Today’s Motoring Minute with Mary Ellen is about spark plugs.
We had a customer bring in her 2008 Dodge Grand Caravan with over 177,000 because the check engine light came on last night. The staff used a scan tool to perform the tests necessary to determine the cause of the check engine light. Their testing found the check engine light was caused by an engine misfire. Further inspection found that the spark plugs had never been replaced and you can even see the difference in the photo below. The two spark plugs on the left are from the vehicle and the one on the right is a brand new spark plug.
See the large gap between the top two metal pieces? The “gap” should be .040 inches or 40 thousand as the boys call it. That gap is the distance the spark must jump. These spark plugs are worn out and the gap is more than double the specification.
Make sure you follow the scheduled maintenance for your vehicle. These spark plugs should have been replaced at miles. The mileage interval for replacing spark plugs will vary depending on the material the spark plug is made from. Be sure to check the owner’s manual for your vehicle or better yet, call J&M and we can help with that.
Good spark plug……better fuel economy and power!! And who doesn’t like that!
