[Hazlitt777]

My understanding is that often cruzes come gapped at .025 and the book says .028. Past discussions encouraged regapping the plugs at .035 but since then I decided to bring it down to .032 which is where I have been running it for sometime and I like it. (May even be helping with gas mileage. Just finished a 75 mile run mostly 70 mph, a little city driving...averaged 45.5 mpg on my gage...which is usually 44 actual.) Any further thoughts on spark plug settings? I'm happy with .032 as if it is the sweet spot.

Second, I am still using the stock platinum plugs. Any new thoughts on better plugs to try, and if so does the gap stay the same as on platinums?

thanks.

Joe

 

[obermd]

If your car is happy at 0.032" leave them there. Also, the stock plugs are Iridium, not Platinum. We have tried several different plugs now and the best ones appear to be

NGK BKR7E vPower Copper plugs
NGK BKR8EIX Iridium plugs

The copper plugs will need to be checked about every 15K miles and won't last for more than 15 to 30K miles. The Iridiums should last about 60K miles. Start both plugs at 0.028 to 0.030" for the longest period between checking.

 

[Hazlitt777]

So you are saying the copper are better for mileage, although they need to be replaced more often?
How long are the originals good for in your opinion?[
And approximately how much better gas mileage are we talking with the copper and the second in your list...or is it just power?

thanks!
Joe

 

[obermd]

As far as we can tell both plugs provide better and smoother power delivery than the OEM plugs, which are also made by NGK. The biggest difference is cost - the coppers are about half the price of the Iridiums but last about half the miles. More and smoother low end power can help improve your city MPG by a little bit by allowing you to shift sooner. There really won't be an MPG change in an automatic since you can't control the shifting. They both improve the driving experience. Take a look at http://www.cruzetalk.com/forum/34-1-4l-turbo/21850-hesitation-gone.html for more information.

 

[Hazlitt777]

thanks.