ok, from my understanding these plugs indicate that my s2k was running lean. my mods are injen cai and apexi ws exhaust. i always use ultra 94 gas from sunoco. what do you guys think? i just find it weird that a car w/ only 2 bolt-on mods runs this lean.

 

My plugs looked like that too. I don't think it is that the car is running lean, so much that the plugs are too hot. I went with the next colder Denso Iridiums (IK24s). I have been running these for several thousand miles, and I have checked them several times. They look much better, and the car runs much better when it is particularly hot.

 

are you the guy who had that really good dyno run?

 

I had a decent dyno run (https://www.s2ki.com/forums/showthread.php?...&threadid=73976), but I wouldn't call it "really good". I had decent peak numbers, but I was disappointed with my low end. I was a couple tenths below the most powerfull car (out of 7 or 8 cars). This dyno is said to indicate lower than normal numbers.

 

Those look OK to me .... toasty light brown right? As long as it's not ashy with missing material (pitting) you're cool.

 

I agree that they look "serviceable", but I think that anytime you CAN run a colder plug without fouling, you should. The ECU should retard timing and richen the mixture to prevent detonation, so you could probably run plugs hotter than these without suffering damage, but the ECU's counter measures will reduce power. My OEM plugs looked just like these, but I replaced them with the colder plugs anyway. I have noticed significant improvements in performance while it is 100 degrees F outside. I've suffered no noticeable downsides.

 

They look fine. Lean plugs will be misshaped and pitted. Electrodes look good.

 

I dont know anything about what they look like when lean or rich, but i can tell you i have the same bolt on s as you plus a couple others and my car runs way too rich. But i think thats a safety protocal from Honda.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by docofmind
[B]I dont know anything about what they look like when lean or rich,

 

Just as a reference, S2K's with the full length CAIs (Injen, AEM) do run a bit leaner than their stock counterparts, but not excessively so. Across the rpm range its usually about a half point at full throttle (stock S2K's usually run healthily under 13:1 across most of the rpm range at WOT). At a couple points where there is a resonance charging effect (3500 rpm, and again around 5500-6000 rpm) you'll see lean spikes up to 14:1, but they are very narrow in duration (a couple hundred rpm).

Another thing to remember when trying to read plugs folks - you can't do it after a casual drive. Why? Because under normal driving circumstances the car is running at an average of about 14.7:1, even a little leaner for emissions and fuel mileage purposes. To truly read a plug you need to make a full throttle pass and then shut the engine down immediately at the end of the run and coast to a stop. Then pull your plugs and examine them. The more running you do at part throttle after a full throttle run, the less you'll be able to tell about engine characteristics from the plugs. And lets not even get into reading platinum plugs with modern day unleaded fuel....

UL