then Bosch plats for 80-90k without any problem whatsoever. I just pulled them out to replace them with the DirectHits kit since I figured I need new plugs and wires by now anyway.

DirectHits looks expensive at first glance, but when you consider the cost of any premium plug, the cost of premium 8mm wires and having to get your hands dirty for an hour, there really isn't that much difference.

The DirectHits kit uses Bosch Platinum non-resistor plugs.

It started right up after not having been started in 3 weeks. I don't have the interior in yet, so I can't say how they are with response or under a load.

If I wasn't totally redoing my truck, I probably would have just gone with the Bosch plats again...

I agree that when the truck was hot, they always got it started.