1.4 16v spark plugs?

[Ibiza_19]

I think my coilpacks needs changing and while im there, im going to change the spark plugs as they havent been done for a few years but i dont know which plugs are right for my car (100hp BBZ engine code)

The haynes manaul says its NGK BKUR 6ET-10 but they are quite expensive (OPIE oils £23.25 for 4)

Checked out eurocarparts with my reg and it has a lot of other options:

NGK 2397 £6.69
NGK LFR6C-11 £6.59
Beru / Bosch 0 242 235 668 FR 7 LDC+ £3.59
Bosch 0 242 232 502 £5.09
Denso K20PBR-S10 £5.79
Denso K20TT £5.59

I think the 2397 are the same as the haynes manual one but im not sure.

Which ones would fit my car?

Cheers in advance

 

[Legojon]

Um, I assume you want ECP because they are cheaper? But you do realise that's price for a single plug right? You could also try https://www.gsparkplug.com/ which is where I get mine from.

 

[Ibiza_19]

Um, I assume you want ECP because they are cheaper? But you do realise that's price for a single plug right? You could also try https://www.gsparkplug.com/ which is where I get mine from.

lol that makes sense wondering why they were so cheap. I was looking at the Fitted Quantity section on ecp as it says 4.

had a look at https://www.gsparkplug.com/ and it comes back with 4700 compatible spark plugs (I think their search/ filter function is a bit naffed)

fleabay have got the ngk 2397 ones for £3 each. Thats not bad right? I'm just looking for OEM ones not high performance plugs
(This is my 1st time with anything spark plug related)

 

[Legojon]

lol that makes sense wondering why they were so cheap. I was looking at the Fitted Quantity section on ecp as it says 4.

had a look at https://www.gsparkplug.com/ and it comes back with 4700 compatible spark plugs (I think their search/ filter function is a bit naffed)

fleabay have got the ngk 2397 ones for £3 each. Thats not bad right? I'm just looking for OEM ones not high performance plugs
(This is my 1st time with anything spark plug related)

Haha, that's caught me out before. It was NGK 2397 right? I'd just check they are the correct Haynes no. Um, I'd watch out for ebay, there are a few fake plugs floating round. I'd rather pay the extra 69p each and save my engine.
https://www.gsparkplug.com/1x-ngk-copper-core-spark-plug-bkur6et-10-bkur6et10-2397.html

 

[Ibiza_19]

Haha, that's caught me out before. It was NGK 2397 right? I'd just check they are the correct Haynes no. Um, I'd watch out for ebay, there are a few fake plugs floating round. I'd rather pay the extra 69p each and save my engine.
https://www.gsparkplug.com/1x-ngk-copper-core-spark-plug-bkur6et-10-bkur6et10-2397.html

Fair point. I'll go for the gsparkplug ones, btw thanks for the link.

 

[Crossthreaded]

Do you have a branch of TPS near you? Trade Parts Specialists is a VW owned subsidiary company (I think?). I buy most of the service items and parts for our SEAT and Skoda family vehicles from their branch here in Edinburgh. They do genuine VAG parts and alternatives (for instance Quantum oils - which are actually Fuchs) if you need to economise. They are not absolutely the cheapest, but pretty good, and I like the fact that everything I've bought from them has been very good quality and approved by VAG.

 

[RUM4MO]

Do you have a branch of TPS near you? Trade Parts Specialists is a VW owned subsidiary company (I think?). I buy most of the service items and parts for our SEAT and Skoda family vehicles from their branch here in Edinburgh. They do genuine VAG parts and alternatives (for instance Quantum oils - which are actually Fuchs) if you need to economise. They are not absolutely the cheapest, but pretty good, and I like the fact that everything I've bought from them has been very good quality and approved by VAG.

Hummmm, out of curiosity, I think that you said that you used to be in the motor trade, so is that why TPS are willing to serve you, or do you feel that you are just walking in there like "joe public" and they are serving you without question? I'm asking because I've always shy'd away from buying from them in case I got told "run along there old man, this is not for you", I have not completely located where they are, but finding that out would be very easy if I knew that I had a good chance of getting served.

Edit:- on the subject of Quantum, I was of the impression that Quantum was VW UK's brand for aftermarket parts only, so probably not the same elsewhere in Europe, Fuchs used to be the preferred supplier of all engine oils and maybe some other lubricants to VW Group engine plants, they lost that contract I think, for some years to Castrol and that was why Castrol is shown on the engine oil fill cover, but now it is back with Fuchs, SEAT in Spain tended to list a Spanish oil company on the engine oil fill cover, Repsol. Now, Quantum oils will be coming from whoever won the latest bid to supply the Quantum contract - and that will change from period to period.

