As long as the internal combustion engine has existed, engineers have been trying to find better ways of igniting the highly combustable mixture of air and gasoline that powers cars. Everything from ...

Whether you service your own ignition or need more troubleshooting savvy for road rallies and cruising, this month's lesson focuses on spark and ignition system basics. Understanding ignition ...

Internal combustion engines are likely to remain in widespread use for some time yet, but it's possible that we may be bidding adieu to that most iconic of engine parts, the spark plug. Researchers ...

A research team replaced the conventional spark-plug ignition of the gasoline engine with a laser-based system, yielding improvements in engine performance and reduced emissions. Despite all the ...

For hot rodders, spark plugs are often nothing more than inspection tools that reveal whether an engine is running too rich, too lean, or just right. Street guys look for a nice tannish-brown tint on ...

Spark plugs are critical components of any gasoline engine, but since they ignite the compressed mixture of fuel and oxygen millions of times during their lifespan, they eventually cease to fire and ...

When building a custom engine combination, it becomes a challenge to choose the right spark plugs, since there are often no factory reference points from which to start. And this is much more than ...

Not every driver knows how often they need to change spark plugs in their car. The frequency is determined by many factors, such as the material from which the center electrode is made, the operating ...

Spark plugs are a mission-critical part of a gasoline engine's ignition system. Without them, there's nothing to ignite the air-fuel mixture in each cylinder. Craig brought 15 years of automotive ...

Like rotating tires or changing oil, replacing spark plugs is a job that can be easily, and inexpensively, done in the confines of your own home. Although they don’t need maintenance as often as the ...

Mazda’s new SkyActiv-X engine will go against every convention you thought you understood about gasoline engines. It’s supercharged, but for efficiency purposes, not to increase power. It has a ...