What did you do to your NNBS GMT900 Tahoe/Yukon Today?

[kbuskill]

I’m gonna try those on The Beast. Gotta find them in a colder heat range though because blower. I’m tired of changing the cheap copper NGK’s every few months.

Good luck... I emailed NGK because I was looking at the Ruthenium plug style that they recommend for boosted applications just out of curiosity. When I asked about that style plug for an LS engine they didn't seem to have a plug that fit both LS and boosted.

I even asked them to look up which Ruthenium plug the supercharged ZR-1 Corvette took and they said they don't make one for that application.

These plugs are relatively new on the market and there isn't much info out there on them and they don't seem to make them for every application.

I hope you have better luck finding some than I did. If you do, please post up the info.

 

[Rocket Man]

Good luck... I emailed NGK because I was looking at the Ruthenium plug style that they recommend for boosted applications just out of curiosity. When I asked about that style plug for an LS engine they didn't seem to have a plug that fit both LS and boosted.

I even asked them to look up which Ruthenium plug the supercharged ZR-1 Corvette took and they said they don't make one for that application.

These plugs are relatively new on the market and there isn't much info out there on them and they don't seem to make them for every application.

I hope you have better luck finding some than I did. If you do, please post up the info.

I run the TR6 copper plugs. They aren’t listed for my engine either- heat range is too cold. TR5 is called for. Whippple calls for a TR7 but I found it was running rough and Blackbear said that plug is too cold, use a TR6. Then for iridium the suffix is IX and ruthenium have the AHX suffix. So I ordered the TR6AHX or 92714 is the cross reference number. If you look up the application for my 2002 6.0, NGK calls for the TR5AHX or TR5IX. I’m just ordering one heat range colder.

 

[iamdub]

So is that better for the consumer--us? Performance or even better mileage wise?

Someone started a thread on this a while back and I dug into it just cuz I was (as usual) looking for a productive way to ride the clock.

I may try to find that thread, but my synopsis was that Ruthenium is a much cheaper metal, but comparable in performance to Iridium in this application. So, plug manufacturers could produce plugs that perform as well (allegedly) and sell at the same (or higher) price but profit more since Ruthenium was cheaper.

On our end, I don't think there would be any perceivable difference in performance. And, at that time, they were still so new that there wasn't any real-world consumer feedback. There was only manufacturer "lab test results" with fancy computer-generated pictures of pretty flame propagation. I looked into the Ruthenium metal itself and found that it was considerably softer than Iridium, which made me question it's length of life.

My personal conclusion was that the Platinum and Iridium plugs we run now have all been proven millions of times to perform well past 100K miles so I have no reason to experiment with a new plug, especially if it costs the same. Even if there was a performance gain to be had, I don't see it being anything we'd feel. IMO, stock for stock, if you feel a difference from a simple plug change, your old plugs weren't up to par in the first place.

 

[Tonyrodz]

Someone started a thread on this a while back and I dug into it just cuz I was (as usual) looking for a productive way to ride the clock.

I may try to find that thread, but my synopsis was that Ruthenium is a much cheaper metal, but comparable in performance to Iridium in this application. So, plug manufacturers could produce plugs that perform as well (allegedly) and sell at the same (or higher) price but profit more since Ruthenium was cheaper.

On our end, I don't think there would be any perceivable difference in performance. And, at that time, they were still so new that there wasn't any real-world consumer feedback. There was only manufacturer "lab test results" with fancy computer-generated pictures of pretty flame propagation. I looked into the Ruthenium metal itself and found that it was considerably softer than Iridium, which made me question it's length of life.

My personal conclusion was that the Platinum and Iridium plugs we run now have all been proven millions of times to perform well past 100K miles so I have no reason to experiment with a new plug, especially if it costs the same. Even if there was a performance gain to be had, I don't see it being anything we'd feel. IMO, stock for stock, if you feel a difference from a simple plug change, your old plugs weren't up to par in the first place.

Well said

 

[R3cord303]

Does anybody know if there is a way to remove just the crossbars on the roof rack?

 

[iamdub]

Does anybody know if there is a way to remove just the crossbars on the roof rack?

Yup- unbolt one end of both side rails and slide the bars forward and out.

 

[Rocket Man]

Someone started a thread on this a while back and I dug into it just cuz I was (as usual) looking for a productive way to ride the clock.

I may try to find that thread, but my synopsis was that Ruthenium is a much cheaper metal, but comparable in performance to Iridium in this application. So, plug manufacturers could produce plugs that perform as well (allegedly) and sell at the same (or higher) price but profit more since Ruthenium was cheaper.

On our end, I don't think there would be any perceivable difference in performance. And, at that time, they were still so new that there wasn't any real-world consumer feedback. There was only manufacturer "lab test results" with fancy computer-generated pictures of pretty flame propagation. I looked into the Ruthenium metal itself and found that it was considerably softer than Iridium, which made me question it's length of life.

My personal conclusion was that the Platinum and Iridium plugs we run now have all been proven millions of times to perform well past 100K miles so I have no reason to experiment with a new plug, especially if it costs the same. Even if there was a performance gain to be had, I don't see it being anything we'd feel. IMO, stock for stock, if you feel a difference from a simple plug change, your old plugs weren't up to par in the first place.

