1 of the 4 wire (the shortest one) has a broken rubber connector; it's the side that plugs into the engine. The rubber piece has chipped a bit, but it can still plug into the hole. Would this do any damage to my 1991 S2?

If I were to replace the wire set, which should I go for? Does different wires make any difference in performance?

Eric

 

It "shouldn't" damage anything, the only real possible danger is some arching or current leak, but frankly, you may as well replace the wireset. You can get a nice set of 8.5mm wires from Magnecor, or Bosch for around $100. Its an easy job and should only take 15 minutes to complete. Well worth the time and money for the peace of mind, especially if your running 15 year old stock wires.

 

I have seen magnecor 8.5mm's for about $65 including shipping. I can't recall where, just google it(how I found them).

 

Here's where I got mine. Nice people/nice price/great wires IMO/no affiliation

http://www.apexperformance.net/cartg...pid=112&cid=10

Size wire could be another debate.

As I understand it:
8.5 mm for racing, extreme conditions (modified high voltage ign. systems)
8.0 mm standard "high performance"
7.5 standard

Do you want to shoot the horse once, twice, or thrice.
For a couple of extra $$, I shot the horse three times by using the 8.5's.
I think most others do the same.

MW

 

Sorry, please revise, 7.5 mm should read 7.0 mm. Priced as follows:

8.5 mm red.......$91
8.0 mm blue......$70
7.0 mm black.....$69

Any of the three are probably bettter than a 15 year old set that shows damage.
I find it strange that the third bullet is much more costly than the second.
What color do you like?
MW

 

I would absolutely replace them - immediately. Many a 944 has been lost due to people being too cheap to replace their wires (and having them arc against the fuel rail, block, etc.) and having a complete or partial failure of the (vulnerable and well-documented) fuel lines going to the FPR or dampener. Remember your fire triangle? Well, air (readily available) plus fuel (from the leaky line) plus heat (spark) = fire.

Try this - start your car on a very dark street, pop the hood, and open it (don't turn the lights on or the hood light, do this in the dark). Look at the area around the wires. If you see little sparks, St. Elmo's fire or anything like that, it's probably time to think about a replacement.

 

Hey, I got some extra wires another rennlister gave me if you need. I broke a wire and he sent me a slightly used set

PM me if you want it

edit: its free sorry i didnt mention that before

 

Hi Mike,
Thanks for your generosity! What are the sizes of your wires? 8.5 mm, 8.0 mm or 7.0 mm? My S2 has a Promax chip, K&N air filter and Beru Ultra-X spark plugs fitted. After reading the posts, I was thinking of getting larger size wire (something like the 8.5 mm). Would I gain anything by going for larger wire from the stock wires?

Eric

 

You won't really gain anything by going to a larger wire, not performance wise at least without first fitting a high output ignition system. Even then results are debatable.

 

How do these wires compare? Beru, Bosch (OEM?), Karlyn, and Magnecor. Do they perform differently? Beru seems to be the most expensive.

Eric

 

I'm pretty sure Beru was OEM, I know at the very least OEM wires use Beru plug boots. Bosch would be a simple OEM replacement, and I've had good luck with Bosch sets I've bought in the past. Magnecor is going to be considered an upgrade from stock, a "performance" wireset if you will. Not sure about Karlyn.

I'd say that Magnecor is probably the best bang for the buck, that said I went with new Bosch wires when I did mine this summer, mostly because I was too lazy to wait for Magnecor's to ship and Bosch's were available locally.