wire braided plug wires

[juanbenae]

i have owned my 78sc for about 4 months and in removing my AC compressor i found that the PO had installed wire braided plug wires. this im pretty sure is an upgrade from stock and other aftermarket replacement wires (wire braided brake lines for my dirt bike were big $ and very effective). The PO was meticulous, pop-off valve, chain tens, and waxed car weekly it would appear. my question is this, i figure that the failing portion of plug wires is the insulation more often than not, will the wire braided numbers last "forever", forever meaning my life time? example, just had a roof put on my house, i was offered 40 or 50 year comp shingles. the fact that im 36 and have been tough on my body i wont live to see 50 year shingles wear out so i went for the 40's, let my to this point unborn offspring deal with the leaking roof in 2042.

this said, in summary will i need to replace these wires at regular intervolts, or will i die before they wear out? i dont want to pass with faulty plug wires and a leaky roof.

one foot in grave, the other on banana peel

[sammyg2]

Porsche added the braided wire sheaths on the plug wires somewhere around 79 or so (little help please?) in an attemp to reduce backfiring. it didn't help because the backfires were caused by something else entirely.
So, my 1980 SC had the braided wires stock, yours probably did too.
They do not last forever. I would guess around 60,000 miles or so (YMMV).
You can either replace them with OEM wires of the same design ($$$$), rebuild them with new wire (check archives) or get aftermarket wires. I went with the Magnecor wires and love them.

[alan911]

My 77 came with the braided wires. Problem is, the insulation goes first, then the path of least resistance for the current is to the braid and of course directy to ground. At night, when moist, it's a regular fireworks show going on in their. Naturally the engine starts to miss and run crappy. Another great idea from Stutttgart. What the hell were they thinking....radio suppression ???? Riped them out and no problems in 18 yrs.

[Jim Sims]

It was believed cross-talk between the plug wires was causing misfiring which was causing the blown air box problem. The braid was an attempt to shield the wires from each other to eliminate plug wire cross-talk. Cheers, Jim

[pbs911]

I pulled my sheathed wires a couple years ago. Just picked up some new bulk wire and made my own using the old distributor and plug connectors. Total cost about $15.00.

[Superman]

First, the wire issue. The above information says it all. I believe the stainless steel braiding is more bad than good since the insulation of ANY high voltage wire will wear out and the braid just provides a handy ground. Ditch the braids, if not the wires. If you want to rebuild the wires re-using the old ends, then don't fail to search the archives. The ends just screw off, but there are special crip fixture you need to install and perhaps understand. This is what I did. Very satisfying.

Now for the other issue. If I had known I would live this long I would have treated my self better. I'm 44 and the temptation is still there to assume I won't see 85 years old. UNFORTUNATELY, I MAY. And so may you. So, brush your teeth every day, wear eye, ear and skin protection (latex and nitrile gloves are fabulous and I won't touch my car without them now), eat good food and of course, don't stay out late and drink too much.

[Early_S_Man]

The shielded wires arrived in the US with the '74 bumper-cars ... even though '74 brochures showed the '65 thru '73 style wires installed on the 2.7 CIS engines!

There seems to be some dispute about whether they were for EMI/RFI compliance, or for prevention of the dreaded CIS airbox explosions ...

If your engine has a pop-off valve installed in the airbox, you don't need shielded wires!

The thread discussing the rebuilding of ignition wires is:

http://www.pelicanparts.com/cgi-bin/vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=7497

[speeder]

Related question: My '82 SC has the OEM-type braided wires, 115k miles, have no idea how old they are. Could be original for all I know. Car runs smooth, starts alright, can't see sparks under hood at night, (but how would you see arc thru braiding?). Any reason I should replace? Once again, no idea how old, but safe bet they are very old. I do not have an ohm meter or know how to use one. Any other way to test? TIA.

Oh yeah, any reason at all to stick w/ stock braided wires?

[kepperly]

superman,
I,m 51 have the car of my dreams and am trying to pace it and myself so we both blow a rod on the same day. I,ve owned
many muscle cars and with this one three 911/930s. During
the vietnam war i was wounded twice and "saw" the light
at the end of the tunnel and there aren,t any porsch's there so
enjoy now. Try a Beamish for breakfast and a Harp for lunch.
Spark plug wires! replace em, lifes to short for a "misfire"
keith

[grant lyon]

Went through a replacement set of the braided type myself before trying the Magnecor wires. I have the 8mm Magnecor's. Very good quality. All else being equal, suggest the 8.5mm wires.
Their site has an interesting take on the braid sheath.

[juanbenae]

thanx for the skinny again on my endless quiries. superman, thank you for the support in me now WANTING to live to see 44, you forgot one thing though,, the gym. i eat good, hit the gym to make up for my staying out late (not on school nites) and binge drinking on weekends. this P-car thing has got me all geeked though, i come in early, or dont go out at all so i can wrench or drive it on weekends. so maybe its addition by subtraction.

[rlane]

I went with Magnecor 8.5's in my 78SC, it helped cure the "light show" under the hood, helped with a misfire (though replacing the fuel pump REALLY fixed my problems).
In regards to posted comments on living well, not drinking, staying away from demon liquor etc...RIGHT!!! You may live longer..it sure as HELL will seem like a (boring) eternity!