slice Posted October 15, 2014 Posted October 15, 2014 Ok this is the question. Are fake spark plugs actually bad for your engine? I only ask as I have just bought 4 plugs off of ebay for the FJ, they are normally around the £4/5 mark each but on good old ebay they are selling them (same numbers and size stamped on them) for about £1.75 each, now I have to ask, having looked at the plugs and compared them to a "genuine" one I can't for the life of me see any difference, I know all the stories of sweat shops and bad conditions for the workers and I'm aware that they may not last as long as the originals but I fail to see what if anything they can do to my engine other than go a "SPARKLY BLUE" colour when I apply a current to them!! I have seen the holed pistons that the manufacturers put out there to convince you that the "counterfeit" plugs are bad but has anyone actually seen a piston with a great big hole in it from one of these things? I have scoured the net for info and the only time I found a negative report it was issued by the manufacturer to the press trying to sound scientific and frightening. So my original question, are these things actually bad or are we just being told to buy more expensive plugs cos the makers are losing money? Any and all thoughts on this are welcome cos right now my FJ is purring like a kitten with these FAKE plugs in whereas with the ORIGINAL but old ones it popped and farted like an asthmatic steam engine !! PS Yes they are made in China and yes the working conditions for the workers are a concern, but if these people didn't work for the guy who's making these then they would be working for the guy making fake trainers or worse still fake aircraft parts.
Noise Posted October 15, 2014 Posted October 15, 2014 To be truthful i've never tried them so could never actually give a yes or no answer, i always go to Halfrauds for spark plugs as i can just walk in get ass raped for the price and go home fitting the parts whilst rubbing cold cream into my anus thinking why did i go back there (paid £20 for two plugs ). Ok granted the chinese working force are in a bad predicerment but atleast they are in work un like some of the jokers living over here signing on the doll for a 2l bottle of white lightning. If they work in the bike then brilliant, if your pistons stay in good working order in time for your next service i will surely look into buying some.
Moderator drewpy Posted October 15, 2014 Moderator Posted October 15, 2014 seems your our test bed Slice
sniff6 Posted October 15, 2014 Posted October 15, 2014 Who's to say they are Fake?? Could just be excess stock.Give them a try and if they are no good buy some more from somewhere else i say.
dt502001 Posted October 15, 2014 Posted October 15, 2014 If they are Ngk fakes then you might loose the creamic,seen a batch of them and they arent bonded well.Couple of holes in hoods when they let go. On a bike that means in your tank.Someone posted abut how to tell,wrong colour on box,missin stamping on metal part to identife size ect.. have a good look at em and if all that is there then could be you just got a good deal
Tommy xs Posted October 15, 2014 Posted October 15, 2014 there was a post on here how to tell the difference, one was the colour of the box was a ligther shade of yellow but you'd need an original bow to compare it too can't remember the other differences I think its more of a worry for the 2Ts, with 4 stroke's I think they either work or their dud. Let us know how you get anyway slice
dt502001 Posted October 15, 2014 Posted October 15, 2014 Tommy they blow appart the center cermaic comes out and put holes in things,,guess you didn't read what I posted above. EDIT: On a side note just found out that guys are getting Hp running e3plugs with no mods other than changing spark plugs in car engines on back to back dyno runs,not sure if they mak bike plugs yet going to look into it.
meatloaf Posted October 15, 2014 Posted October 15, 2014 PS Yes they are made in China and yes the working conditions for the workers are a concern, but if these people didn't work for the guy who's making these then they would be working for the guy making fake trainers or worse still fake aircraft parts. or they might not be working at all, and as their gov doesn't give a shit they could starve. 1
Tommy xs Posted October 16, 2014 Posted October 16, 2014 Tommy they blow appart the center cermaic comes out and put holes in things,,guess you didn't read what I posted above. EDIT: On a side note just found out that guys are getting Hp running e3plugs with no mods other than changing spark plugs in car engines on back to back dyno runs,not sure if they mak bike plugs yet going to look into it. Yes dt50 I did read it, but that my opinion as I've never seen anything like that happen with a spark plug, you maybe right or it might be a myth as Slice refered to to protect ngk. I buy my spark plugs from my local bike shop but who knows he might be ordering them from ebay!
dt502001 Posted October 17, 2014 Posted October 17, 2014 Dosent matter who sels em tommy,if they are the fake ones they don't get tested like the real ones,and the center will let go possibly,possibly not.The fake ones don't get iso 9001 tested seem easy enough to tell by the stamping on the mettal part if all the info is on that part like the cermaic part then they should be real ones, I have 4 different suppliers and every month someone has a deal on spark plugs up to 50% off normal retail,same with oil filters air filters cabin filters..What it is that they buy HUGE quanitys and dont want to stock them and would rather we keep them and make a smaller profit. No reason why I couldnt buy a crap load of b8es and dump them off on ebay but ,by the time I add in shipping your not going to get much of a deal. Just like anyone else if I buy 4 spark plugs I get them at x price if I buy 400 then I get them at way less. But now adays with every thing using a different plug it gets hard to know what to buy lots of ,,we have spark plugs that are 20yrs old in stock.Going to have to go through the stock room and dump them off someday.Anyone need a spark plug for a 1982 Techumsie 8hp wood chipper they were junk new and I bet I got some.