 

[RUM4MO]

OP, back to your question "which plugs to use?" I always use NGK plugs as I've found that VW Group tend to fit them at the engine plants, as to which type is for your BBZ, why not look up the NGK website, that will give the correct answer and also give you the four digit trade pack so that you will have both the individual plug identification and the trade package number. I agree that using an online trader that specialises in selling plugs is the best plan - unless you can find someone selling off NOS genuine VW Group branded NGK plugs, either due to a dealership closing down or VW Group changing the packaging style. So to do that properly, you would be the VW Group part number for these NGK plugs + trade pack number + plug type/version. The price you rejected as being too expensive did not seem to be so for me - though maybe using another source would save you even more.

Edit:- typically the trade pack number is for a pack of 4 plugs.

 

[Crossthreaded]

Hummmm, out of curiosity, I think that you said that you used to be in the motor trade, so is that why TPS are willing to serve you, or do you feel that you are just walking in there like "joe public" and they are serving you without question? I'm asking because I've always shy'd away from buying from them in case I got told "run along there old man, this is not for you", I have not completely located where they are, but finding that out would be very easy if I knew that I had a good chance of getting served.

Never been a problem up here at the Edinburgh branch. Never been asked for any sort of id. I suppose I tend to call things by their right names and (hopefully) come across as knowing what I'm talking about. Of course when working in the workshop you don't yourself get the spares so it's not as if I was a "known face". First time, harbouring similar fears to you, I went in my dirty old overalls! I hate to be embarrassed! but need not have feared, they were fine. There have been a couple of occasions where I've needed their guidance and they were very helpful - For instance the old Cordoba Vario I ran for around 19 years, The last time I decided to change the gearbox oil they supplied me with some very runny watery stuff, unlike the previous time when what went back in looked very much like what came out. I went back in person with the old and new oils and questioned them about it. Thank goodness we have 2 cars as it's a trip right across town. The fellow behind the counter was very helpful and brought the service bulletin (if that's what it was called) to the counter and let me read it. This new fluid - I hesitate to call it oil - was indeed now recommended. I used it, with some trepidation I can tell you, but all was ok. The gear change action was delightfully light compared to before with maybe, maybe? a very slight increase in gear whine, maybe just me being overly sensitive though? It ran like that for another 3 years before we finally (and with considerable regret) parted company.

So I would encourage you to give them a try. After all what's the worst that can happen? I think also that this "trade only" mentality is tending to die out quite a bit now. - very few will turn away ready money these days - In fact up here the only one I know who are quite "sticky" about it are Dingbro. I think some of the other factoring businesses also have a two tier pricing structure where there is one price for trade and another for "Joe", as you call him. I've had experience of that in two of the biggest ones up here when I've overheard telephone conversations. Mind you their "Joe Bloggs" prices are still better by a fair margin that retail and I don't have an issue with the trade getting a wee bit more off - It's all part of their livelihood after all. I've not seen any evidence of this at SRS where I go for quite a bit of my "other makes" stuff though, mind you I am a "weel kent" face there having used them for many years now, ever since my friend's business Edinburgh Motor Factors unfortunately had to close due to his ill health

 

[Crossthreaded]

Never been a problem up here at the Edinburgh branch. Never been asked for any sort of id. I suppose I tend to call things by their right names and (hopefully) come across as knowing what I'm talking about. Of course when working in the workshop you don't yourself get the spares so it's not as if I was a "known face". First time, harbouring similar fears to you, I went in my dirty old overalls! I hate to be embarrassed! but need not have feared, they were fine. There have been a couple of occasions where I've needed their guidance and they were very helpful - For instance the old Cordoba Vario I ran for around 19 years, The last time I decided to change the gearbox oil they supplied me with some very runny watery stuff, unlike the previous time when what went back in looked very much like what came out. I went back in person with the old and new oils and questioned them about it. Thank goodness we have 2 cars as it's a trip right across town. The fellow behind the counter was very helpful and brought the service bulletin (if that's what it was called) to the counter and let me read it. This new fluid - I hesitate to call it oil - was indeed now recommended. I used it, with some trepidation I can tell you, but all was ok. The gear change action was delightfully light compared to before with maybe, maybe? a very slight increase in gear whine, maybe just me being overly sensitive though? It ran like that for another 3 years before we finally (and with considerable regret) parted company.

