IMHO, platinum plugs are a waste of money. Deterioration takes place due to
ion displacement, not oil fouling. My other "hobby car" is a Jaguar XJ-6,
and the consensus of opinion on these cars is that Champion plugs are the
best. Many folks have reported bad results with platinum.
 Any modern auto, with electronic ignition , should not need a plug
replacement any more frequently than 50K or so, as long as the FI is
operating properly. Standard Bosch plugs should do just fine. Good idea to
do a cap and rotor at the same time.
YMMV-
Chuck
'83 Westy
'84 XJ-6
----- Original Message -----
From: "Shawn Wright" <swright@ZUIKO.SLS.BC.CA>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Saturday, June 28, 2003 1:59 PM
Subject: Lifespan of Platinum plugs in 2.1L?

> In the neverending quest to resolve my Vanagon Syndrome, I swapped
> the blue temp sensor today, which appears to have had no effect. So then
> I decided to pull the plugs, just to see how they were doing after approx
> 50k kms and 7 years or so. Since the replacement interval for standard
> plugs is 30k miles/48k kms, I expected the platinum to still be in good
> shape, but was surprised to find they appear to be worn out!
> They are Bosch WR7CP, the single electrode platinum, and the thin
> platinum centre core housed in ceramic appears to be recessed into the
> ceramic by about .5mm, and the outer electrode appears to be worn on
> the underside. What kind of lifespan are others getting on these plugs? It
> seems surprising that they only went 50k kms. There were no signs of oil
> fouling (doesn't burn any oil), but a fair bit of light brown accumulation
on
> the plug.
> Should I also be replacing the cap & rotor at the same interval as the
> plugs? They look ok.
> --
> Shawn Wright
> http://Zuiko.sls.bc.ca/swright
> ~This message sent by Pegasus Mail, the safe E-Mail alternative~
> "Friends don't let friends use Outlook"