Welcome to the North American Subaru Impreza Owners Club Friday March 29, 2024
Home Forums Images WikiNASIOC Products Store Modifications Upgrade Garage
NASIOC
Go Back   NASIOC > NASIOC Technical > Engine Management & Tuning

Welcome to NASIOC - The world's largest online community for Subaru enthusiasts!
Welcome to the NASIOC.com Subaru forum.

You are currently viewing our forum as a guest, which gives you limited access to view most discussions and access our other features. By joining our community, free of charge, you will have access to post topics, communicate privately with other members (PM), respond to polls, upload content and access many other special features. Registration is free, fast and simple, so please join our community today!

If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact us.







* As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. 
* Registered users of the site do not see these ads. 
Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 06-06-2013, 12:20 PM   #1
LoveMyNewSoob
Scooby Newbie
 
Member#: 323213
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Atlanta
Vehicle:
2009 WRX Sti hatch
Spark Silver

Default Just Changed Plugs - Now hesitation/sound WOT

I just replaced my spark plugs with NGK LFR6AIX-11 . When I cranked the car after putting them in everything seemed fine. Yesterday while on the interstate I tried to pass someone in Sport # mode at about 60mph. Stepped on the gas and got this wired kind of sound and no power. (sounds kind of like if you try to play a didgeridoo and end up just blowing air through). I looked around and found some info, but wanted to ask anyway. One forum I read that any plug with the "-11" is wrong. The only mod so far is a catback (Accessport should arrive in the mail today ). I also read that going one step colder is not recommended without mods. Would this be the reason? (FYI, these are the plugs that Advance Auto pulled in thier system).
Normal driving is fine, idle seems fine, pulls in 1st and 2nd seem fine too.

Any thoughts on what might be happening? Where to look? Loading stage 1 now?

Thanks...be gentle...still learning the car'

whoops, forgot to add that when the car hesitates/sputter and makes the sound, the check engine starts flahsing and the throttle mode goes back to Sport mode. After a few seconds everything returns to normal.
* Registered users of the site do not see these ads.

Last edited by LoveMyNewSoob; 06-12-2013 at 10:39 AM.
LoveMyNewSoob is offline   Reply With Quote
Sponsored Links
* Registered users of the site do not see these ads.
Old 06-06-2013, 01:36 PM   #2
cosseywrx
Scooby Specialist
 
Member#: 276443
Join Date: Mar 2011
Chapter/Region: TXIC
Location: Abilene, TX
Vehicle:
2005 2.1 stroker WRX
OBP

Default

If thats not the stock plug then i would go back to it. At stg 1 there is zero need for an aftermarket or step colder plug if that is one?
cosseywrx is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-06-2013, 01:49 PM   #3
coalslaw
Scooby Specialist
 
Member#: 324808
Join Date: Jul 2012
Chapter/Region: E. Canada
Location: Toronto, canada
Vehicle:
2006 IWL Stg2
OBP

Default

so you dont have a aftermarket downpipe right? if so, then you;re looking at stage 1 flash at the most from your accessport. give it some time for the motor to re-adjust itself with new spark plugs. dont go beating on right away. jeez!
coalslaw is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-06-2013, 01:56 PM   #4
LoveMyNewSoob
Scooby Newbie
 
Member#: 323213
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Atlanta
Vehicle:
2009 WRX Sti hatch
Spark Silver

Default

hahaha...that might be my problem.

I don't have the AP yet, but yes, it will just be a stage 1.

Quote:
Originally Posted by coalslaw View Post
so you dont have a aftermarket downpipe right? if so, then you;re looking at stage 1 flash at the most from your accessport. give it some time for the motor to re-adjust itself with new spark plugs. dont go beating on right away. jeez!
LoveMyNewSoob is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-06-2013, 01:57 PM   #5
coalslaw
Scooby Specialist
 
Member#: 324808
Join Date: Jul 2012
Chapter/Region: E. Canada
Location: Toronto, canada
Vehicle:
2006 IWL Stg2
OBP

Default

what did u torque your plugs at? whats the gapping?
coalslaw is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-06-2013, 02:06 PM   #6
LoveMyNewSoob
Scooby Newbie
 
Member#: 323213
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Atlanta
Vehicle:
2009 WRX Sti hatch
Spark Silver

Default

hand tightend, then half a turn torque. gapped .030 per NGK.
I understand this may be an issue after reading some posts. This was my usual process on my old car which I had no issues with. This new car is still a learning process for me.