So I would encourage you to give them a try. After all what's the worst that can happen? I think also that this "trade only" mentality is tending to die out quite a bit now. - very few will turn away ready money these days - In fact up here the only one I know who are quite "sticky" about it are Dingbro. I think some of the other factoring businesses also have a two tier pricing structure where there is one price for trade and another for "Joe", as you call him. I've had experience of that in two of the biggest ones up here when I've overheard telephone conversations. Mind you their "Joe Bloggs" prices are still better by a fair margin that retail and I don't have an issue with the trade getting a wee bit more off - It's all part of their livelihood after all. I've not seen any evidence of this at SRS where I go for quite a bit of my "other makes" stuff though, mind you I am a "weel kent" face there having used them for many years now, ever since my friend's business Edinburgh Motor Factors unfortunately had to close due to his ill health

PS to this.

I find TPS will always suggest the best quality genuine VAG part first and in many instances that's exactly what I want. It wasn't for some time that I discovered that there is often/sometimes a cheaper alternative they can supply. I can't recall what I've bought from them in this way but I know I have (I'm pleading a forgetful, nearly 73 year old memory here) and never had a problem with anything. The point being that I think you have to ask if there is a cheaper alternative to what he's (or she) suggesting.

 

[RUM4MO]

That sounds promising, I'd probable slip into an old boiler suit just in case though. I've always asked for VW Group parts by their correct part number and invariably need parts ordering in - getting numbers from a good online VW Group parts listing. There is a very helpful guy on most VW Group motoring forums that gives good prices, he works in parts at a big VW Group multi marque company. He got binned from the Audi motoring forum that I am on so that a favourite big main Audi dealership got their parts man in who, the forum claimed gave discount, but I discovered that maybe he did at the beginning, but became painfully aware that he was not always doing that, I complained to the "staff" of that forum and they said that they would look into it, so, when anyone asks where they can get Audi spares and they are pointed in this new guy's direction, I and a couple of other post some snide comments and suggest that the member contacts the original guy directly - all good fun! Some people seem to have been a bit shafted by TPS by being charged specially high prices, which at some locations might be their way of getting rid of "non trade" customers. Before TPS came along, I used to get my local VW Van Centre to order parts in for me, as long as I knew the part numbers and was willing to responsible for my mistakes they got me what I asked for, when TPS came along that all stopped.

Useless information:- did you know that Dingbro stands for Dingwall Brothers?

 

[Crossthreaded]

That sounds promising, I'd probable slip into an old boiler suit just in case though. I've always asked for VW Group parts by their correct part number and invariably need parts ordering in - getting numbers from a good online VW Group parts listing. There is a very helpful guy on most VW Group motoring forums that gives good prices, he works in parts at a big VW Group multi marque company. He got binned from the Audi motoring forum that I am on so that a favourite big main Audi dealership got their parts man in who, the forum claimed gave discount, but I discovered that maybe he did at the beginning, but became painfully aware that he was not always doing that, I complained to the "staff" of that forum and they said that they would look into it, so, when anyone asks where they can get Audi spares and they are pointed in this new guy's direction, I and a couple of other post some snide comments and suggest that the member contacts the original guy directly - all good fun! Some people seem to have been a bit shafted by TPS by being charged specially high prices, which at some locations might be their way of getting rid of "non trade" customers. Before TPS came along, I used to get my local VW Van Centre to order parts in for me, as long as I knew the part numbers and was willing to responsible for my mistakes they got me what I asked for, when TPS came along that all stopped.

Useless information:- did you know that Dingbro stands for Dingwall Brothers?

Well I suppose all I can say is that they've been very fair with me - but I'll be extra vigilant after hearing of your experiences. I much prefer buying locally if I can as it makes mistakes much easier to sort out.

Didn't know about the Dingbro thing either (or this, nearly 73 year old, memory has forgotten).

 

[RUM4MO]

Well you know lots of these names sound strange but normally do for a reason, so I just had to dig deeper and find out, as usual the facts end up being less "stunning/amazing" than you could ever expect!

 

[Crossthreaded]

Well you know lots of these names sound strange but normally do for a reason, so I just had to dig deeper and find out, as usual the facts end up being less "stunning/amazing" than you could ever expect!

If you do decide to give TPS a try do let me know how you get on won't you?

 

[RUM4MO]

Yes, I will do, might get the supercharger, auxiliary and tensioner bolt for my 2011 S4 there, as that should be changed soon I suppose, even if the mileage is only 25K miles! Now if I did what I think that I'd like to do, and revisit lots of the places we used to with the kids in the West Country and Cornwall, that mileage might get moved up a bit, I need to work on wife a bit more wrt that - even another visit to Beaulieu etc!