Replacing my BavAuto Ignition / Spark Plug wires

[Denver535is]

Hello all:

I'm starting to see some issues with my BavAuto HiPo (red) sparkplug wires in the heat. Denver was at 104ish, and the car developed a miss. Wires seem good when ohm'd, but when HOT, cylinder 5 & 6 don't seem to have as much spark as 1 through 3. I have also picked up a new distributor and rotor to replace those - I'm past the "recommended" service interval for those parts at this point.

After searching over and over, I have really not found much regarding these wires, with the exception of comments regarding the BavAuto HiPo having issues. Also, one mention that I found regarding the M30 engine requiring a "solid wire"...should I assume this means solid core?

I have found prices that range from $80 through you name it. Pelican has a Karlyn-STI brand listed, others have Bosch and other no-name brands (in my opinion, only).

Any recommendations for me here? My local BMW dealer seems to be charging an exorbitant amount for the "correct" part -- all the for the benefit of buying it from a BMW dealer - they were asking $225 or $250 if I recall correctly.

TIA,

Eric
'87 535is

[Coldswede]

Yeah,my car came to me with BavAuto red plug wires, they were great for about three years then the cores started burning off the plug clamps. I fixed them once but it only lasted about a year. I replaced them with BMW wires and no problems since.

[Jeremy]

I had a set of Magnecor wires made for my first turbo car when I needed wires. Good price, solid core, very robust wire jackets and boots, and they put standard snap on plug ends on them for me at my request. No more funky terminal plug connections!

They were a decent price when I got them, looks like they still are now. Less expensive than the BavAuto set and much higher quality. It doesn't come with the plastic loom/wire guides that the BavAuto set has, but your old one should suffice. The 8.5mm wires (that's what I got) won't fit inside it and allow the loom to snap closed though. The 8mm wires might just fit. I just used zip ties to hold it closed.

Jeremy

[lilpoindexter]

I bought bosch wires from amazon..I peeled one of the amazon stickers on the box, and it said WORLDPAC, lol

[gidgaf]

For a lot of plug wires, the spark plug end just screws on. After a length of time, the wire corrodes, there's intermittent connections, loose fittings, etc.
That means you can unscrew it, cut off a quarter inch, and screw it back on to a better piece of wire.

For some wire sets this holds true of both ends.
So, theoretically, if this is true for you, you can buy some decent 8mm hot rod wire from the auto depot, and make your own set(s).

[a]

exact same experience with the red wires from Bav Auto on Aaron's 533i. The plug end on #6 took me 20 minutes to get right . Having a limp boot didnt help either. Beru or Bosch is the way to go

[delorean175]

does anyone have any suggestions for a good set of spark plug wires? Good quality and price. I was looking at some bosch ones on partstrain. they have a few different sets. but the only difference i can see is price. I'm sure the cheaper ones are of a smaller diameter and lesser quality. I'm looking at alternate brands but I don't want to buy crap parts for my car. Any suggestions?

[ahab]

Beru or Bosch is the way to go

Beyond this one?

[bavarianautowrks]

I remember Kingsbourne being a pretty reputable brand. Never had them personally, but I've heard good things. This is the brand I may go with for my next set.

[rlomba8204]

Hello all:

I'm starting to see some issues with my BavAuto HiPo (red) sparkplug wires in the heat. Denver was at 104ish, and the car developed a miss. Wires seem good when ohm'd, but when HOT, cylinder 5 & 6 don't seem to have as much spark as 1 through 3. I have also picked up a new distributor and rotor to replace those - I'm past the "recommended" service interval for those parts at this point.

After searching over and over, I have really not found much regarding these wires, with the exception of comments regarding the BavAuto HiPo having issues. Also, one mention that I found regarding the M30 engine requiring a "solid wire"...should I assume this means solid core?

I have found prices that range from $80 through you name it. Pelican has a Karlyn-STI brand listed, others have Bosch and other no-name brands (in my opinion, only).

Any recommendations for me here? My local BMW dealer seems to be charging an exorbitant amount for the "correct" part -- all the for the benefit of buying it from a BMW dealer - they were asking $225 or $250 if I recall correctly.

TIA,

Eric
'87 535is

Do yourself a favor: avoid BAS "upgrades" -- whether they be ignition wires, coil packs or other similar nonsense. It's all BS designed to have late teens / twenty somethings who don't know any better waste money on their cars. It's one of the reasons I won't buy from there anymore. Go down to BMW or find an online source and buy the original wires. There is nothing better. I know they are pricey but you get what you pay for here. Also, check Tischer (getbmwparts.com) and the other usual suspects to see if you could do better, but even if you cannot, those are the wires to buy.

[867535i]

Are Bremi's any good?

[rodpaine]

May 2000, I installed a set of red BAV Auto high-performance ignition wires, seen in many pictures of my 528e M20. I perform DeoxIT cleaning/preservation of the connectors every two years. They have performed without fault right up to today. However, sometime in 2004 or 2005 the product started having performance issues as people I recommended them to started reporting to me.

In looking at a few of these later ignition wire sets, the connectors at the ends of the cables now appeared different... they looked to be thinner and perhaps made with a different material than mine purchased in 2000. Some connectors appeared as if they had been arcing due to looseness and showed signs of corroding. A few had issues with the connections in the sparkplug boot, including a few that had actually become detached from the spark plug connector. So, I quit recommending them and sent owners to their BMW dealer, or now suggest they buy the BMW high performance ignition set from someone like Turner Motorsport, who still has them available (I believe it was Brian who first advised us of them becoming NLA) such as shown here, for the 1982 to Feb. 1987 528e. They also sell the high performance version for the M30 in the 533i and 535i '84-'88 shown here. I have no first hand experience with the M30 ignition set, but have with several M20 sets and would expect that the M30 parts would certainly be as robust and quality constructed.
FWIW,
-Rod

[LA]

I just shitcanned the BA reds from my E28. They were OK for five years or so. As mentioned, the ends are made from metal that is too thin for the job. Eventually they will not hold the shape needed for snapping onto the plugs.

I just grabbed on of several stock BMW wire sets that were in the garage - they still work great.

[AJ]

... So, I quit recommending them and sent owners to their BMW dealer, or now suggest they buy the BMW high performance ignition set from someone like Turner Motorsport, who still has them available...
-Rod

I wonder what the reviews are for these on an m30 engine compared to stock bosch wires. Really considering in buying these for the m30b35, but don't know if it will make any significant difference.