ahwang

Does anyone know what is the brand and the model of the stock spark plugs? I just want to upgrade the plugs to Bosch Platinum +4 or NGK Iridium. Any opinion on these two options?

gab

spark plug not necessary unless you have the pulley upgrade

when you up the boost u might need a colder plug at a closer gap

I heard NGK iridium plugs are the pretty good

SoCal240/6

Question: Why do you presume that MB engineers did not fit the optimum spark plugs for the engine from the factory? They are pretty smart.

KJ-TypeR

Just to let you know, Bosch +4 SUCKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKk.

The NGK Iridium's are better IN THEORY, but I have only seen negative results from them.

I heard of one person who's electrode broke on their NGK Iridium plug, and the electrode ended up falling into the engine and blowing the engine.

Flashman

Those two statements seem totally opposite of each other. I have little interest in any spark plug brand that has had such problems!

viper

A change in spark plugs does not increase your performance. As long as you have combustion there is little to be gained.

Iceman's C230

How many Miles on your car and what mods do you have?? It is useless to change spark plugs unless you damaged them or got them wet on a stock car with low miles.. On my S/C mustang i used NGK's but that thing was putting out more than 400HP... So on a stock C230 with low Miles i wouldn't touch them...That's my .02 cents...

Buellwinkle

Probably the same person that presumes that MB engineers did not fit the optimum brake pads on their C240 (LOL). Also I've run across situation on motorcycles where the arid hotter climates in So Cal are slightly different than Millwakee, Tokyo or Singelfenden. This increases cylinder head temperatures and makes the motor want to ping. Of course the computer compensates by retarding the timing but you lose power. One way to overcome this is to use a colder spark plug. The colder spark plug may also allow you to run lower octane gas. As far as one brand for the other I have never seen, heard about or felt an improvement from different brands of spark plugs, I feel it's all hype.

SoCal240/6

Maybe on an air cooled bike. Highly unlikely on a modern, water cooled car, that had $1.6 billion in development spent on it, and was tested from Death Valley to Alaska.

But anyways, none of that theoretical stuff means anything anyways. The poster, I'd bet, has no problem whatsoever with his stock spark plugs, and does not even suspect any problem at all.

He just wants to change the plugs because he buys marketing hype. That was my point (maybe too subtle for this group). And, likely, he would take out a proven, super high quality factory product to put in an inferior product. For no reason at all.

Marketing rules the world. I wish I were in marketing, that is where the real money is.

(BTW, where is Millwakee?)

cbenz

My 2000 New Beetle and my friend's 2000 Corolla got misfires or something using Bosch +4 plugs.
I think new cars can't handle aftermarket sparkplugs. The Bosch +4 is now in my 87 Corolla....works fine.

Lynn

It is right next to Singelfenden.

Buellwinkle

OK, so I can't spell. Milwaukee is where they make beer, Harleys, cheeze and did I say beer. A Harley is a good comparison to an MB. You buy one of the more expensive bikes and you expect it to be reliable and use the best components but like MB the myth far exceeds reality. Then you expect Mr. Davidson to put only the finest spark plugs made, specifically made for the bike with the official HD logo and he dissapoints so I have to go to a Honda dealer to get decent plugs. Then I have to go 2 grades cooler on the spark plugs to make a $20,000 bike not ping. Now I know Harley makes more bikes than MB sells cars in the US but you would think for an extra couple of cents HD would put decent plugs in. It's not that the Honda/NGK plugs perform better, it's that they are more consistant, hold a gap better and don't fail as much. Even Buell (same Harley motor with some tweaks) had a tech bulletin recommending cooler plugs for Southern California. And yes Harley now makes water cooled motors.

MB-BOB

Buellwinkle, I don't think you caught Lynn's tease. Maybe you should stop hopping from foot to foot and catch your breath. It's, Milwaukee, AND Sindelfingen, right?

Buellwinkle

All I want is my beer and cheeze!

Buellwinkle

No more hopping dude, it makes you too nervous.

SoCal240/6

Wow, I could not disagree more. A Harley is an awful comparison to an MB.

MB has a reputation that is synonymous with engineering excellence and quality. Harley has the exact opposite reputation. Geez, Harleys are most known for leaking oil on the showroom floor.

On a Harley, I would expect that a lot of aftermarket stuff is superior to the stock stuff. The high Harley price seems more about marketing to poseurs than engineering excellence or quality. I'm not sure Harleys have any real mechanical merit at all, certainly nothing to justify their price. They have always seemed like pretty overpriced, pedestrian (albeit well marketed) machinery to me.

MB, on the other hand, always seemed to me to be the best overall cars in the world, reasonably priced for what you get (notwithstanding the last few years of reliability problems).

It would not surprise me at all if a lot of Harley aftermarket stuff is superior to what the factory put on. The exact opposite situation from a MB, BMW, Porsche, etc.

Buellwinkle

If you think MB has only had reliability problems in the last few years it's because you probably only owned them in the last few years. My C-Coupe is way more reliable than any past MB I've owned and it's been in 4-5 times for warranttee repairs. My Harley/Buells that I've owned never went in that many times and I used them for daily commuting. And they never leaked oil, something that diesel MBs from the early 80s were famous for.

