Why is choosing the right spark plug the key to improving car performance?

In gasoline engines, spark plugs play a very important role. It ignites the mixed gas and drives the piston to move through hundreds of discharges per second between electrodes. Its performance directly affects the combustion efficiency and power output of the engine.

Spark plugs are composed of a central electrode, a ground electrode, a ceramic insulator and a metal shell. The continuous evolution and upgrading of electrode materials is also the key to improving car performance. Early nickel alloy electrodes were gradually replaced by metals such as platinum and iridium due to poor corrosion resistance and short life. This material change not only extends the service life of the engine, but also allows the engine to obtain smoother torque output in the low speed range.

The status of the spark plug can be preliminarily judged by "three inspections": observe whether the electrode has mushroom-shaped erosion, measure whether the gap exceeds the original standard of 0.2mm, and detect whether there are cracks in the ceramic body. When the vehicle has difficulty in cold starting, sudden acceleration or abnormally high fuel consumption, it is often a signal of spark plug performance degradation, and it needs to be replaced in time to avoid affecting the performance of the car engine.