Just curious, if anyone else cares feel free to join in on this one. I am curious what wires do better. The main factor in spark plug wires is the resistance they have. Anyone with aftermarket wires on their vehicles, send in the resistance so we can make a comparison. The stock wires have a resistance of about 16.7K ohms. Most aftermarket companies claim to get about half that, I would like to see if this is true or not.

 

As soon as my engine cools enough to pull a spark plug wire off, I'll take a measurement with my VOM and post the results here.

It will take about an hour or so...

Dr. Z

 

ive got high performance ngk's how do i messure?

 

Take a VOM (Volt/Ohm Meter), set it to measure resistance. Then attach one probe to one terminal at one end of the wire and the other probe to the other end. Take note of how many ohms are dispayed on the meter.

Hope this helps.
Dr. Z

 

Okay, I have some interesting news regarding my wires:

I can't get them out of the plug tubes. The Rubber Boots are stuck to the plugs. I managed to tear one off. The wire is still intact and my truck runs fine with the wire attached to the plug. It's just that portion of the rubber boot that fits around the head of the plug is still stuck down inside the plug tube. While it was off I measured the resistance of the wire. The wire in question is about 2.5' Long and it has a measured DC Resistance of 17.8K Ohms.

Now the thing about Magnecor wires is that they are wire wound metallic core wires and the spark energy does not travel thru the same path that the Ohm Meter measures. There is actually a less resistive spark energy path - the windings of the conductor. Anyway, if you want to know more about this technology, I suggest you visit their website.

About my dilemna: I called Magnecor and spoke to Richard, who is in charge of Quality Control there. I explained my situation and he was as flabbergasted as I am about this issue. He told me to send him the wires when I get them off and he'll repair them for me. I am sending him one of my old plugs as well. He wants to see them also. If I can't find a tool that can grab the piece of rubber boot that broke off inside the #2 Plug Tube, I may be looking at pulling the Intake Manifold and Cam Cover on the Driver's side to get my spark plug wires and plugs out.

Richard has never heard of this happening and they have sold many sets of these wires for these trucks. It might be an isolated freak incident, but he wants to see if there is anything that can be improved or fixed so that this issue does not crop up again. All in all, I'm still happy with my purchase of these wires as evidenced by the manufacturer's willingness to correct it and take care of me as a customer.

Peace.
Dr. Z

 

Galen, you brute, take it easy! J/K.
Hope you get the piece out without having to disassemble the top end...

 

Did you put dielectric grease on the boots before you installed the new ones? This helps prevent them from getting baked on. Also, I put a little dab of anti-seize on the threads before I torque the new plugs in (~15 ft lb I think)

 

Thanks Jayson.

95_4X4Runner: No, I didn't put any dielectric grease on Silicone Rubber boots. It's not supposed to be necessary. So it never entered my mind to do so. They're not stuck to the electrodes, but to the ceramic of the plug itself. Anyway, when I get them out and get new ones back from Magnecor, I'll put some on them just to be on the safe side.

Some days, it just doesn't pay to get out of bed. I'm not even going to tell you what happened to my computer this afternoon...

Peace.
Dr. Z

EDIT: I wanted to add that I have owned 4 Toyotas and ALL of them have similar spark plug locations: Down inside the Cam Cover. I have installed aftermarket performance wires on the previous three cars and never used Dielectric Grease. I never experienced this problem with them, so that influenced my resaon for not using it on this truck either.

 

Just wondering if there's any consensus on what's the overall best wires for a 1998 4-Runner?

Chris