Has any one found good replacement Spark Plug Wires
I have a bad plug wire on my 2008 RS SE5. Have checked resistance on both and found one was pretty bad causing lots of problems.
OEM BRP spark plug wires are at least $40 or up and supposedly easy to damage. My local auto parts houses can sell me individual 8mm plug wires for about $5 or a little more for many applications, but do not have a cross reference on these plug wires which are made by NGK. I have found several that are the correct length but do not have the correct end on the coil side. The OEM wire did not have any numbers on it, so could not cross reference and the auto parts places do not have the Can Am detail in their parts books. I do understand that you have to be careful to have the correct plug wires so there is no interference with the rest of the Spyder electronics.
Has anyone found a quality replacement plug wire? The cost of the OEM wires are ridiculous! This bike is still under warranty, but still I would have to pay the first $50 of the warranty cost.
Would love to hear some solutions to the overpriced plug wire dilema.
I have a bad plug wire on my 2008 RS SE5. Have checked resistance on both and found one was pretty bad causing lots of problems.
OEM BRP spark plug wires are at least $40 or up and supposedly easy to damage. My local auto parts houses can sell me individual 8mm plug wires for about $5 or a little more for many applications, but do not have a cross reference on these plug wires which are made by NGK. I have found several that are the correct length but do not have the correct end on the coil side. The OEM wire did not have any numbers on it, so could not cross reference and the auto parts places do not have the Can Am detail in their parts books. I do understand that you have to be careful to have the correct plug wires so there is no interference with the rest of the Spyder electronics.
Has anyone found a quality replacement plug wire? The cost of the OEM wires are ridiculous! This bike is still under warranty, but still I would have to pay the first $50 of the warranty cost.
Would love to hear some solutions to the overpriced plug wire dilema.
Depending on how many miles you have they are covered under the Federal emissions warranty, But I'm thinking with an 08 your probably over the limit??
The plug wires are still under warranty with the Spyder less than 5 years old and only 8754 miles. The big problem is the nearest dealer is 80 miles from me. A dealer told me the first $50 of the warranty work would be my cost. By the time I buy gas to haul the Spyder to and from a dealer plus pay the first $50, I might as well buy the wires outright. That would be less expensive in the long run and I certainly have no problem installing them. It just seems that the OEM plug wires are grossly overpriced. All of my late model vehicles have lots of electronics, shielded plug wires, etc and the cost of replacing a whole set of plug wires on any vehicle is usually less than the cost of one of the BRP cables. I find it hard to believe the OEM Spyder wires are that much better than the ones on my other vehicles.
Ultimately I may have to buy the OEM wires, but can at least express my displeasure at the overall value or lack thereof!!! Never have I had a set of plug wires fail with so few miles on any vehicle. For the price of the OEM cables, they should be warranted a lot longer and replaced with no warranty deductible for those of us that will install them ourselves.
Right now, I will continue to check with some local auto parts houses to see if I can find a good replacement wire. I have talked to some people who have used automotive wires, but did not have the detail on which ones they used.
The plug wires are still under warranty with the Spyder less than 5 years old and only 8754 miles. The big problem is the nearest dealer is 80 miles from me. A dealer told me the first $50 of the warranty work would be my cost. By the time I buy gas to haul the Spyder to and from a dealer plus pay the first $50, I might as well buy the wires outright. That would be less expensive in the long run and I certainly have no problem installing them. It just seems that the OEM plug wires are grossly overpriced. All of my late model vehicles have lots of electronics, shielded plug wires, etc and the cost of replacing a whole set of plug wires on any vehicle is usually less than the cost of one of the BRP cables. I find it hard to believe the OEM Spyder wires are that much better than the ones on my other vehicles.
Ultimately I may have to buy the OEM wires, but can at least express my displeasure at the overall value or lack thereof!!! Never have I had a set of plug wires fail with so few miles on any vehicle. For the price of the OEM cables, they should be warranted a lot longer and replaced with no warranty deductible for those of us that will install them ourselves.
Right now, I will continue to check with some local auto parts houses to see if I can find a good replacement wire. I have talked to some people who have used automotive wires, but did not have the detail on which ones they used.
With the emission warranty there is no 50$ charge, But i understand why you won't go to the dealer to have it done.
Pardon my ignorance...
Is it possible to get a set of wires made up with the correct lengths and ends? Even if it was as pricey as OEM, at least you could pick out much higher quality materials.
So far, I have not found the correct ends and someone to make up the wires. Seems to be a lot of concern about any possible interference with the Spyder electronics so I have been very careful about this approach. Still checking locally for some other options including making a set. I used to make plug wires many years ago, but do realize that lots of things have changed since that time.