Quote:
Originally Posted by coalslaw View Post
what did u torque your plugs at? whats the gapping?
LoveMyNewSoob is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-07-2013, 01:09 PM   #7
jaxscuby
Sammo Hung
Moderator
 
Member#: 10613
Join Date: Sep 2001
Chapter/Region: South East
Location: N Fla / S Ga
Vehicle:
2002 USDM WRX
WRB

Default

-11 is for NA non turbo car.

gap should be smaller..0.027-0.029
jaxscuby is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-09-2013, 04:33 PM   #8
LoveMyNewSoob
Scooby Newbie
 
Member#: 323213
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Atlanta
Vehicle:
2009 WRX Sti hatch
Spark Silver

Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by jaxscuby View Post
-11 is for NA non turbo car.

gap should be smaller..0.027-0.029
Really?! They were the only option advanced auto gave me...
LoveMyNewSoob is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-09-2013, 05:29 PM   #9
cosseywrx
Scooby Specialist
 
Member#: 276443
Join Date: Mar 2011
Chapter/Region: TXIC
Location: Abilene, TX
Vehicle:
2005 2.1 stroker WRX
OBP

Default

Heres a lesson for ya. THEY ARE JUST CASHIERS!! nothing else.



Learn your car. Learn your parts
cosseywrx is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-10-2013, 11:20 AM   #10
LoveMyNewSoob
Scooby Newbie
 
Member#: 323213
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Atlanta
Vehicle:
2009 WRX Sti hatch
Spark Silver

Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by cosseywrx View Post
Heres a lesson for ya. THEY ARE JUST CASHIERS!! nothing else.

Learn your car. Learn your parts
Yup, that's what in trying to do so anything informative you can contribute would be appreciated...
LoveMyNewSoob is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-10-2013, 07:46 PM   #11
mechatricity
Scooby Specialist
 
Member#: 290592
Join Date: Aug 2011
Chapter/Region: South East
Location: Charlotte, NC
Vehicle:
15 Outback,
15 WRX 6MT CWP

Default

mechatricity is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-12-2013, 10:38 AM   #12
LoveMyNewSoob
Scooby Newbie
 
Member#: 323213
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Atlanta
Vehicle:
2009 WRX Sti hatch
Spark Silver

Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by mechatricity View Post

Thanks, I had perused that one before. So, are you thinking it is a gapping issue? Wrong spark plug? The sticky says that the plugs I bought would suffice. An earlier poster mentioned the "-11" is for the NA car, is that true? I have searched and not confirmed that.

This weekend I plan to pull the plugs and check the gaps. Would that be enough to be causing the problems I am having?

Again, new to the "performance car" thing so trying to learn as I go. Thank you in advance for your patience and help.
LoveMyNewSoob is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-12-2013, 02:05 PM   #13
LoveMyNewSoob
Scooby Newbie
 
Member#: 323213
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Atlanta
Vehicle:
2009 WRX Sti hatch
Spark Silver

Default

quick update:

I did some more researching around the Spark Plugs sticky and found a link to another post. That post stated that the "-11" on the NGK spark plugs means the gap is .044" (this is also confirmed on the NGK website, though it also says factory gap for part 6619 is .030).
I will not be able to confirm what the gap is on my plugs for sure until this weekend when I pull them out again. Is it unsafe to do a couple hundred miles on these until I can put new ones in?

Thanks again.
LoveMyNewSoob is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-12-2013, 06:50 PM   #14
mechatricity
Scooby Specialist
 
Member#: 290592
Join Date: Aug 2011
Chapter/Region: South East
Location: Charlotte, NC
Vehicle:
15 Outback,
15 WRX 6MT CWP

Default

OK. here's the story on LFR6AIX-11:

Quote:
Back from the dead...

Apparently the -11 suffix does not always indicate a 0.044" gap. It's supposed to mean that, but what happened is NGK built a bunch of 0.030" gap LFR6AIX plugs and mis-labeled them with the -11 suffix (which means 1.1mm, or 0.044"), so they were sold as the LFR6AIX-11. Rather than fix the labeling, they just changed the line-item in their catalog to indicate 0.030" gap. They actually don't make a LFR6AIX plug in 0.030" gap, or at least they're not supposed to. Later plugs were made "correctly" to the -11 spec, with the wider gap, but they failed to edit their own catalog to indicate the change from 0.030" to 0.044". Crazy. So please check the plugs that you get manually before installing!

