For all you Champion Spark plug haters

C Body Bob

Old Man with a Hat
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My 03 Dodge Grand Caravan 3.3 V6 daily driver work van. 166 thousand plus miles. 52 thousand when I bought it from a local Ford dealer at wholesale so I know they didn’t tune it up. There was a sticker were they did an oil change & state inspection. Van has always run like a top untill about a month ago. 87 octane gas. All I do is change the oil every 4 thousand miles. Never even changed the air filter. Check out the electrodes. Nearly burnt off.
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That's impressive. I always used Champions in MoPars up until a few years back. NGK is the choice now. Never cared for AC Delco or Autolites. To each their own...
 
Keep in mind Champion spark plugs and A/C spark plugs are the same thing. G.M. bought Champion from the owner Alexander Champion 100 years ago . Thats why they are called A/C .
 
It looks like there were 2 "Champions" that made spark plugs. LOL

In 1899, Albert Champion came to the U.S. as a champion bicycle racer. He found a job with the Stranahan brothers, who had started Champion Spark Plug Company in 1905 or 1906 and began production in 1907. Champion was not happy in his job because he had no control over his work. He already had at least one spark plug patent (from 1898) before leaving Europe. In 1908, he went to see William C. Durant of the Buick Motor Co. Durant asked to see some of his prototypes. Buick at that time was using Rajah spark plugs. Durant thought they could manufacture spark plugs to Champion's design cheaper than buying them from Rajah, and set Champion up in a workshop in Flint, MI.

Champion went to work producing spark plugs to be used in Buick automobiles. Champion and Durant formed "Champion Ignition Co." Very shortly later, the Stranahan brothers ("Champion Spark Plug Co.") informed them they could not use the name "Champion" as they had it trademarked. At that time the name was changed to reflect Champion's initials. "AC Spark Plug" was trademarked in 1908. In 1927 AC became a division of General Motors.[citation needed] [8]
 
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In 1899, Albert Champion came to the U.S. as a champion bicycle racer. He found a job with the Stranahan brothers, who had started Champion Spark Plug Company in 1905 or 1906 and began production in 1907. Champion was not happy in his job because he had no control over his work. He already had at least one spark plug patent (from 1898) before leaving Europe. In 1908, he went to see William C. Durant of the Buick Motor Co. Durant asked to see some of his prototypes. Buick at that time was using Rajah spark plugs. Durant thought they could manufacture spark plugs to Champion's design cheaper than buying them from Rajah, and set Champion up in a workshop in Flint, MI.

Champion went to work producing spark plugs to be used in Buick automobiles. Champion and Durant formed "Champion Ignition Co." Very shortly later, the Stranahan brothers ("Champion Spark Plug Co.") informed them they could not use the name "Champion" as they had it trademarked. At that time the name was changed to reflect Champion's initials. "AC Spark Plug" was trademarked in 1908. In 1927 AC became a division of General Motors.[citation needed] [8]
I was just starting to type this up...

Champion is now owned by Federal Mogul and actually AC was bought from Albert Champion's widow after he was killed by her lover.

However, I was told once though that there was a supplier not far from here, possibly the now defunct Auburn Spark Plugs, that built spark plugs under contract to AC, Champion and Autolite. I never saw that for myself, but it wouldn't surprise me.
 
I own the van. Doesn’t mean I made it.
If you ever get into the automotive supply chain, most people would be very surprised to see parts that are going into their new Lincoln being made next to parts going into Hyundais. In one plant alone, 20 miles from here, I would see body modules and key fobs made for almost all the US, Japanese and North Korean cars. Same place, same machinery, same people etc.. Just made to their specs.
 
If you ever get into the automotive supply chain, most people would be very surprised to see parts that are going into their new Lincoln being made next to parts going into Hyundais. In one plant alone, 20 miles from here, I would see body modules and key fobs made for almost all the US, Japanese and North Korean cars. Same place, same machinery, same people etc.. Just made to their specs.
So true. Back in the 90’s I was a parts manager for a Saturn dealership then a Dodge dealership. Particularly at the Saturn that billed itself as the American comeback company I had to handle all the warranty returns. I would process the claims & day or so later Saturn would send me a list of parts they wanted to be returned to the manufacturer. Usually electronic or seat/safety related parts. I was surprised at the stuff I had to send to Asian companies operating in the US. Very few things went back to US companies or to Springfield, Tenn were the cars were made.
 
That's a pretty tangled web!
I love reading about early automotive and industrial history. How everything relates is fascinating.

Example: Henry Ford's first company failed. His second company, the Henry Ford Company, was really owned by William Murphy and a bunch of stockholders from his first company. He left there when Henry Leland was hired and the company became the Cadillac Automobile Company.
 
So put some NGKs in there and go for 400k
Sorry Bob, too many times pulling in the driveway with fouled plugs. I had a anti-fouler on #7 on my Challenger for years. Put anything else but a Champion in there and did not need the anti-fouler.
 
I have run RJ-11YC Champion plugs in my 78 Dodge 440 truck since new. The truck has over 500K miles and I don't recall ever having a fouled plug. Every time it developed a miss, it was always a bad plug wire. Never a plug issue. Averaged a little over 30K miles per year before replacing them in preparation for winter. Now that they are hard to find, I have been running the Bosch platinums in my Big Blocks. I too, have had people crying about the Champion plugs over the years but they didn't fail me.
 
I have run RJ-11YC Champion plugs in my 78 Dodge 440 truck since new. The truck has over 500K miles and I don't recall ever having a fouled plug. Every time it developed a miss, it was always a bad plug wire. Never a plug issue. Averaged a little over 30K miles per year before replacing them in preparation for winter. Now that they are hard to find, I have been running the Bosch platinums in my Big Blocks. I too, have had people crying about the Champion plugs over the years but they didn't fail me.
I got some Bosch Platiums from the local rep when they first came out. Put them in my 5.0 carbureted Mustang. The car did seem to run better. That’s another plug the keyboard warriors poo poo. I told the rep if the plugs ran good in my car I’d sell the heck out of them. I sold a ton of them over the next several years
 
I love reading about early automotive and industrial history. How everything relates is fascinating.

Example: Henry Ford's first company failed. His second company, the Henry Ford Company, was really owned by William Murphy and a bunch of stockholders from his first company. He left there when Henry Leland was hired and the company became the Cadillac Automobile Company.
And the Dodge Bros. produced the drivetrains and made enough selling their Ford stock back to Henry, that they could open their own car company.
 
And the Dodge Bros. produced the drivetrains and made enough selling their Ford stock back to Henry, that they could open their own car company.
Model T frames were built here in Syracuse. The building still stands, it's a hardware store. In the same block, Franklin cars were built along with Brown Lipe Chapin, that built transmissions. Brown Lipe Chapin became part of GM and the building morphed into Fisher Guide, making hub caps and lights. (My business was in part of their old building) A few blocks over was New Process Gear.

The remnants of the Franklin car company became Franklin Air Cooled engines, and they made the engines for Tucker cars. Willard Lipe started Lipe-Rollway that made truck clutches for many years and Rollway Bearing, that made ball bearings for about everything. I have my Dad's Movado watch inscribed for 25 years of service at Lipe-Rollway.

New Process Gear was in the area now known as Franklin Square, named after HH Franklin, of Franklin cars. In a moment of absolute blind stupidity on the part of politicians in Syracuse, they put a statue of Ben Franklin up in the square about 20 years ago.
 
What part number are those Champion plugs? Just curious.

Thanks,
CBODY67
 
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