Bosch Plugs From China

[Tham]

Not sure of the supplies over there, but the current batch of

Bosch spark plugs imported into Malaysia are made in China

and pretty inferior quality.

 

I had just installed these plugs (W8DC) into my engine when I

received feedback from two sources, one a parts dealer who

heard it from a mechanic whom they suppled to regularly, the

other my usual auto airconditioner man, that the plugs broke apart

and left the lower threaded portion in their holes in the

cylinder head, when trying to replace them for customers.

In both cases, the plugs were Bosch, from China.

 

This was disastrous and necessitated the removal of the

cylinder head.

 

They also said the Chinese plugs had weaker sparks.

 

On hearing this, I looked at the packing which my plugs

came in, and saw the tiny words "Made In PRC" printed at

the bottom. Their China source was confirmed when I could

no longer find any "Made In Germany" etched in the middle

of the plug, as with the older German batches.

 

I quickly replaced them with local NGK ones.

[Taz_Rx]

IMHO Bosch plugs are shit no matter where they're made. NGK FTW always! :lolcry:

[rob83ke70]

I have no problem with bosch plugs. I have no problem with ngk plugs. I work in a workshop that uses both. I'm not 100% sure that I have much of a problem with *most* champion plugs either.

 

I'm NOT IMPRESSED with the original motorcraft plugs fitted to a ford 5.4 sohc v8 found in a BA falcon.... they have a shield/ground electrode type setup that goes around the insulator and also has the ground electrode over the tip, and they are a cone seat. Ford or Motorcraft stuffed up the design and when you go to remove them (service life 150k) you need to follow a VERY SPECIFIC method and if you are VERY LUCKY you won't break a plug leaving the bottom half (below the hex part) stuck firmly in the cylinder head. the ground electrode/shield and/or the insulator/tip assembly sticks in the head, which then requires some butchery, some ingenuity, a 9x1mm tap, a special threaded rod, and the largest slide hammer available to remove them.... I'm not impressed at all. Needless to say the plugs have been superceded and now look quite different, and there are service bulletins in the dealer world, the aftermarket world, and flying around the internet like crazy about this problem. I had to remove three plugs that had broken :lolcry: and motorcraft and autolite are the ONLY manufacturers who make these plugs at the moment. Ford dealer didn't even keep them in stock!

 

I'd use a bosch wr8dc in a kettering corolla ignition system, and a wr8dcx in an electronic system (the gap is different). The bosch plugs have a grooved ground electrode like an ngk bpr5ey (y denotes a groove in the ground electrode).

 

IMHO the champion plugs that are 13/16 hex don't seem to be that crash hot, but the 5/8 hex plugs seem to be pretty nice. I've fitted champion platinums to a few toyota v6's and they seem quite ok. NGK platinums are hideously expensive.

 

On a side note, denso platinums (for an aurion 2gr-fe) are the nicest, best marketed flashest boxed spark plugs I've ever seen and I reckon they were probably worth the money (bought from toyota dealer).

 

I've used bosch, denso/motorcraft, and ngk in the corolla and it always seems quite happy. The denso's were probably the best out of the three but it was pretty close and I don't have any problems with bosch.

 

Robert.

[78ke30]

IMHO Bosch plugs are shit no matter where they're made. NGK FTW always! :S

 

:y: bangon, ive nvr used anything but NGK and nvr haad failed or faulty new plug :dance:

[tojo2]

IMHO Bosch plugs are shit no matter where they're made. NGK FTW always! :dance:

 

x 2

 

Have found a few bosch plugs to be :S when new

[drc_ke20]

what a bad experience (Tham)that sucks everything now are made in China

cheap materials,cheap labor and most of all cheap shit only use reputable or genuine parts "thats why i use

NGK or Denso plugs,is the only one i use on my cars"this should be a warning to others be wiser and spend a few more cents than hundreds of dollars of damages.

[rob83ke70]

Can I say I've seen failed NGK spark plugs!!! I have seen the centre electrode come loose in the insulator and drop down the plug to contact the ground electrode. No spark plug gap, no spark = CRV running on 3 cylinders.

 

These were zfr6j-11 plugs. I think they are all pretty similar quality, denso's seem to be nicest though.

 

Robert.