I have always used autolite. Now that I am building a performance engine and getting a Crane Ignition I figured I should get some better plugs. What should I get or is spending $$ in this area worthless? Oh, and wires. Should I just get a cheap $30 set or are the pricey sets worth the extra $$? I never thought they were.

I like AC plugs, but never had a problem with Autolites. I think the platinums, splitfires, etc are snake oil. Index the plugs when you install them. I bought a set of the 9mm MSD Heli-core wires. They are excellent wires and not too expensive.

Have you talked to any engine builders for what you're going to be doing and what brand plugs they recommend? Also have you talked to the fine folks at Crane Ignition on what they're recommendations are for your engine and future modifications? If you're going to be on the pedal hard with the new engine, then you may want to consider a colder plug so that the plugs don't fall victim to high speed glazing. I've talked to guys that have built and rebuilt the 5.0L and 5.8L for the old box body Crown Vics, and they will tell you that you don't need a fancy ignition setup if your engine is largely stock...you're just wasting your money. I don't see a problem with the Autolite brand, other than you may be switching heat ranges. Only thing is that the Autolites/Motorcrafts (basic no frill plugs) will rust where as the Bosch plugs and others won't because of what they're made of.

i just use all copper no matter the brand. there are bosch all copper in there now and i am putting autolite copper in there tomorrow. after the last time everybody talked about this, thats what the general feeling was. as for wires, your crane will most likely require the same as my MSD. i think cranes wires are the same as MSD, 8.5, but blue. low resistance, high dollar

You will never see an engine in my garage without NGK plugs.

I had always wanted to give the NGKs a shot... I think I'll get a set, next month sometime

Autolite double platinums are the best plug I've ever used. Splitfires are probably the worst...

NGK plugs are awesome/ specially for a mostly stock ignition system. most platinum plugs are designed for an arftermarket system.

I used to have a little Nissian pickup and NGK is what the suggested I use. Now I use NGK in everything. My wifes Mountaineer, my motorcycle, fourwheeler and my Bronco.

The only thing I usually do is upgrade the coil... Mallory or Accel... both make a good upgrade from the stock one that looks stock but definitely makes a difference... for under $40 too... add that to the double plats... and yer good to GO...

:thumbup

NGK makes a great plug! The other plug that I use a lot is the Bosch platinums. On my Mustang I run either the NGK or the Motocraft plugs.

In a nutshell I recommend, NGK, Bosch, Motocraft for your rig. As far as wires....why go cheap? It's only money, it's made to be spend. CHA-CHING!

a great wire to use are the Nascar type wires. we ran them on an ohmeter and they had from 52-55 ohms of resistance, wich was lower than any other "parts store" wire we could find.

$60 MSD says 40-50 ohms per foot. $110 Taylor thundervolt says 50. lowest seems to be Moroso @ 40 ohms per foot. they are $90 for a universal kit & a whopping $150 a specific set. MSD it is

NGK-UR45's & Ford Motorsport 9MM wires for about 50 bux......Oh yeah and MSD Blaster Coil for roughly 49 Bux...

AC

I've always used NGK in my bikes and stuff, Motorcraft in all my Fords (and Autolites in everything else). I DID try the Splitfires when they first came out, I believe they are snake oil. Didn't seem to make any improvements, other then anything else that replaced worn out plugs. I exchanged them for my usual set of Motorcrafts, and milage/seat of the pants felt exactly the same.

BTW, I never bother to index the plugs in any of my street rides, but I do my bracket car (where every little bit helps).

Have to agree with the NGK fans. The only way to go. I run them and Taylor wires in the Bronco and my Impala SS. Taylor wires are a great way to go if you want a performance wire without the perfomance price.

Another vote for NGK (http://www.ngk.com/sparkplug411.asp), specifically their V-Power plugs.
And, another vote for Taylor Spiro Pro (http://www.taylorvertex.com/spark.html#spiro) wires.:D
I've used numerous brands of spark plug wires, and these have lasted the longest...by far.
IMHO, they also have the best boot fitting for the plug.

Is there any other than NGK? NGK is the best I've used. :rockon

I run NGK in my quad. I currently run Autolites in both of my Fords (Bronco, Mustang).

When I work at Pepboys the manager wanted to see the difference in plugs so we put splitfire in my bronco for 2 weeks then repeated for plat +4's then the ac/delco rapid fires, and then autolite it ran the best with the autolites. I have them in the both my 93 and my 74 :thumbup

Autolites as well for me..Back in my ricer days I ran NGK's in my CRX, they were good plugs too.

im with you guys on NGK or autolites....stay the hell away from SHITFIRE tripple platinums - they suck and blow. I was on the phone with some idio-sevant at summit racing who swore up and down that shitfire tripple plats are the way, but now i've got em in with my MSD and found out that MSD calls for all copper no exceptions. Nice morons at summit again!