I doubt anybody will feel any difference between copper, platinum, double platinum, iridium or any other plug when first installed. Longevity is supposedly what the difference is. When platinum plugs came out, they were advertised to last longer than copper ones. Same with iridium. In my experience this is true, at least as far as going from copper to iridium. I never used platinums. And now they say the ruthenium will last longer than any other. And the amount of any of these rare metals is so tiny that it doesn’t account for any difference in manufacturing cost since it’s only the center electrode that’s a ruthenium alloy ( so even this tiny part isn’t pure ruthenium) imo. So now they say these ruthenium plugs last longer that the iridiums and they supposedly have the tests to prove it. They’re about the same price so imo, why not? Did you feel the same when they came out with iridium plugs, that they’re more expensive so you didn’t want to try them since platinum worked fine? BTW I was running the old copper plugs for quite awhile in order to make sure I didn’t need to change heat ranges again and at $2.50 per plug they were cheap to experiment on. But now I know the heat range is correct I’m buying the best plugs they make. The last set lasted me less than 15,000 miles and they’re done. It runs fine once it’s warmed up but cold starts I need to hit the gas a bit in order to keep it running. I’ve never had iridiums last more that 30-40k in my trucks before they start to show signs of being worn. So I’m hoping to get 50k out of this new design. 100k on a set of plugs? Not in my experience but I’m not running the newest generation of engines either and my DD is supercharged as you know and combined with the way I drive, it’s ******* everything.
NGK’s website has more information on the new plugs.

 

[iamdub]

Someone started a thread on this a while back and I dug into it just cuz I was (as usual) looking for a productive way to ride the clock.

I may try to find that thread, but my synopsis was that Ruthenium is a much cheaper metal, but comparable in performance to Iridium in this application. So, plug manufacturers could produce plugs that perform as well (allegedly) and sell at the same (or higher) price but profit more since Ruthenium was cheaper.

On our end, I don't think there would be any perceivable difference in performance. And, at that time, they were still so new that there wasn't any real-world consumer feedback. There was only manufacturer "lab test results" with fancy computer-generated pictures of pretty flame propagation. I looked into the Ruthenium metal itself and found that it was considerably softer than Iridium, which made me question it's length of life.

My personal conclusion was that the Platinum and Iridium plugs we run now have all been proven millions of times to perform well past 100K miles so I have no reason to experiment with a new plug, especially if it costs the same. Even if there was a performance gain to be had, I don't see it being anything we'd feel. IMO, stock for stock, if you feel a difference from a simple plug change, your old plugs weren't up to par in the first place.

Found it. It was Ken (@kbuskill) that started it: https://www.tahoeyukonforum.com/threads/ngk-94567-ruthenium-hx.113584/

 

[R3cord303]

I doubt anybody will feel any difference between copper, platinum, double platinum, iridium or any other plug when first installed. Longevity is supposedly what the difference is. When platinum plugs came out, they were advertised to last longer than copper ones. Same with iridium. In my experience this is true, at least as far as going from copper to iridium. I never used platinums. And now they say the ruthenium will last longer than any other. And the amount of any of these rare metals is so tiny that it doesn’t account for any difference in manufacturing cost since it’s only the center electrode that’s a ruthenium alloy ( so even this tiny part isn’t pure ruthenium) imo. So now they say these ruthenium plugs last longer that the iridiums and they supposedly have the tests to prove it. They’re about the same price so imo, why not? Did you feel the same when they came out with iridium plugs, that they’re more expensive so you didn’t want to try them since platinum worked fine? BTW I was running the old copper plugs for quite awhile in order to make sure I didn’t need to change heat ranges again and at $2.50 per plug they were cheap to experiment on. But now I know the heat range is correct I’m buying the best plugs they make. The last set lasted me less than 15,000 miles and they’re done. It runs fine once it’s warmed up but cold starts I need to hit the gas a bit in order to keep it running. I’ve never had iridiums last more that 30-40k in my trucks before they start to show signs of being worn. So I’m hoping to get 50k out of this new design. 100k on a set of plugs? Not in my experience but I’m not running the newest generation of engines either and my DD is supercharged as you know and combined with the way I drive, it’s ******* everything.
NGK’s website has more information on the new plugs.
View attachment 239773View attachment 239773

The 5.7 hemi in my grandads ram had 200,000 miles on it when he replaced it with a crate motor and supercharged it. I think those had platinums from the factory, and he never once changed the plugs

 

[Rocket Man]

The 5.7 hemi in my grandads ram had 200,000 miles on it when he replaced it with a crate motor and supercharged it. I think those had platinums from the factory, and he never once changed the plugs

Well maybe it’s just me but I notice a difference in how smooth they run waaaay sooner than that lol. Plus I’m of the belief that I want to replace plugs sooner that later especially in aluminum heads so they don’t end up seized in there. But if you want to leave your plugs in for 100-200k, that’s totally your call. These engines tend to run a bit rough at idle anyway so maybe it’s my imagination but mine have sure seemed smoother at idle after a fresh set of plugs, and they’re not an expensive maintenance item.