Oh that dreaded spark plug failure

[RTSJohn]

Took the Spyder out for a ride a few days back and "oh my gosh" !! The power was awful and it sounded as if something was terribly wrong. Turned around and headed back home with no change. Stopped and it felt as if there might have been a miss, but more like one cylinder wasn't firing at all. Could it be plugs?? Coil pack? Something else?? Ok, I figured at 21000+ maybe it could be plugs so I started there. Got new plugs and started searching for information to aid in doing the work myself. After much consideration I decided to bite the bullet and take to a local shop and give them a try. When I described the issue they told me it was most likely plugs. They have found that to be the case is several Spyders in the past few weeks. I took it to them yesterday and they called this afternoon and said it was now running great. Plugs were shot. I picked it up and it ran better than it has in weeks. Tomorrow it will be getting a road test for certain. Time for Wind Therapy !!!

[Mikey]

I wish it was a easyer job to do, I would like to change the wires and plugs in mine!! But I fear I will take it to a shop, I just don't know if I am set up for that much tear down!!

[RTSJohn]

That was my deciding factor as well. I don't regret the decision at all. I'm a full time RV'er and don't have a place to complete that undertaking.

I wish it was a easyer job to do, I would like to change the wires and plugs in mine!! But I fear I will take it to a shop, I just don't know if I am set up for that much tear down!!

[skip]

i posted a pic of changing my plugs, after thread , MAJOR SERVICE, if you want to see what you have to remove to change

[JayBros]

It was a little intimidating at the beginning of the job when I changed mine at the 56K service but I just took it slow and steady and it worked out fine. I'm surprised yours went south around 21K; my originals made it through 28K, never missed a beat and I've read of others who've gone easily past that interval with no problem. I changed to Bajaron's iridium ones. With arthritis getting both my hands the Spyder tech at my dealership will do the next ones in about 11K.

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

Took the Spyder out for a ride a few days back and "oh my gosh" !! The power was awful and it sounded as if something was terribly wrong. Turned around and headed back home with no change. Stopped and it felt as if there might have been a miss, but more like one cylinder wasn't firing at all. Could it be plugs?? Coil pack? Something else?? Ok, I figured at 21000+ maybe it could be plugs so I started there. Got new plugs and started searching for information to aid in doing the work myself. After much consideration I decided to bite the bullet and take to a local shop and give them a try. When I described the issue they told me it was most likely plugs. They have found that to be the case is several Spyders in the past few weeks. I took it to them yesterday and they called this afternoon and said it was now running great. Plugs were shot. I picked it up and it ran better than it has in weeks. Tomorrow it will be getting a road test for certain. Time for Wind Therapy !!!

" 21,000 + " miles ...... I'm more than a bit skeptical on this ..... I have 60,000 + on the same engine with original plugs, coil packs. wiring etc. and to date no plug issues, that I can detect .... still getting the Same good mileage ( 39 mpg's ). .... I have little faith in the Expertise that a lot of dealer Tech's have shown ..... JMHO .... Mike

[ARtraveler]

" 21,000 + " miles ...... I'm more than a bit skeptical on this ..... I have 60,000 + on the same engine with original plugs, coil packs. wiring etc. and to date no plug issues, that I can detect .... still getting the Same good mileage ( 39 mpg's ). .... I have little faith in the Expertise that a lot of dealer Tech's have shown ..... JMHO .... Mike

You beat me to the question BK.

Yes, they are a "bear" to change out. The two places that I talked to about changing mine out at 40K said they should be good until at least 60K.

[trikermutha]

21000 miles and you needed plugs. Those plugs they put in the Spyders are normally rated for 100k miles. Mine are around 34 K and have no plans on changing them soon.

[old Timer]

In a lot of cases, plug life will depend on how the vehicle is driven

[RTSJohn]

" 21,000 + " miles ...... I'm more than a bit skeptical on this ..... I have 60,000 + on the same engine with original plugs, coil packs. wiring etc. and to date no plug issues, that I can detect .... still getting the Same good mileage ( 39 mpg's ). .... I have little faith in the Expertise that a lot of dealer Tech's have shown ..... JMHO .... Mike

I was troubled as well... but I can assure you one plug wasn't firing at all ... period. New BajaRon plugs and it is now running like a new ride.

[ARtraveler]

I was troubled as well... but I can assure you one plug wasn't firing at all ... period. New BajaRon plugs and it is now running like a new ride.

