Denso Iridium TT Spark Plugs

RockAuto now carries the new, technologically advanced Denso Iridium TT (Twin Tip) Spark Plugs. This patented design was first used on OE Denso spark plugs for luxury and performance cars, but now this technology is available to everyone. The unique design literally features two "tips": an iridium center electrode tip, and a platinum ground electrode tip. Unlike conventional plugs with large center and ground electrodes that increase “quenching” of the explosion (meaning the spark explosion is restricted), the Twin Tips allow for an omnidirectional explosion with minimal quenching.

FREE Carlisle Show Tickets

Due to overwhelming response, we are out of free Carlisle Car Show tickets. Thank you for your interest!

Would you like to attend one of these Carlisle Car Shows?

• Winter AutoFest – Feb. 19-22 (Festival Park, Zephyrhills, FL)
• Spring Carlisle – April 22-26
• Import & Kit Nationals – May 15-17
• Ford Nationals – June 5-7
• GM Nationals – June 26-28
• Chrysler Nationals – July 10-12
• Performance & Style – July 17-19
• Truck Nationals – August 7-9
• Bloomsburg Nationals – August 14-16 (Bloomsburg, PA Fairgrounds)
• Corvettes at Carlisle – August 28-30
• Fall Carlisle – September 30-October 4
• Fall Florida AutoFest – November 12-15 (Sun ‘n Fun, Lakeland, FL)

RockAuto has a limited number of free tickets available for customers. Tickets are valid for any of the Carlisle events listed above. If you have purchased parts in the last twelve months and would like up to two free tickets, please fill out this form completely and accurately. Tickets will be given away on a first-come, first-served basis. Limit of two tickets per household. All events are held at the Carlisle, Pennsylvania Fairgrounds unless otherwise noted. We will notify and mail tickets to the recipients.

Forum of the Month

Rock crawling, 4x4s and off-road racing from the Rubicon Trail and beyond! Find it all at Pirate4x4.com, a website dedicated to off-roading. Find topics concerning brand specific tech, general tech, competition and event information. Plus, land use and trails discussions specifically for your region! Pirate4x4 has tech, forums, a photo gallery and more. If you are an off-roading enthusiast, what are you waiting for? Register today and get involved!

Repair Mistakes & Blunders

Back in the early 1980s, the in-line 6 cylinder in my sister's old 1972 Ford Maverick was having starting issues: the infamous click-click-click sound of a bad starter. I expected a fairly easy fix though. I swapped out the starter for a rebuilt one, but still the same problem. I brought it back to the parts store figuring it was a bad rebuild, and the guy just gave me another one. I slapped it in and had the same problem again. I checked all the connections. The solenoid on the fender was good, the battery was good, and the alternator was fairly new too. I went back and the store finally bench tested it and it was good. So, back home I went.

A neighborhood hot rodder stopped by and confirmed all should have been good with my repair. That motor head was dumbfounded too.

My dad came out to inspect our lack of progress. He leaned on the battery cable while peering into the engine bay. Would you believe, when he leaned on the battery cable, the insulation cracked and a stream of rust poured out! The problem ended up being a rusty battery cable that looked fine from the outside.

The good old days...

Charlie in New York

Tell us about your most infamous auto repair blunder or unconventional fix. Use your woe to help others avoid similar mistakes or share off-the-wall solutions that worked (at least for a while!). Please e-mail your story to flamur@rockauto.com. Include your mailing address and if you would like a RockAuto T-Shirt (please let us know your shirt size) or Hat if we publish your story. See the T-Shirts and Hats under Tools & Universal Parts in the catalog. The story will be credited using only your first name and your vague geographic location (state, province, country, continent, etc.) so you can remain semi-anonymous!

Automotive Trivia

GM's Saturn division built unique cars when it was first founded in the 1980s. After the turn of the century, Saturn began selling re-badged GM vehicles sometimes pieced together with diverse parts. The V6 engine in the 2004 to 2007 Saturn Vue was built by which manufacturer?

A. Daihatsu
B. Honda
C. Saab


Answer below

Don't Forget the Basics

Every few months, I notice a small plastic bag sitting on my workbench. I peer inside and remind myself that the bag contains the original oil filter off my Dodge Challenger. This Dodge is the only truly new car I have ever owned. It is the first car in my family’s fleet built this century. It is my first purple car. This is a special car, but I am not sentimentally keeping its first oil filter as if it were a baby’s first pair of shoes. I keep the old oil filter to remind myself to avoid forgetting the basics when doing any repair.

The late model Challengers look great from below. The drivetrain, suspension and exhaust are nicely laid out. I was marveling at all that mechanical beauty during the first oil change and almost did not notice that the gasket had pulled off the old oil filter and was still stuck on the engine.

The Challenger’s filter is nothing exotic. Numerous engines built since the 1990s use the same filter part numbers (Fram PH2, WIX 57899, Motorcraft FL820S…). I know to make sure the old filter’s gasket is still on the filter, just like I know to lubricate the new filter’s gasket. However, in 30+ years of doing oil changes on my family’s cars, I have never had a gasket pull off an old oil filter. I tend to stop watching closely for things that do not happen. I nearly had the new filter completely tightened before I noticed there was something odd about the Dodge’s original filter.

A fingernail was the only tool I needed to pry the old gasket off the engine, but if I had not noticed it, then the 1,500+ mile (2,400 km) road trip I was preparing for probably would have been spoiled by an oil leak. What kind of role model would I be for my kids if I had to say, “Sorry everyone, I forgot how to do a proper oil change. Wait here while I hike off in search of a quart or two of 0W-40 oil for the babied car I don’t let you eat food in.”

It is easy to forget to double-check the basics when doing an easy repair for the umpteenth time. It is also easy to forget the basics when finishing up after a complex repair. There was the time I let my wife drive off in her Ford Tempo without a radiator cap. (Not environmentally friendly, but it was winter and the indestructible Tempo hardly noticed.) There was the brake job on a niece’s Ford Focus that soon led to a new wheel hub. (I will not name the specific niece or other extended family members responsible for that brake job and the loose lug nuts.) Maybe the Challenger’s old oil filter is the reminder I leave on the workbench because it had such an easy happy ending!

Tom Taylor,
RockAuto.com


To read more of Tom's articles, click this link and choose from story titles on the Newsletter Archives page.

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