Is motorcraft now autolite?
Bailey B
parts stores said there is no more motocraft, its all now autolite.
Can I assume that an autolite plug is 100% the same as the motorcraft
plug that was installed at the factory in 1987?
Are the new Ford/Lincoln cars now assembled with Autolite plugs?
What happened to Motocraft Co?
C. E. White
A short history lesson -
Autolite was originally an independent company that made ignition
system parts, including sparkplugs. In the late 50's / Early 60's Ford
bought the company. The Feds decided this was not acceptable (even
though GM owned Delco) and forced Ford to sell Autolite in the late
60's / early 70's. For a short period Ford was required to purchase
parts from Autolite (otherwise the brand would go broke). As soon as
this restriction was lifted Ford created there own brand for
aftermarket parts in the US and called it Motorcraft (I am fuzzy as to
whether or not this was already a name used in Europe). The Autolite
"brand" has been sold several times. It is now owned by Honeywell,
along with Fram, and Prestone, and who knows what else.
Autolite plugs are an alternative to Motorcraft plugs, but Motorcraft
is still very much in the aftermarket spark plug business.
See http://www.motorcraft.com/products.do?item=18 and
http://www.motorcraft.com/wheretobuy.do .
I would not use Autolite plugs in my 30 year old lawn mower.
Ed
"Bailey B" <Bail...@webtv.net> wrote in message
news:20573-48D...@storefull-3231.bay.webtv.net...
aarcuda69062
Bail...@webtv.net (Bailey B) wrote:
> I went looking for motorcraft plugs for my 87 Lincoln. Three major
> parts stores said there is no more motocraft, its all now autolite.
They're wrong. Just because they don't handle the product line doesn't
mean it doesn't exist.
> Can I assume that an autolite plug is 100% the same as the motorcraft
> plug that was installed at the factory in 1987?
No. One Autolite spark plug part number probably covers 4 Motorcraft
spark plug part numbers.
> Are the new Ford/Lincoln cars now assembled with Autolite plugs?
No.
> What happened to Motocraft Co?
Still around.
cuh...@webtv.net
About eight years ago I bought a new set of Splitfire spark plugs for my
1978 Dodge van.About one hour later one of the Splitfire spark plugs
quit working.I put one of the old spark plugs back in there.About two
days later another one of the Splitfire spark plugs quit working.
cuhulin
E Meyer
8093-48DA...@storefull-3251.bay.webtv.net, "cuh...@webtv.net"
<cuh...@webtv.net> wrote:
That's not a fair comparison. Splitfire doesn't work right in anything &
never did.
Steve
> I went looking for motorcraft plugs for my 87 Lincoln. Three major
> parts stores said there is no more motocraft, its all now autolite.
>
> Can I assume that an autolite plug is 100% the same as the motorcraft
> plug that was installed at the factory in 1987?
>
You can't even assume that today's Motorcraft plugs are "exactly the
same as the Motorcraft plug installed at the factory in 1987." Why would
you WANT to use an exact replacement, when materials and construction
might potentially have improved a lot over 21 years?
Find a high-quality plug that >meets the specifications< for your
application. Champion, NGK, AC, Autolite, and Motorcraft brand plugs
will all generally fit the bill. Different people have different
preferences, but I tend to use Champion, NGK, and AC plugs most of the time.
C. E. White
"Steve" <n...@spam.thanks> wrote in message
news:Ws6dnVW_MsNWJEfV...@texas.net...
A few years back I was being nice to my Sister and changed the plugs
in her 1997 Honda Civic when it had around 35k miles. I went to Pep
Boys to get the plugs. The original plugs were non-platinum, 30K mile
plugs. The sales guy at Pep Boys strongly recommended double platinum
Autolite Plugs for the application. Based on his recommendation, I got
a set. I installed them and the car seemed to run just fine. Next day,
my Sister called and said the check engine light was on and the engine
was running poorly. I went over and checked the error codes.The error
code said "random misfire." So I pulled the plugs and took a look at
them. They all looked fine. I reset the PCM and the car seemed to run
fine. Next day, my Sister called again. The check engine light was
back on, and the car was running poorly. It was late before I could
get time to work on the car. All the local parts stores were closed,
so I had to buy plugs at Wal*Mart. The only plugs they had for the
Civic were AC Rapid Fire non-platinum plugs. I bought a set and
installed them. After I reset the check engine light, the car again
seemed to run fine. However, the next day the check engine light was
back on. This time I actually read the specifications in the Honda's
Owner's Guide. It listed two potential replacement plugs (one by NGK,
one by Denso). It turned out that Pep Boys carried the NGK plugs and
they were cheaper than the worthless Autolite plugs the guy had
convinced me to buy in the first place. When he was listing the plugs
for the Civic he hadn't even mentioned the NGKs as a possibility. I
purchased the NGK plugs and installed them. She kept the car for
another 95,000 miles. I never replaced the NGKs again and the check
engine light never came on again either.