I will check further with the dealer to get the details on the $50 warranty cost. Thanks again for the reminder.
Hoping to hear from Lamont on the wires they were making some time back. There is a solution out there, so hoping someone will find it.
Pardon my ignorance...
Is it possible to get a set of wires made up with the correct lengths and ends? Even if it was as pricey as OEM, at least you could pick out much higher quality materials.
Any thing is possible, given enough time and effort, But the wrong wires will set off the ECM And not in a good way.
The stock wires don't go bad by them self, It when checking the spark plugs that there damaged.
[pulling the booths off]
.....The stock wires don't go bad by them self, It when checking the spark plugs that there damaged.
[pulling the booths off]
Actually, they can and do go bad by themselves. Ozone, gas & oil, bending, vibration, and time are all the enemies of resistance plug wires. The most common enemy is most certainly poor removal technique, but there can be many other causes. One tip to prolong longevity, when the wires are taken off the spark plugs, put a thin coat of sparkplug boot release (dielectric grease) inside the boot before it is put back on. Getting it off will be easier the next time.
-Scotty 2011 Spyder RTS-SM5 (mine) 2000 BMW R1100RTP, motorized tricycle & 23 vintage bikes 2011 RT-622 trailer, Aspen Sentry popup camper, custom motorcycle trailer to pull behind the Spyder
Being aware that these plug wires were easily damaged, I took extra care removing them. When I had checked the spark plugs a couple of months ago, I also used some dielectric grease on the boots to make them easy to remove. Not ruling out that I may have accidently damaged them, but did check the resistance on both wires when I checked the spark plugs the first time. The previous owner had installed Iridium plugs which were burning cleanly. (Yes, I did use the heat sink paste when reinstalling the plugs.) Both wires had very low resistance at that time. I checked both wires again when problems started a couple of months later. The rear (short) wire had a lot of resistance and the longer one to the front cylinder had more resistance than a couple of months prior.
Plug wires do degrade over time with many factors working against them as mentioned in a previous thread. Sometimes parts just do not last as planned, but replacement cost is part of the overall value. I am struggling to see the value in these wires at present.
The OEM replacement plug wires are ordered, but I will definitely look into swapping out the coil end on another wire in the future. I may even try it right now to see how it works while waiting for the OEM wires.
Hey Willie
We've been playing phone tag for a couple of days now. I look forward to meeting a fellow spyder ryder in this area!
If there is any assistance I can provide just let me know. If all else fails, I can just look over your shoulder and act like I have something to contribute. Maybe provide moral support!
While waiting for the OEM plug wires to arrive, I decided to make a set. My local NAPA store matched the length of the original plug wires with some Belken resistance plug wires. Since these Belken wires did not have any extra rubber around them for protection, I put some fuel line around them. I took the coil end connector off of the original plug wires and installed on the end of the new wire. Slipped all back into wire loom protectors and installed. Since I have only tested in a short ride last night, not totally sure how they will perform. The short test run was just fine and I really do not anticipate any problems. Bottom line is that I spent $26 for two new Belken resistance plug wires, fuel line to protect the wires and a larger cable loom to cover all. If these work well, I will just keep the new OEM replacement plug wires that are on order and use for a spare set.
I was at Fords cycle shop the other day. One of the owners (Melissa??) said to tell you hi. She asked if we had met and I told her we've been playing phone tag for a while. LOL!!
Hey, consider going on either (or both) the last MoGang rude to Branson or the KY lake trip.
Dates are:
MoGang Oct 7-8-9
KY Lake Oct 14-15-16
Also another ryde next weekend going down to Searcy AR to meet up with one of the fab five from BRP, Faran. Not sure if we can do that one yet, but looking into it.
The spark plug wires I fabricated while waiting for the OEM replacement ones to arrive are working great. The dealer could not give me the new plug wires under warranty unless I returned the complete malfunctioning set. Since I had used the coil end of the original wires, that just was not a good option. It is understandable why this is needed, but I elected to try the wires I made up just to see if they would work. Took about a 20 mile ride this afternoon with both interstate and some in town riding. The Spyder ran great!!!
I think that I will just keep the replacement OEM plug wires as a spare, but definitely will never order them again. Way too easy and much less cost to find a quality (used Belken resistance plug wires) wire the correct length and swap out the coil plug ends. I did put some extra shielding around the wire by using some fuel line. Had to use a larger split wire loom to cover, but figured the extra shield would help with heat and any other issues.