I've actually purchased the LFR6AIX-11 and measured it myself at 0.030". So these have definitely changed gap depending on build/production run.
I just sent this to NGK:

Quote:
The NGK naming convention seems to conflict with the part recommendation for my car. The Subaru spec'd gap for my plugs is ~.03". You recommend LFR6AIX-11. You publish the gap as .03", but the "-11" indicates a .044" gap. Can you please clarify?
We'll see what they say.

I think the bottom line is, if you're buying LFR6AIX-11, check the gap before installing.

Last edited by mechatricity; 06-12-2013 at 07:12 PM.
mechatricity is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-12-2013, 07:44 PM   #15
LoveMyNewSoob
Scooby Newbie
 
Member#: 323213
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Atlanta
Vehicle:
2009 WRX Sti hatch
Spark Silver

Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by mechatricity View Post
OK. here's the story on LFR6AIX-11:

I just sent this to NGK:

We'll see what they say.

I think the bottom line is, if you're buying LFR6AIX-11, check the gap before installing.
Yeah, thanks for the info and help! I know I should have checked before, but I have never had problems with factory gaps before.
I just picked up the right plugs (SILFR6A) which is gapped at .030. While I was there I had them pull a LFR6AIX-11 and checked the gap at the store... .044.
I am probably going to write NGK too. Advanced auto said I could bring the others back for a refund though

I put about 600 miles on them over the weekend as I went on vacation. Is that gonna cause problems? I stayed out of boost for the most part...
LoveMyNewSoob is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-12-2013, 10:29 PM   #16
danger1138
Scooby Specialist
 
Member#: 279525
Join Date: Apr 2011
Chapter/Region: Tri-State
Location: QUEENS NY
Vehicle:
06 Fxt

Default

Yes as mentioned before the "-11" plugs have larger gaps hence they They are for the N/A subarus since they are not force inducted vehicles
danger1138 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-12-2013, 10:31 PM   #17
danger1138
Scooby Specialist
 
Member#: 279525
Join Date: Apr 2011
Chapter/Region: Tri-State
Location: QUEENS NY
Vehicle:
06 Fxt

Default

Yes the "-11" plugs come pre gapped with a larger gap, hence they are for N/A use.
danger1138 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-13-2013, 09:02 AM   #18
mechatricity
Scooby Specialist
 
Member#: 290592
Join Date: Aug 2011
Chapter/Region: South East
Location: Charlotte, NC
Vehicle:
15 Outback,
15 WRX 6MT CWP

Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by mechatricity View Post
OK. here's the story on LFR6AIX-11:



I just sent this to NGK:



We'll see what they say.

I think the bottom line is, if you're buying LFR6AIX-11, check the gap before installing.
Quote:
Originally Posted by LoveMyNewSoob View Post
Yeah, thanks for the info and help! I know I should have checked before, but I have never had problems with factory gaps before.
I just picked up the right plugs (SILFR6A) which is gapped at .030. While I was there I had them pull a LFR6AIX-11 and checked the gap at the store... .044.
I am probably going to write NGK too. Advanced auto said I could bring the others back for a refund though

I put about 600 miles on them over the weekend as I went on vacation. Is that gonna cause problems? I stayed out of boost for the most part...
Quote:
Originally Posted by danger1138 View Post
Yes as mentioned before the "-11" plugs have larger gaps hence they They are for the N/A subarus since they are not force inducted vehicles
Quote:
Originally Posted by danger1138 View Post
Yes the "-11" plugs come pre gapped with a larger gap, hence they are for N/A use.
got a response from NGK, and unsurprisingly, the catalog is wrong:

Quote:
Hello,

This plug [LFR6AIX-11] will definitely come out pre-gapped at 0.044". Please gap it down to 0.030".


Best Regards,

Jason Norwood
NGK Spark Plugs ( USA) Inc.
Technical Services Administrator - Aftermarket Division
46929 Magellan Drive
Wixom, MI 48393
Office: (248)-926-7107
Fax: (248)-926-6938
Email: [email protected]
ASE Certified
Ngksparkplugs.com
mechatricity is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-13-2013, 09:26 AM   #19
mechatricity
Scooby Specialist
 
Member#: 290592
Join Date: Aug 2011
Chapter/Region: South East
Location: Charlotte, NC
Vehicle:
15 Outback,
15 WRX 6MT CWP

Default

I just got another response from NGK re: SILFR6A:

Quote:
Hello,

I do not show that this is the correct plug. I show that the OEM plug we provided at time of build was the ILFR6B.


