Spark plugs and performance. Just FYI

[MasterMind3002]

I use my 2008 Outback to pull our local ski club. She hit the 300 hr mark this summer and suddenly developed a miss during a ski show. I suspected the dreaded fuel pump issue.

I contacted Jessie at Bell Marine and had him stop out to test my fuel pressure. Not only was the pump working, but the pressure was a bit high. We took a look at the cap and rotor and decided it was ready for a tuneup. I installed new plugs, a cap and rotor kit and a new fuel filter. Problem solved. Well not quite. During test runs the boat ran great but under the heavy demands of ski show conditions it seemed to stuggle under heavy loads. No torque!

Just for giggles I pulled one of the spark plugs and ran out to Bell Marine to compare what I bought at Napa to what they use for replacements. It turns out that the plugs I bought at Napa were platinum and the plugs that Bell Marine uses are iridium. THEY ARE EXACTLY THE SAME PART NUMBER. After swapping out the plugs the power improvement was amazing.

Moral of the story: Make sure your buying the iridium plugs.

[mnpracing]

Where does one get a cap and rotor kit, and how do you assure you get the right one? What do you need to know to order one?

[maxpower220]

Skidim, West Marine, dealer (including any dealer that sells boat with Indmar engines, Bu, MC). You will need the hi cap discharge cap, which looks very different (wires attach to the sides of the cap instead of the top).

[Stazi]

I use my 2008 Outback to pull our local ski club. She hit the 300 hr mark this summer and suddenly developed a miss during a ski show. I suspected the dreaded fuel pump issue.

I contacted Jessie at Bell Marine and had him stop out to test my fuel pressure. Not only was the pump working, but the pressure was a bit high. We took a look at the cap and rotor and decided it was ready for a tuneup. I installed new plugs, a cap and rotor kit and a new fuel filter. Problem solved. Well not quite. During test runs the boat ran great but under the heavy demands of ski show conditions it seemed to stuggle under heavy loads. No torque!

Just for giggles I pulled one of the spark plugs and ran out to Bell Marine to compare what I bought at Napa to what they use for replacements. It turns out that the plugs I bought at Napa were platinum and the plugs that Bell Marine uses are iridium. THEY ARE EXACTLY THE SAME PART NUMBER. After swapping out the plugs the power improvement was amazing.

Moral of the story: Make sure your buying the iridium plugs.

Whats the part number you recommend?

[z28ke]

I run the cheap ngk's in everything I own including a supercharged camaro and have never had a problem. In fact about a month ago my boat started missing so I replaced the fuel filter and plugs(with ngk's) and she's never run better.