1994-2002 [Subscribe to Daily Digest] |
For the record I decided to list the current spark plugs recommended by NGK for the NG900 and 9-3 turbocharged engines. As you can see both heat ranges 6 and 7 are called out. Also note that both regular copper plugs and platinum plugs are specified. And for the newest 9-3, including the Viggen, very expensive iridium platinum plugs are specified.
I believe the conventional wisdom of the Saabnet still stands.
Use the inexpensive regular copper BCPR6ES-11 (or BCPR6ES) for primarily city driving where the BCPR7ES-11 shows a lot of black carbon deposits on the plug tip.
Use the inexpensive regular copper BCPR7ES-11 (or BCPR7ES) for primarily freeway, sustained high speed, spirited driving, or towing.
Replace the spark plugs every 10-15,000 miles, depending on your driving style. The BCPR6ES-11 and BCPR7ES-11 are factory gap by NGK to .044". The BCPR6ES and BCPR7ES are factory gapped by NGK to .035". So all the NGK plugs need to be re-gapped to .039" before use in the Saab turbo.
I believe Dean has tried the platinum plugs and found that they work OK, but still need to be re-gapped every 10-15,000 miles. Unless you really want to replace your spark plugs only every 30,000 miles, I don't see that the cost of the platinum plugs is justified.
The new 9-3 iridium platinum plugs are an unknown quantity to me. But the price alone makes me want to stick to the regular copper plugs unless there is a lot of evidence that the iridium platinum plugs really do something special.
NGK recommended spark plugs for NG900/9-3 turbo engine by year per http://www.ngksparkplugs.com/ application charts as of Dec. 03, 2001.
Prices for NGK spark plugs from http://www.sparkplugs.com/ as of Dec. 03, 2001.
1994
BCPR7ES-11 STK# 1095 Gap .039” standard plug price $1.80 ea.
1995
BCPR6ES-11 STK# 6679 Gap .040” standard plug SE model price $1.80 ea.
BCPR6E-11 STK# 5632 Gap .040” V-Power plug SE model price $1.80 ea.
BCPR6EVX-11 STK# 3753 Gap .040” platinum plug SE model price $6.40 ea.
BCPR7ES-11 STK# 1095 Gap .039” standard plug S model price $1.80 ea.
1996
BCPR6ES-11 STK# 6679 Gap .040” standard plug SE model price $1.80 ea.
BCPR6E-11 STK# 5632 Gap .040” V-Power plug SE model price $1.80 ea.
BCPR6EVX-11 STK# 3753 Gap .040” platinum plug SE model price $6.40 ea.
1997
BCPR7ES-11 STK# 1095 Gap .039” standard plug price $1.80 ea.
1998
BCPR7ES STK# 3330 Gap .039” standard plug NG900 model price $1.80 ea.
BCPR7ES-11 STK# 1095 Gap .039” standard plug 9-3 model price $1.80 ea.
BCPR7EVX-11 STK# 4485 Gap .039” platinum plug 9-3 model price $6.40 ea.
1999
BCPR7ES-11 STK# 1095 Gap .039” standard plug 9-3 model price $1.80 ea.
BCPR7EVX-11 STK# 4485 Gap .039” platinum plug 9-3 model price $6.40 ea.
2000
PFR7H-10 STK# 3978 Gap .039” iridium platinum plug all 9-3 models including Viggen price $11.71 ea.
posted by 208.49.24...
No Site Registration is Required to Post - Site Membership is optional (Member Features List), but helps to keep the site online
for all Saabers. If the site helps you, please consider helping the site by becoming a member.
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |