double tipped electrodes = more power?

Multi-tipped plugs are a high-profit come-on for the gullible. Anyone with some electrical knowledge can tell you that electricity takes the path of least resistance. Translation: No matter what the spiffy animations show you, the spark jumps to *ONE OR THE OTHER* tip during any given firing. It doesn't "split up" to fire across both gaps. Whichever electrode presents the least resistance to the voltage of the spark is the one the juice is going to jump to. On the off chance that one or the other electrodes gets fouled somehow, the second one *MAY* present a lower resistance path for the spark, offering you a sort of "in-place backup", but any given single spark is only going to use one electrode.

The guy at advance auto was telling you exactly what he thought you wanted to hear to convince you to pull out your wallet. And what he was telling you was pure bullshit. Nothing more, nothing less.

None of the above, if your car doesn't specifically require a special spark plug design.

Always use the correct spark plug for the application. That doesn't mean to waste money on bullshit scams (Splitfire, Bosch Platinum Plus 2, Bosch Platinum Plus 4, Bosch Platinum Plus 13.8675,etc.) it means find out what the manufacturer says to us, and use it.

You don't mention what year your Camry is, please specify. I have one reputable manufacturer's spark plug master catalogue here, and cannot with a cursory check find any 4-cylinder Camry made between 1986 and 2003 that calls for a spark plug with a double ground electrode.

Of course you should not. His knowledge of automotive engineering and performance is on the same level as the Taco Bell drive-through girl's knowledge of Mexican cuisine.

Of course he did. He's been through the sales training program and read the glossy brochure.

$4/ea spark plugs will not make your car run better than $2/ea spark plugs, and $8/ea spark plugs won't, either. The correct spark plugs, gapped correctly, will make your car run better than with the wrong spark plugs at any price. Use a major brand. You'll find fierce loyalists and staunch opposition to every brand. I've had consistently poor results with Bosch, mixed results with Champion, and consistently good results with Autolite and NGK, myself.

DS

If this is true - and I'm not saying it isn't - then why does Toyota give in to the manufacturers of these "high profit come-on"s by saying that I should not use anything but the double tipped platinum plugs (it says so right in my users manual, the one that came with the car)?? Does Toyota get some kind of a kickback from Bosch et al? Or is there some important reason why they recommend this type of plug? Call Toyota, right?

Perhaps Toyota is referring to the fact that both the electrode and the tip of the plug must be platinum plated to achieve an acceptable service life, not the number of "tips" the center electrode can fire to. The phrase "double tipped" is being misunderstood, IMHO.

First off, you *STILL* have not indicated what year your Camry is.

Secondly, I believe you are misreading what the manual says. Some vehicles with extra-long spark plug change intervals and/or distributorless ignition specify *dual platinum tip* spark plugs, i.e., spark plugs with platinum-tipped centre and side electrode, because non-platinum spark plugs or those with platinum only on the centre electrode will not last the duration of the replacement interval. "double platinum tip" does NOT mean the spark plug has two ground electrodes!

DS

What do you mean by "double tipped" platinum? If you mean ones with platinum on both electrodes, then likely they recommend those because the vehicle has a distributorless ignition system where the spark can travel in either direction on the plug, and apparently plugs like the regular Bosch Platinum with the platinum only on the center electrode tend to wear out too fast in these applications because of erosion of the ground electrode.

If you mean the gimmicky plugs with the multiple ground electrodes on them, I'd say don't bother.

Hello,

I used to have 1971 Alfa Romeo 1750A Berlina (one of the 249 Berlinas fitted with experimental automatic gearboxes). That car specified the four-electrode spark plugs and recommended Golden Lodge. They were quite expensive in early 1980s at $4 per unit.

One day, I decided to go cheap way and used the 99-cent single electrode ones. The performance suffered, temperature soared (dunno why it was that way with one but not with four), fuel consumption increased, roughness magnified, etc.

My mechanic wasn't sure why they seemed to do better with Golden Lodges than regular ones. The electrodes appeared to be very stunted and shorter than the length of fire point.

So word of the wise: follow the manufacturer's specifications for the spark plugs...regardless.

Regards, Oliver

Daniel J. Stern wrote:

I'll second that recommendation. FWIW, I've also had good results with Autolites in all of my family's cars and small engines (chain saw, weed whacker, lawn mower), and the NGK plugs in my Nissan outboard (and the Mercury before it) have been great. For whatever reason, the NGK plugs seem to corrode less than any other brand in a salty environment.

What is the exact quote from the manual? In all likelyhood, they are referring to plain old double platinum plugs. I.e. spark plugs with platinum on both sides of the gap. Some kinds of platinum plugs use platinum only on the electrode, not the other...um, thingy. I'm not sure if I'm getting this across right. Instead of having two platinum tips, its just a normal looking spark plug with two pieces of platinum instead of one.

Harry

Yup, unless you have those early GM cars with transverse-mounted V6 and V8 motors. My Chevrolet was almost impossible to work with. That is, until I found the "serpentine" extension rod and used a careful manipulation to replace the firewall side of V6 motor. No, my Chevy wasn't one where one can loosen the dog bone horizon mount and list the motor forward.

I'd rather have the spark plugs that 100.000 miles than try to work my way through the maze of components and like.

Oliver

LOL! If you call her a "Gordita" and she thinks you're being cute, then she definitely doesn't understand. 8^)

Bill Putney (to reply by e-mail, replace the last letter of the alphabet in my address with "x")

This is exactly why the mfr. in this case is recommending the double platinum plug. There was a very good article about this in Motor magazine a few months back.

Garrett Fulton

The car is a 1998. Wow, thanks for all the helpful comments.

But if what you're saying is correct, I SHOULD be using "twin ground electrode platinum-tipped spark plugs" because my users manual says to only use those "for your engine performance"!

There seems to be alot of negativity wrt this type of plug (and its pricing).

Yeah, Wal Mart has Autolite Platinums for basically $3.88 per pair. I'm thinking these would be the best bet and a better choice than just the cheap non-platinums. Thanks again for the useful comments you guys.

No Harry, there is a picture in the users manual of a spark plug that has 2 gound electrodes and an X (which means don't use this) over the picture of a spark plug with only a single ground electrode. And it says as follows:

"Your engine is fitted with twin ground electrode platinum-tipped spark plugs. Use only twin ground electrode platinum tipped spark plugs for your engine performance."

This is a 1998 camry. Sorry about using some bad terminology in my initial post. Now, I think you know what I mean though!

Daniel,

No, I'm not misreading what the manual says. Refer to a post slightly up this thread for the exact words in the users manual, but to be brief, it does recommend to "use only twin ground electrode platinum-tipped spark plugs" and hints this is for engine performance purposes.

Sorry for not being more specific on the words in my initial post. I understand what you mean by dual platinum tip but nowhere in my users manual does it say to use that. And in fact, there is a picture that shows the correct plug to use and it has two ground electrodes, one on either side. Plus an X across the picture of a spark plug with single ground electrode, which means don't use this. You see?

The users manual says to "use only twin ground electrode platinum-tipped spark plugs for your engine performance". The users manual was produced and copyrighted by Toyota Motor Corp. so it looks like I know what the manufacturer recommends and the wisest thing is to do what it recommends, right? :-)

I was kind of thinking to just get Autolite Platinums for $3.88 per pair at wal mart but the manufacturer does not want me to use single ground electrodes according to the manual!!

1 aussie tv program ( Beyond 2000 ) had filmed a spark plug made by scientists in Israel, which uses an * principle : [i] +ve electrode is shaped as a needle [ii] -ve electrode is a round cylinder extended from this plug's mounting thread ( which spins into & grips engine's cylinder head ), has 2 8mmØ holes ( 1 on each opposite side of this -ve electrode cylinder ) to enable a side-view of sparks. When electrons jump from +ve to the round edge of -ve electrode, an * is produced : * pushes ignited fuel toward piston & ignites fuel vapour furthest from electrodes faster than ordinary electrodes can, & so produce more torque than ordinary electrodes can. Has any1 seen a plug with this design on sale ?