I will add some pictures later with more description of what I did to make up my plug wires. I do know that the Spyder has a lot of electronics that can react poorly to cross over interference from plug wires. There was some concern on my part and I did not want to have any safety or mechanical issues with improper plug wires. So far, there has been no problems at all.
As far as the OEM plug wires, I did not see anything all that special about them. They are 8mm resistance plug wires made by NGK who makes all kind of plug wires. They did have a thin rubber covering around the plug wires that automotive wires do not normally have. The automotive places I checked did not have any info to look up wires for the Spyder and the BRP website and dealers quote you the $40-45 prices per wire. Plug wires with the end that fits on the spark plug was easy enough to find at the automotive parts store. The coil end of the wire for the Spyder was different than the automotive end. That is why I used the coil end of the faulty wire on the replacement plug wire. I took the original wires to the parts store and we matched up length on 8mm wires. Did not have any luck finding the correct coil end at the parts place.
I now have a set of OEM plug wires and will keep them for a spare set. As noted in an earlier thread, the dealer could not give me the warranty on the old plug wires unless I sent the entire plug wire, ends and boots back. If there is nothing all that special about the OEM wires, then they are grossly overpriced. If there is something special about them, it would be nice to know!! Until then, I will be using my much less expensive replacement plug wires.
The OEM plug wires are certainly a weak spot. They seem to work ok until you do something with them, like change a spark plug. They are just not designed to last a long time even if you don't mess with them.
The OEM wires are average 7mm, carbon core, resistance type automotive wires. They do have an added rubberized sleeve (probably a heat shield) over most of their length.
Yesterday, I finally got all the parts I need to start making some custom, killer, high performance spark plug wires for the Spyder. I figured if I'm going to go to the trouble, why not get some real upgrades.
Lamont has a few thousand miles on the test set I made for his RT and they are working great!
I will be making some today with an assortment of components I ordered to see what works best. I should have more information and pictures once I settle on the best component combination.
These kits will use the 8.8mm Accel 300+ Ferro-Spiral Race Wire. This is a big improvement over the carbon core OEM wires. The carbon core breaks down with heat and the electrical charge it carries. Small voids in the carbon develop and spark has to jump these to get to the plug. This soaks up energy, increases the load on the coil, and eventually can reduce voltage to where you get misfiring or no spark at all.
Movement, like changing a spark plug, can also cause a separation in this carbon core. You can't see it, but you'll know it when a cylinder isn't firing or misfiring badly.
The Ferro-Spiral wire is used by racing people because it combines a stronger spark with added electrical interferance suppression. It is actually a metal wire wound around a Ferri-magnetic core. Electrical interference suppression is enhanced over the carbon core wires because EMI and RFI (Electro-Magnetic and Radio-Frequency Interference) are contained not by shielding which breaks down, but by a magnetic field generated by the spark itself.
Plus, with this type of conductor, resistance is reduced giving you a better spark at the plug with the same amount of energy from the coil.
I know this has taken me awhile but I'm almost there. I will keep you posted.
The OEM plug wires on my Spyder were 8mm so not sure if the original owner had replaced them, but do not think so.
You are correct about the carbon fiber being fairly easy to damage, so looking forward to seeing your finished project. Also curious to see where you found all of your components. If you are planning to sell them, I understand if you do not list all of your resources.
The OEM plug wires on my Spyder were 8mm so not sure if the original owner had replaced them, but do not think so.
You are correct about the carbon fiber being fairly easy to damage, so looking forward to seeing your finished project. Also curious to see where you found all of your components. If you are planning to sell them, I understand if you do not list all of your resources.
I don't mind listing my sources when I get the chance. The trouble is, I have not found 1 resource with everything needed. I have so far had to purchase parts that I will have to throw away to get other parts I need. Once I get it nailed down I hope to be able to buy bulk. Then I can sell kits if someone wants to cut/crimp their own. But you really should have a good, professional crimping tool to get good connections without damaging the wire or terminal.
The OEM plug wires on my Spyder were 8mm so not sure if the original owner had replaced them, but do not think so.
You are correct about the carbon fiber being fairly easy to damage, so looking forward to seeing your finished project. Also curious to see where you found all of your components. If you are planning to sell them, I understand if you do not list all of your resources.
Has any one found good replacement Spark Plug Wires
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Originally Posted by 3Willie
Hindle exhaust, Kewlmetal K&N intake + prefilter, Kuryakyn widow pegs, Kuryakyn grips, Madstad 20in. windshield, Juice Box, 02Modifier, Kewlmetal backrest and carrier, missing air dam, missing belt shield, 1" riser, Kewlmetal handlebar risers,Evoluzione sway bar, Street Magic/Day Runner Pucks, Glo Riders 