Moderator Cynic Posted October 17, 2014 Moderator Posted October 17, 2014 If they are Ngk fakes then you might loose the creamic,seen a batch of them and they arent bonded well.Couple of holes in hoods when they let go. On a bike that means in your tank.Someone posted abut how to tell,wrong colour on box,missin stamping on metal part to identife size ect.. have a good look at em and if all that is there then could be you just got a good deal Think about it dt. On some bikes like vee's them plugs could punch holes in skin... Pays peanuts...
slice Posted October 17, 2014 Author Posted October 17, 2014 Ok Jimmy thanks for that, I have seen this before and it was one of a number of items on the net that said fake NGK plugs are bad but if you look close at all of them they are made and distributed by NGK, I have yet to see ANY report of someone who has had a problem with their plugs genuine or not, most tales are word of mouth but when you try to search it out there is little or no evidence to support the premise that a spark plug has actually let go in the way that folks say ie up through the tank or into your leg let alone a dent in your bonnet (hood for the colonials!) If you can find someone who has actually had any of these problems get them to write a report so we can all hear and see what damage,if any, they might be capable of, cos right now I remain to be convinced that the photos on the NGK advice aren't just from engines that have been neglected or driven hard, if you look at the stills in the video all the pistons are from cars. PS as an aside if you look at the final still of a piston and plug that they show the plug has been melted and the piston holed right through, I bet a few on here that own 2T bikes can relate to that !
dt502001 Posted October 17, 2014 Posted October 17, 2014 Next one that goes through a hood I will take pictuers for you slice,. My biggest question is why for the sake of a few bucks would you chance dammaging anything, I have seen so many motors with the wrong plugs in them,because they were cheaper,the money lost in fuel mileage alone kill's that saving. when motors were 8:1 for the average plugs didn't need to be very well built and rebuildable plugs were avaiable once apon a time.Now with the average motor being 10:1 and bikes 12:1 the demand put on a spark plug is much greater.Just not worth the risk to me. We get cars that have never had plugs changed all the time 100k miles on them.Then someone gets the bright idea that they would like them changed GOOD LUCK getting them out,or when you get them out you wonder ...how in the hell did this thing run. I know I am over kill on oil changes,cleaning,and overall maintence,but,it saves me money in the long run and I never have things break. I try to tell people all the time when 1 thing is acting up dont leave it,because your bill will be less then if you bring it in and 2-5 things are wrong,some people get it and come for the sillest little things and we can sometimes fix it for free,others wait untill it wont run and they get handed a bill,with a list of things needing attention.And think we are trying to rip them off when we are just pointing out the things that might leave them broken down soon. I can get ball joints for 10 bucks or 50 bucks for the same car the 10 buck ones will last 10 weeks the 50 ones will go years.I try to tell all my customers dont waiste your money and have to do the job 2x.. But when it comes to spark plugs they get original correct plugs whatever the manufactuer installed originaly,I am not having a eng failure on my watch,most new stuff out there the spark plugs run 18 dollars and up per plug,a failed plug that takes out a CoilOnPlug will cost 150-200.We just installed plugs that are 27 apiece on a Ford f150 but thats what it needs. 1 eng rebiuld and any money saved on spark plugs goes right out the window.
dt502001 Posted October 17, 2014 Posted October 17, 2014 Ok here is a very good point,,e3 are delvoping thier own plug and proving why it is better. Or at least attempting to. The knock off ngk's are just junk that some company is making and can't sell under thier own brand name resort to branding them as NGK..If the plugs were as good or better then why wouldn't they build thier brand name? Market them and sell under thier own brand name? A fake Rolex is not of the same quality by miles,the china copys of the big 4 jap bikes arent as good. Every spark plug manufacture make a compatable plug for just about any motor,but the ones devolped by the manufacture are the the ones to use in any motor.Just as using the proper heat range and gap with a cheap plug how do you know the true gap or heat range? Changing the heat range or gap changes the way the motor burns the fuel.I can see tons of reason why I would never use knock off spark plugs no matter how cheap they were. The knock off one are not made by NGK standards.nor would they sell a crap product IMO,, if the fake ones were good then NGK would have the other company build them and increase thier profit margin wouldn't they?
Recommended Posts