New sparkplugs

I have 2010 Tacoma reg cab 4x4 2.7 , with 40k miles and had new plugs installed and noticed much better acceleration and I didn't think it would make such a difference but it did! Just wanted let others know what a difference it made in my truck also I have had this truck for almost two years and no problems whatsoever.

 

I'm inclined to do certain maint. well in advance of what the manual calls for, but spark plug changes are not one of them. Maint/Warranty manual for my 2015 shows first plug change for 2.7 motor to be at 120K miles. I'd bet a buck it's the same for a 2010.

Was something else done when the plugs were changed?

If not, I'd wonder what was going on in your engine to dirty up plugs in 40K. Maybe a lot of long idling in traffic and lots of inner city driving?

 

Wow. That's a lot longer than the 4.0. Maintenance schedule calls for 30k for spark plugs for emissions reasons.

 

4.0L engines use a more traditional copper plug, hence 30K interval. The 2.7L uses an Iridium plug - 120K.

My'06 Avalon 2GR-FE engine calls for plugs changes at 120K as well. I pulled them at 162K miles. They looked damn near new.

 

Thanks for the input, Yes I do a lot of city driving I think that might have been the problem I also had the serpentine belt replaced and tire rotation. I guess the short runs gum up the plugs, In two weeks I have an appointment for a recall on the converter ,I already had the rear springs replaced under recall they keep going like this and I will have a new truck!

 

Had another recall for the converter and that made a big difference in performance , that must have been the problem I have more power and better acceleration for sure.

 

I couldnt bring myself to go 100k between plug changes. copper i went 30, irid i went 40 and swapped to take a look at them.... these i may go 60k.

Brave i am not i guess.

 

The time/miles on any maintenance is just a guideline.

 

What's the recall on the convertor for?


Torque converter or catalytic ?

 

It is the Cat on some 4 Cylinders if memory serves me correct.

 

Ok thanks for clearing that up for
Me

 

Yep the catalyst they say it can melt or fall apart , the truck has more power now, probably why my plugs were bad.

 

I figure with plugs if you leave them in for 120K they're probably not coming out without a fight. I dunno, maybe not. But I'm old and would just have to break them loose and look at 30K because of habit.

 

This. Even if you leave them in for 100k miles break them loose every so often. I would pull them, check them, and add anti-seize to each plug every 30-40k.

 

Anyone who is old school will probably feel better to check the plugs before 100k. I would check them before 100k if it's been over 15 years, or if the vehicle stays outside in a moist environment. Otherwise it's just not necessary unless there's a problem that could be related to the plugs.

I changed my iridium plugs at 99,000 miles (8 years) and they came out just fine. I have no reason to believe they would fight me if I left them in for 120,000 miles (10 years)... again unless the vehicle is stored outside in a harsh environment.

New spark plugs will not improve performance noticeably. Plugs need to be replaced for two reasons: the electrodes wear away with mileage and the gap increases (but they will still easily spark the fuel mix) and/or the threads need to be freed up every 10-15 years due to potential galvanic corrosion between the steel plug threads and the aluminum cylinder head. Yes anti-seize helps a lot but eventually the metals will react to each other, given enough time. Some might say the plugs also need to be replaced because of oil or carbon fouling, which is true... but if the plugs are the correct heat range to be self-cleaning, oil/carbon fouling will be caused by engine wear or damage and not by the spark plugs themselves, so fouling is another problem entirely.

The copper plugs in the 4.0 wear faster and need more frequent replacement because copper is a relatively soft material compared to iridium or platinum. The softer electrodes on copper plugs will wear away much faster than the iridium or platinum electrodes, which are extremely hard and brittle. (This brittleness is the primary reason why long life plugs should not be re-gapped, or exercise extreme caution if you do re-gap them. Honestly I can't see any reason why Toyota doesn't use the LL iridium plugs in the 4.0 as well...)

 

Agree with you on all points @DGXR, however it's worth noting that so-called "copper" plug are actually nickel plated copper precisely for the reason you mention, they'd melt inside the combustion chamber. Why Toyota decides to use them is probably because they were trying to eek out all the performance they could get. Perhaps it's a fuel economy thing, emissions, etc. You usually don't see platinum or iridium used on high performance engines for some reason, not sure exactly why. Might be they tend to run colder so misfires more inside the 1GR or interferes with the way the VVT & ignition adjust to altitude, octane? I'm just not sure.

 

Electrodes are smaller and there is less surface area for the plugs - a properly gapped copper plug will typically have 3-4 times the electrode size of platinum or iridium, and performance engines tend to foul out the smaller electrodes on the iridium if driven hard. Typically high performance engines run "cooler" plugs as well or if you add boost to an engine typically it calls for you to go from your stock hotter plug to a cooler plug.

 

Yes a plug with pure copper electrodes would have a hard time, for sure!

Possibly... I can't speak for all performance engines but I am most familiar with Corvettes. All standard Corvettes since at least 1992 have performance engines that call for platinum or iridium plugs every 100,000 miles. My 1995 model (LT1 with platinums) was made during the later part of the "American car emissions nightmare" period so perhaps that's where they started using the long life plugs. The previous Corvette engine (L98) did not call for platinum plugs and required new spark plugs every 30,000 miles.

 

They did with the blower.

 

And ill still never go 100k