Well, here’s the skinny. Same road I’ve used for previous G-Tech 0-60 runs, car the same except for the Torquemaster plugs. A little hotter (94 degrees) and about the same level of fuel as last set of runs, on July 27.

One thing that I did forget to do was to reset the ecu – which Mean Gene did do for his dyno tests (mental lapse, kicking myself for forgetting). The reset couldn’t hurt and could have helped, last reset was about 2 weeks and 400 miles of city driving ago – it’s due again now.

The July 27 runs yielded 6.18, 6.23, and 6.26, for an average of 6.223.
The 3 runs today resulted in 6.16, 6.22, and 6.25, for an average of 6.210.

So … there was a marginal improvement in each run and therefore the average as well. A cooler day and resetting the ecu would have to help (again, marginally).

I do think it idles and accelerates more smoothly – I THOUGHT I could feel an improvement in acceleration – but I don’t believe that even my ultra-sensitive butt-o-meter can detect .01 difference, so that was apparently wishful thinking.

It does feel like it pulls harder in the mid range – the low end is where my car is lacking, and why I’m not getting sub 6 second 0-60 times – like I think I should be getting.

Are they worth it? If you don’t expect too much, or if you and the guy down the street are neck and neck when you drag – this might be enough to put a half-car length on him in a quarter. Can’t expect much out of 6.5 horsepower.

That’s my story an I’m sticking to it.

 

So $100 for one hundredth of a second off 0-60? (That would be $10,000 to improve by 1 second, hehe.)

Hmmm... not what I'd call value (especially given the time and effort to replace plugs too), so at this point I'm ok with not having bought in.

 

garnet,

Your stock 0-60 seems to be a little bit slow. What rims do you have?

If I use brake technique, the best run is 5.7 second (GTech). I still have not installed mine which reminds me that be sure to run 0-60 before installation.

 

$10K/sec. does seem a bit steep doesn’t it? No problem, I’ll just sell off 100,000 shares of Enron that I was gonna use for toilet paper. You’re right Bit, not a good return on investment from a performance standpoint.

Actually, I’m not bummed so much by the lack of measurable improvement from the plugs, I do think it idles better and is smoother – so I’ll just have to be satisfied with that.

The thing that I AM bummed about is my poor 0-60 time in general. It brings up the issue of wheels again. I even went back and re-read the thread I posted after going to the 19” wheels in July. Unfortunately, I hadn’t G-Teched the car with the stock 17’s and didn’t have an accurate baseline for comparison – it was just SO noticeable. The conclusion of the contributors to that subject was that the wheels cost .3 to .6 sec. in 0-60 times. IS2000 had a similar experience when going to 18’s. Now, looking at RA’s 5.7, I’m more pissed than ever.

RA, what performance mods and wheels are you running?

 

installed my new TM plugs today. it's a little hairy w/ the 2 in towards the rear of the engine...tough to get to. but, some patience and a couple of small extensions put together got the job done.

i didn't notice any improvements off the line... however, when moving and then flooring it, there is a dramatic difference. it feels (and i sware it sounds) more like a race car during this maneuver. the torque difference is noticeable and puts a smile on my face.

furthermore, it really seemed to smooth out the 'roar' of power present before the upgrade. in my opnion, when floored while moving, the 'jumpiness' of the launch was a bit overdramatic...(fun, yes). these plugs smoothed that out and turned the roar into a scream.

bottom line, she's faster, and it cost my about as much as a friday night date. my vote is 10 out of 10 for the $100 upgrade.

 

garnet:

bone stock with another person in the car.

 

Guyz - Resetting the ECU seems to be critical anytime U make an engine/electronics mod. I know someone ( Bit? ) was told that it takes 200 miles for the ECU to "learn" the new mod & adapt itself to it. My Lexus tech told me that it's closer to 100 miles plus I read in a recent Off Road magazine that they had a TRD supercharger installed on their project Tacoma & they were told not too expect much for 100 miles as well. According to the mag, throttle response got crisper & stronger around that 100 mile mark. So whether it's 100 or 200 miles, just be sure & do it periodically & definitely after a modification!

 

is the ecu reset by unhooking the battery for about 15 minutes?

 

You can do it that way or pull the ECU fuse for 5 mins or so.

Here are a couple of links on the subject


Second Link

 

appreciate it......i didn't know about resetting the ecu for performance reasons.

 

No problem, need to go do it myself.

Got my TM plugs in and no 'miracle occurs', BUT the idle is definitely smoother (worth the $100 IMO) and butt-ometer senses a tiny bit more midrange. I haven't reset my ECU yet.

 

I installed my TM's this weekend and have about 150 miles on them. Seems to be a bit more responsive and I definitely noticed the RPM smoothing...especially on top. For a $100 it's worth it, you'll need to replace ur plugs eventually so why not go with the TMs!!

Peace

 

I'm struggling to understand how the idle can be smoother. When my car idles, my tach is rock solid steady, I almost can't hear the engine except for the exhaust, so it's hard for me to understand what is meant here by 'smoother'.

 

Bit - must be because you're sitting in yours with the smooth idle and I'm sitting in mine with (formerly) the rougher idle...

Like many people here, my GS sometimes exhibits a 'rough idle', especially noticable at a stops when the car is already running. It's never been anything that worried me much (because i knew others had it too), but a minor annoyance to the usually sikly smooth running. Not a stuttering or stall, just a little rough. IMO RPMs dip a little below ideal for the engine. There have been a number of threads thinking the TPS can fix this problem, etc. If you don't have it (yet), consider yourself lucky!

 

I guess it's also cause my GS is newer. I also see people talking a lot about those rusting center rotor pieces on the rear and that doesn't happen on mine. I guess, like on the IS, they fixed it on the GS by the time I got mine.

Anyway, fingers crossed hopefully I won't have a rough idle at any point.

Glad the plugs are working out for everyone anyway, that's great!