Moral of the story - buy the plugs recommended by the vehicle
manufacturer and don't listen to the "experts" at Pep Boys.
Ed
zzyzzx
So true. I use Autolite double platinums in my Escort and they work
just fine. Champios double platinums are good too. Bosch won't work
in my car (or so I am told).
m6onz5a
wrote:
>
> - Show quoted text -
Most foreign cars should take NGK, or Bosch plugs.
Autolite/Motocraft are for Fords
Champion plugs are for Chrylsers
ACDelco are for GM
NGK/Bosch - are for Honda/Toyota/Lexus/Nissans etc.
cuh...@webtv.net
There are a lot of super duper spark plugs out there.
cuhulin
Steve
>
> Most foreign cars should take NGK, or Bosch plugs.
>
> Autolite/Motocraft are for Fords
> Champion plugs are for Chrylsers
> ACDelco are for GM
> NGK/Bosch - are for Honda/Toyota/Lexus/Nissans etc.
Old wives' tales. Champions are fine in anything. So are NGKs. Bosch
sucks rocks, period. I wouldn't put them in the crappiest lawnmower
engine Honda makes.
Tegger
news:v5CdnRRir8mUj0HV...@texas.net:
Honda makes crappy lawn mower engines? How so?
--
Tegger
mrda...@gmail.com
What's wrong with Bosch? They work just fine in my wife's '99 Camry
I'll probably try NGKs next time just to see what they're like
Michael
cuh...@webtv.net
cuhulin
Scott Dorsey
Steve <n...@spam.thanks> wrote:
>
>Old wives' tales. Champions are fine in anything. So are NGKs. Bosch
>sucks rocks, period. I wouldn't put them in the crappiest lawnmower
>engine Honda makes.
I've had bad experiences with NGKs in older BMW engines... never had a problem
with them on any Japanese cars but on the 1980's BMW straight sixes the Bosch
Silvers run much better. I won't use the platinum Bosches but the Silvers are
great on those engines and are what the manufacturer recommends.
--scott
--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."
Bailey B
came in the car when new?
Can we also assume that the american plugs were designed and tested in
mostly american cars, german plugs designed and tested in german cars
etc?
Use american plugs for american cars, Bosch for german cars, NKG for jap
cars etc?
Has anyone seen any independent test results where the major brands of
plugs were independently tested?
Since there seems to be so many varying opinions, maybe they all within
5% of each other in quality and performance?
aarcuda69062
> Could we assume that we should use the brand of plug closest to what
> came in the car when new?
Why not just use what the OEM installed?
> Can we also assume that the american plugs were designed and tested in
> mostly american cars, german plugs designed and tested in german cars
> etc?
No. They all have access to test vehicles from around the world.
> Use american plugs for american cars, Bosch for german cars, NKG for jap
> cars etc?
No. The OEM plug in some Saturns is NGK, the Delco replacement may well
be the same plug since NGK makes spark plugs for AC Delco, but why risk
a $1000+ catalytic converter experimenting?
> Has anyone seen any independent test results where the major brands of
> plugs were independently tested?
You mean like a consumer reports type thing?
> Since there seems to be so many varying opinions, maybe they all within
> 5% of each other in quality and performance?
You don't need opinions. If the OEM plug functioned as it should, there
is sufficient evidence to use it in service.
cavedweller
> In article <20573-48DC948F-3...@storefull-3231.bay.webtv.net>,
There's that irony thing again. :)
Steve
> On Sep 25, 3:34 pm, Steve <n...@spam.thanks> wrote:
>> m6onz5a wrote:
>>
>>> Most foreign cars should take NGK, or Bosch plugs.
