spark plug gap Question

[cutlassranger]

hey i pulled the plugs on my ranger and they are at .35 and i know they should be at .44, will i get better gas milage if i put the new ones at .44


also im not sure when the last time it had new plugs so i dont know how old they are and how dorty they should be a they dont look that dirty they reason im mentioning this is because i know if it has clean plugs is a sign og a cracked head does any one have a pic of what a plug with and with a cracked haed should look like

 

[MAKG]

The gap spec is what you should set it to. Period. You can only make it worse. If it sniffs clean, it's burning all the fuel. If it doesn't, something else is wrong.

I think you should figure out why your gap is narrow. They don't do this on their own.

Never use a flat feeler gauge.

 

[cutlassranger]

im think maybe the prevouse owner didnt set it right

by sniff u mean smeel right? ir smells like gas

i have one of those round gauges that u get at advanced auto

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

the round gauge will work fine.

do all 6 plugs look alike? if so, chances are very slim that the truck is eating antifreeze.

 

[cutlassranger]

all plugs looked the same just one had a smalllers gap then the other... im going to pull it in a day or two to check and see if i did it agin

thanks alot

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

seeing how the plugs were clean and the gap was still smaller than spec (gaps widen with use as the electrodes wear), id say the plugs were probably replaced fairly recently. how rusty is the hex nut on the plugs?

 

[cutlassranger]

id say they have a little more then surface rust , they guy i get it said he think last time it had anythign done to it was a little over a year ago

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

ya but how many miles did it get on a years time?