I had the "one plug" not firing on my 2010 RT (twin cylinder). It turned out that one wire was shorting out from rubbing against something. It started happening when I got caught in a rainstorm. The dealer replaced that and no more issues for me. I traded that Spyder off at 36K miles and the original spark plugs.

[Chiisai]

2016 RTL, I still have the original plugs at 84,000 and it is running like a top. I have heard of some of them going past 120,000. Luck of the draw? or how they are ridden? I am dreading when I have to have mine changed.

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

2016 RTL, I still have the original plugs at 84,000 and it is running like a top. I have heard of some of them going past 120,000. Luck of the draw? or how they are ridden? I am dreading when I have to have mine changed.

Iridium plugs have a very long " use life " ..... jmho .... Mike

[Motogordo]

July 21,, 2021

Speaking of spark plug replacement. I had a 2016 Smart Car with about 70,000 miles, running fine. I asked the Mercedes dealer what it costs to replace the plugs. They said $550 . I said " what ." They told me they have to take half the car apart to replace the 3 plugs. The following day I sold the Smart Car on Facebook Market Place. They buyer came over with cash and off he went. It was a great car.

[Piratezz]

Just want to add my thoughts to this matter, If you use the throttle while starting the engine , you will shorten the sparkplugslife dramaticly, never use the gaslever while starting these engines.
They will get flushed with unburnt fuel, with no temperature to get rid of the excess... jmho

[acdcking12]

Took the Spyder out for a ride a few days back and "oh my gosh" !! The power was awful and it sounded as if something was terribly wrong. Turned around and headed back home with no change. Stopped and it felt as if there might have been a miss, but more like one cylinder wasn't firing at all. Could it be plugs?? Coil pack? Something else?? Ok, I figured at 21000+ maybe it could be plugs so I started there. Got new plugs and started searching for information to aid in doing the work myself. After much consideration I decided to bite the bullet and take to a local shop and give them a try. When I described the issue they told me it was most likely plugs. They have found that to be the case is several Spyders in the past few weeks. I took it to them yesterday and they called this afternoon and said it was now running great. Plugs were shot. I picked it up and it ran better than it has in weeks. Tomorrow it will be getting a road test for certain. Time for Wind Therapy !!!

How much did the Dealer charge to do the Plug changes?

[RTSJohn]

a

How much did the Dealer charge to do the Plug changes?

The charge was 3.1 hours = $283 . Would I pay that again? You bet ya !! I drove up on my cabbage truck, fell off, and watched the work as last plug was pulled. It was ding dong dead. "short life" for what is normally a "Long one" .

[stevencovert]

I worked on a friends byke that was jerking trying to take off. In the end was a cracked plug! Of course on the right side. Factory plug too. No idea why, never has seen this before. Put in the the fine tip version. Was a 2013 ST-S VTwin.

[KX5062]

Plug life is super variable. Iridium plugs in automobiles can last up to or over 100k miles, but rarely that in motorcycle type engines. I assume that's because of the higher stresses: horsepower per cubic inch, etc. For example, in BMW motorcycles they recommend changing plugs every 12k miles, which is incredibly short even for non Iridium tipped plugs. Owners frequently change to the Iridium plugs to extend the plug life, but even then many report those only last in the range of 24k miles. In some of the BMW bikes I've owned the OEM plugs were toast at about 10k miles, while others lasted much longer. In a Suzuki motorcycle (dirt bike) I used to own the Iridium plugs only last a couple of thousand miles before failing. Why was a mystery, it just did.

Anyway, with the Spyder, my 2014 RT the plugs were completely toasted at 36k miles and should have been changed much earlier, like the OEM recommended mileage. And, yet as we've read above many Spyder owners report much longer plug life, so that's why I say they're variable.

[trikermutha]

[BajaRon]

As mentioned, there are several reasons that spark plugs do not last nearly as long in a Spyder (or most motorcycles) as they do in cars. For one thing, it is not uncommon to be turning 3 or 4 times the RPM in a motorcycle. That alone can cut mileage in 1/2. It is also not uncommon to run WOT or generally harder on a motorcycle than you do in your car. Cars generally do a lot more steady throttle, cruise control type miles than does the typical motorcycle that more often heads for the back roads and twisties. Couple this with how much a set of worn spark plugs affect the HP and efficiency of a motorcycle as opposed to a car. And you end up with a much shorter life. You really can't compare the 2. They are only similar in that they are an internal combustion engine.

In a race car, spark plugs last just 1 race, in most cases. Dragsters may only get 1 run (1/4 mile) from a set of spark plugs. Just to represent the spectrum. Don't try to compare your car to you Spyder. They are very different.