'89 P30 454 Plug Wire Recommendations?

[enigma960080]

Looking  for  opinions  on the  various  brands  of Spark Plug  Wires  you P30  guys  are  using.  Standard  HEI  GM ignition.  Trying  to get a good OEM style set that  will actually  withstand  the  heat of the  doghouse without giving up under the  demands of my size 15 pedal stomper. Y!

[Oz]

I'd suggest MSD Superconductor wires.  JEGS & Summit are good sources with good descriptions.  They have very low ohm resistance, but don't interfere with your radio.  8.5mm and available with 90° or mult-angle, silicone boots.  I chose the multi-angle because that was a key factor in being able to route them away from my 440 exhaust manifolds.  Plus the wires were long enough to give ample clearance all around and the boots are well insulated as well.

[tiinytina]

I'll have to check what I bought. I know they are Silicone Racing grade. We gave up on the wire "fingers" which are mounted to our 454 (P-30 1987) in favor of plastic zip ties to hold the wires away from hot things....  we melted 2 of our old wire set when they fell out of the finger harness...  I purchased them at Advanced Auto and they were not cheap.... but learned to just get the best from the get go....

tina

[ClydesdaleKevin]

Whichever ones you get (I got the best ones NAPA carried), make sure that the silicone boots, the ones that plug onto the spark plugs themselves, are as thick and long as possible...454 manifolds get HOT!  Also make sure that all the metal heat sheilds around each spark plug hole are still in place.  And finally, do like Tina and use plenty of zip ties to make sure the wires don't touch anything hot enough to melt them.

Kev

[enigma960080]

I saw online  that at some  point  Accel made  some Ceramic Boot  Plug  wires  with 8mm wires.  But  the sources  listed  no longer  carry them.  They are  still listed in the  Accel catalog.  9013C  The  wires  that the  local O'Rileys/Kragen  and  Autozone  do not impress me  in the least.  None of these look like they would  last 5 minutes  under a doghouse.

[RV Mech Tech]

Phil - you are correct- they won't last 5 minutes - those Accel ceramic boot wire sets are still available (try the auto speed shops in your area and the big ones like Summit ) and you will find them -  be prepared to pay mucho dollars - what I usually do is get a universal set of wires with one one end made up (the distributor end) and buy the boots separately and make a custom set - the wires in these universal sets are longer and you cut them to whatever length you want - the airflow in motorhome compartments over the engine in some RV's is next to nothing and anything you can do to direct fresh air over the engine will be a big help - go on the manufactures sites (Accel, MSD etc.) and do some searching and you can send an e-mail asking them what their recommendations are - they may have something not listed in their auto catalogs- for example ignition parts for marine application are usually heavy duty/high heat parts.   

[jnagel88]

When I used to drag race my Camaro I used spark plug wire sleeves. They go over the boot after it's installed on the spark plug (like a sock for your spark plug wire). They worked great -- no more burnt wires!

[bluebird]

I just bought a set of premium  GM wires from O'Reillys auto parts. They were only around 60.00 or so, but were exact lenght for my coach. From what I've read 454s  are hard on wires, rotors, and caps too.