How old do these plugs look?

[jayjr1105]

Just bought a 2017 pilot and there are some gaps in the Carfax report but lots of pages of service records overall. The car has 125K on the clock and I pulled some plugs last night to see if they were done at 100K. To me it looks like they were done but wanted to get some other opinions. An additional clue was that their crush washers weren't very crushed meaning whoever did the new plugs didn't torque down to 17ft lbs.

Would you say these plugs have 25K on them or 125K?

 

[SC Maintenance]

One of those numbers is likely a date code. M could be the year? You would need their Julian calendar.

Or M could be December.


They look well used but pretty good.

 

[thastinger]

Maybe a bit more than 25k, maybe they had them done early, like at 80K(ish), but looks like they have been changed.

 

[PF52]

Having removed them already, I'd just go ahead and replace them with new ones, if it was my vehicle. That way you'd know for sure.

Plus, I'm not a fan of re-using crush washers; I'll re-install the GM-style conical-seat plugs over and over again if necessary, but re-installing something with a crush washer always makes me worry it will come loose eventually.

 

[jayjr1105]

Having removed them already, I'd just go ahead and replace them with new ones, if it was my vehicle. That way you'd know for sure.

Plus, I'm not a fan of re-using crush washers; I'll re-install the GM-style conical-seat plugs over and over again if necessary, but re-installing something with a crush washer always makes me worry it will come loose eventually.

I just removed a couple of the front bank ones which are very easy to access. Agree about the crush washers but they weren't crushed yet so I'm comfortable reusing them. I'd rather not replace the 6 if they don't need it, especially since they used OEM laser iridiums which aren't cheap.

 

[zzyzzx]

Those plugs look pretty good. I would be curious as to the measured gap vs specified gap as an additional indication of wear.

 

[Urshurak776]

Check gap and roll. Agree with others, they were probably changed from original, but more than 25K ago.

 

[FZ1]

Having removed them already, I'd just go ahead and replace them with new ones, if it was my vehicle. That way you'd know for sure.

Plus, I'm not a fan of re-using crush washers; I'll re-install the GM-style conical-seat plugs over and over again if necessary, but re-installing something with a crush washer always makes me worry it will come loose eventually.

This^^^^^^^^^. I don't care about plug wear; I care about plug seize/strip. I always put new plugs back in.

 

[ARCOgraphite]

Do they have factory ink dot on the end of the terminal?

I am unsure if HONDA does this with COP ignition.

Looks like they were run down but never tightened. Scary!

Since the gaskets were not crushed you could used them again if the gaps are in spec.
I would prefer new (and not amazon faux ngk !)

 

[50yr Street Mech]

If their out, put new ones in. Make sure their gapped to spec and torqued to spec. Do not use the iridium to gap new iridium plugs. They will crack. Very brittle metal. Use a vice grip on ground electrode and bend, without touching iridium. If too loose, just tap ground electrode on a vice a bit to shorten gap. Put the new ones in and you'll be good for 100,000-150,000 miles. Use OEM plugs. Job complete.

 

[jayjr1105]

Do they have factory ink dot on the end of the terminal?

I am unsure if HONDA does this with COP ignition.

I will check later.

 

[TomYoung]

To me, those plugs look like they have a far too large gap. Your comment on the plugs being loose actually makes me wonder (no offense intended) if you are not familiar with the appropriate torque on a plug. it is 16 lb-ft, and I have seen many people overtorque them. It is not that tight.

Further, beyond the gap, the burn/discoloration is not good. I think these could easily be original plugs, don't think they are in good condition, and would certainly encourage you to change them to the in-spec, spanking new iridium plugs from NGK or Denso. A well maintained Pilot with 125,000 can go twice that without any extreme action.

While the hood is open, you should try to figure out if the timing belt was done somewhere in the 90,000 - 105,000 mile window. I learned the hard way many years ago that this is not optional. If you are not sure, at 125,000 miles it needs to be done.

You've also got some fluids (trans, rear diff, transfer case) that get put off and are due or past due.

 

[jayjr1105]

To me, those plugs look like they have a far too large gap. Your comment on the plugs being loose actually makes me wonder (no offense intended) if you are not familiar with the appropriate torque on a plug. it is 16 lb-ft, and I have seen many people overtorque them. It is not that tight.

Further, beyond the gap, the burn/discoloration is not good. I think these could easily be original plugs, don't think they are in good condition, and would certainly encourage you to change them to the in-spec, spanking new iridium plugs from NGK or Denso. A well maintained Pilot with 125,000 can go twice that without any extreme action.

While the hood is open, you should try to figure out if the timing belt was done somewhere in the 90,000 - 105,000 mile window. I learned the hard way many years ago that this is not optional. If you are not sure, at 125,000 miles it needs to be done.

You've also got some fluids (trans, rear diff, transfer case) that get put off and are due or past due.

Check the cars in my sig, very familiar with Honda V6's. I wasn't the person who installed these. Since it's a new car, I pulled a plug to check on it. I torque plugs to spec when I can.

I also read somewhere you can email NGK with that code stamped on the nut and they can trace it like a lot number.