Best Regards,

Jason Norwood
mechatricity is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-13-2013, 10:29 AM   #20
LoveMyNewSoob
Scooby Newbie
 
Member#: 323213
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Atlanta
Vehicle:
2009 WRX Sti hatch
Spark Silver

Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by mechatricity View Post
got a response from NGK, and unsurprisingly, the catalog is wrong:

well, i am not very impressed with all of this. I got a different response from Jason...


Hello,

I am sorry that you had this issue with this plug in the Subaru. Unfortunately this plug does not come out pre-gapped as it is not the OEM plug. The Laser series will come out pre-gapped as it is the OEM plug that Subaru installed in the engine as EOM equipment.

[FONT='Arial','sans-serif'][/font]
[FONT='Arial','sans-serif']Best Regards,[/font]
[FONT='Arial','sans-serif'][/font]
[FONT='Arial','sans-serif']Jason Norwood[/font]
[FONT='Arial','sans-serif']NGK Spark Plugs ( USA) Inc.[/font]
[FONT='Arial','sans-serif']Technical Services Administrator – Aftermarket Division[/font]
[FONT='Arial','sans-serif']46929 Magellan Drive[/font]
[FONT='Arial','sans-serif']Wixom, MI 48393[/font]
[FONT='Arial','sans-serif']Office: (248)-926-7107[/font]
[FONT='Arial','sans-serif']Fax: (248)-926-6938[/font]
[FONT='Arial','sans-serif']Email[/font]: [email protected]
ASE Certified
Ngksparkplugs.com
LoveMyNewSoob is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-13-2013, 10:30 AM   #21
LoveMyNewSoob
Scooby Newbie
 
Member#: 323213
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Atlanta
Vehicle:
2009 WRX Sti hatch
Spark Silver

Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by mechatricity View Post
I just got another response from NGK re: SILFR6A:

So he is saying that the SILFR6A is not the right plug either!?!? Maybe that is for your car/year? That numbers is actually what is listed in my manual, so that is what I am going with. Should have them in this weekend.
LoveMyNewSoob is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-13-2013, 10:37 AM   #22
LoveMyNewSoob
Scooby Newbie
 
Member#: 323213
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Atlanta
Vehicle:
2009 WRX Sti hatch
Spark Silver

Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by mechatricity View Post
got a response from NGK, and unsurprisingly, the catalog is wrong:

It is also interesting that Jason asks you to "please gap a .044 plug down to .030" when their website clearly states they don't recommend an adjustment larger than .008 either way: http://www.ngksparkplugs.com/tech_su...p.asp?mode=nml

If my calculator is correct that would be almost twice the recommended adjustment.
LoveMyNewSoob is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-13-2013, 11:05 AM   #23
mechatricity
Scooby Specialist
 
Member#: 290592
Join Date: Aug 2011
Chapter/Region: South East
Location: Charlotte, NC
Vehicle:
15 Outback,
15 WRX 6MT CWP

Default

I would go with what your manual says. I can't figure out what the difference is between ILFR6A and B.

I forgot about the .008 thing. I should have called him out on it.
mechatricity is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-13-2013, 12:30 PM   #24
LoveMyNewSoob
Scooby Newbie
 
Member#: 323213
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Atlanta
Vehicle:
2009 WRX Sti hatch
Spark Silver

Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by mechatricity View Post
I would go with what your manual says. I can't figure out what the difference is between ILFR6A and B.

I forgot about the .008 thing. I should have called him out on it.

Yeah, I did. He is sending me two sets of new plugs (the right ones).
Thanks again for all your help and info. Lesson learned for checking plug gaps
LoveMyNewSoob is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-14-2013, 05:47 PM   #25
LoveMyNewSoob
Scooby Newbie
 
Member#: 323213
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Atlanta
Vehicle:
2009 WRX Sti hatch
Spark Silver

Default

Update:


Just changed the plugs out to the correct ones and my baby is back!!! Woohoo!
Autozone gave me my money back for the wrong plugs too.
And...I just went stage 1! Fun times!!
LoveMyNewSoob is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump

All times are GMT -4. The time now is 04:11 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.7.0
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Powered by Searchlight © 2024 Axivo Inc.
Copyright ©1999 - 2019, North American Subaru Impreza Owners Club, Inc.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission
Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.