To me the reason they are similar is that they are both prestige brands that people pay a huge premium for. What I was saying is that If I pay a super premium for a Harley why would they put crappy spark plugs in it if the costs of 2 spark plugs are insignificant to their production costs and the same for Mercedes, yet they are still crapy plugs, crapy brake pads, crapy headlight bulbs. If they didn't you would have factory brake pads and not Porterfields.

Now if only I can get my C230 to sound like a Harley!

Spyke

Knock sensors on bikes? When did that happen?

I'm sure you realize that a plug is considered "colder" because it transfers heat to the head more readily, right? Doesn't make the head temp drop at all... though I'm not sure that's what you meant anyway.

Spyke

I'm not so sure about either situation you've mentioned... but much of that discussion comes down to how a person defines "superior" (and "a lot" . )

SoCal240/6

People pay the premium for different reasons, though. MB commands a premium throughout the world because of their reputation for engineering excellence, safety, and relative value of the car. At least I paid for those reasons. I will keep the car for 15+ years, if it is durable enough to last that long (it should be, my 1987 BMW 535 is 15 years old and is still solid as a tank, look and runs very, very nice. A MB will do that, too, right?). If it does, it will be a good value.

You do pay a small premium for the name on a MB, but most of the price you pay, you get mechanical merit and value for. My C was $32K, not all that much more than similarly equipped cars from many other makers.

The premium paid for Harleys is just for marketing. A Harley is just a $5000 bike that they can get away with selling for $20,000.

The MBs that I am most familiar with are those from the '80s. I know and have known lots with 200,000+ miles that did not have many major problems, and still ran and held up well even with those miles.

Finally, I don't think MB brake pads are crappy at all. I am sure they are of the highest quality. They just have a characteristic (dusting) that I don't like. That characteristic has nothing to do with quality. I suspect there is a reason why german pads are so dusty (I've heard that German regs require a certain composition, that causes dusting, but I have not been able to confirm that), because German cars have dusted their wheels ever since I had my first BMW (1980).

I also have no problem with the light bulbs on my C. In fact, the lights are better than on my 911 and my 535i, both of which have European H/4 and H/1 installed on them. My C has the best lights I've ever had on a vehicle. Changing the bulbs on these cars has nothing to do with the quality of the bulbs, its just ricey kid's stuff that some like to engage in.

Why do you think the plugs in MBs are crappy? I have not heard that.

Buellwinkle

You changed your brake pads because you were not happy with them, if you were you would not have changed them. So to you the pads were doing a crappy thing so out they go. Maybe some people here want a better spark plug because the MB spark plug is not working to it's full potential. MB chose the brand plug they did becauses of costs, emission requirements, costs, availabilty, costs, maintenance requirements and did I say costs.

20K Harley's compete with 15K+ Japanese cruisers, not 5K just as 25K MBs compete with 20K+ Japanese cars. You pay a premium to have a product that you feel is a little more special than the standard mill. Call it marketing, engineering, safety. Although obviously you did, but I can't imaging that many people go into an MB dealer with the expectation that they will keep their car 15 years. Although most cars will last that long if maintained, the MB customers I see waiting 1+ hours for a free car wash for their S600s don't have 15 year old cars.

P.S. It can't be safety because the last C-Class tested had a 4 star safety rating, not quite as good as a 2 door Honda Civic. It can be good engineering and quality as MB scores poorly in the JD Powers surveys. What's left? Hmmm, let me think, clever marketing?

Iceman's C230

Come on guy's.. Why would a company like MERCEDES-BENZ put crappy spark plugs on their cars.. Lets be realistic here.... If you wan't to change a perfectly good Spark plug, go head.. That's your Choice.. But WHY are we comparing a Bike with a Car??? Get Real people....

vadim

Buellwinkle, sorry to meddle, but... have you been smoking stale weed lately?

SoCal240/6

LOL! I'm not sure about the freshness of his weed, but I think its just that in a desperate attempt to win an argument, he's had to resort to making things up.

In Buell's world:

(1) MB puts really low quality spark plugs in its cars now because MB was too cheap to use "good" plugs (umm, where's there been ANY evidence of that???) That is just making things up. Or, oh yeah, it because of "emissions requirements." Yeah, yeah, that's the ticket.

(2) Honda Civics are safer than Mercedes-Benz.

(3) MB brake pads are of poor quality.

(although in other posts he said that MB brake pads are the best quality, and he would not switch to aftermarket stuff, that is not "engineered" for the car. But he only said that when aftermarket Porterfields were not available to him).

(4) Harleys are reliable!

What color is the sky on that planet?

Buellwinkle

You guys are so easily provoked. But personal experience shows that Harley/Buells are way more reliable than MBs. MB took one of my MBs back under the Lemon Law because of a design flaw (all that clever engineering), no similar complaint on any bike I've owned. Heck that's why MB needs that loaner program and HD doesn't.

The bikes are probably not as safe because the MB has 8 airbags and the Harley has one windbag, although I wouldn't know because I haven't crashed either.

An NO, none of my weed is stale, duhhh!