>>> Autolite/Motocraft are for Fords
>>> Champion plugs are for Chrylsers
>>> ACDelco are for GM
>>> NGK/Bosch - are for Honda/Toyota/Lexus/Nissans etc.
>> Old wives' tales. Champions are fine in anything. So are NGKs. Bosch
>> sucks rocks, period. I wouldn't put them in the crappiest lawnmower
>> engine Honda makes.
>
>
> What's wrong with Bosch?
The fine-wire center electrode that erodes back below the surrounding
ceramic.
> They work just fine in my wife's '99 Camry
Until they don't.... :-/
Steve
> Could we assume that we should use the brand of plug closest to what
> came in the car when new?
Not necessarily.
>
> Can we also assume that the american plugs were designed and tested in
> mostly american cars, german plugs designed and tested in german cars
> etc?
Does gasoline/air mixture give a damn who made the combustion chamber
its being burned in? I don't think so.
Thomas Tornblom
> mrda...@gmail.com wrote:
>> On Sep 25, 3:34 pm, Steve <n...@spam.thanks> wrote:
>>> m6onz5a wrote:
>>>
>>>> Most foreign cars should take NGK, or Bosch plugs.
>>>> Autolite/Motocraft are for Fords
>>>> Champion plugs are for Chrylsers
>>>> ACDelco are for GM
>>>> NGK/Bosch - are for Honda/Toyota/Lexus/Nissans etc.
>>> Old wives' tales. Champions are fine in anything. So are NGKs. Bosch
>>> sucks rocks, period. I wouldn't put them in the crappiest lawnmower
>>> engine Honda makes.
>> What's wrong with Bosch?
>
> The fine-wire center electrode that erodes back below the surrounding
> ceramic.
You mean Bosch Platinums?
I've tested those once, 30 years ago, and quickly threw them away as
pure junk.
I have excellent experience with Bosch parts otherwise. Perhaps mostly
due to having german cars as daily drivers.
I have had excellent experience with NGK spark plugs since the 60:s,
and I try to get them for everything but the four ground electrode VAG
plugs, where I normally buy OEM.
I see that NGK appears to have different series of plugs in Europe and
the US. I have used (euro) BPR5FS, BPR6FS and BP7FS in my 351C, but
these are very expensive here, and I've tried to locate them in the
US, but it seems NGK recommends UR-4 there, which I have never seen
here.
m6onz5a
> m6onz5awrote:
>
Yeah, you can put any plug in any vehicle, but they run better with
the proper plug.. A customer of ours puts Champion in anything &
everything.
cuh...@webtv.net
find any spark plug that would work for more than a week or so.One day I
was at an auto junk yard and I saw an old junk Russian car sitting
there.I asked the guy if I could buy the spark plugs from the car.He
gave me the spark plugs for free.Those old spark plugs worked just fine
for my moped.
cuhulin
Steve
>> The fine-wire center electrode that erodes back below the surrounding
>> ceramic.
>
> You mean Bosch Platinums?
>
> I've tested those once, 30 years ago, and quickly threw them away as
> pure junk.
I should have been more specific- yes, I meant Bosch Platinum plugs
>
> I have excellent experience with Bosch parts otherwise. Perhaps mostly
> due to having german cars as daily drivers.
>
The Mopar world has had rotten luck with Bosch O2 sensors, leading to
repeated documentation that not all Bosch-branded aftermarket O2 sensors
are of the same design, even with the same part number. But other than
that, I've had decent luck with Bosch parts. And one Bosch coffee maker
that still works after 17 years of daily use.
Brent P
> The fine-wire center electrode that erodes back below the surrounding
> ceramic.
I thought that had happened on the Bosch plugs I used in my mustang. I
was able to dig up some illustrations online (after 80K miles I didn't
remember what they looked like to start with) and found they start that
way new out of the box. Slightly recessed in the ceramic. Other than
some light normal deposits the plugs I removed looked like the new ones
in the pictures. I took the extra effort to go to where I could get
motorcraft plugs and used those. I only had bosch in there because I
decided to go with what was easy to get before.