Top 7 Best Spark Plug Wires for Harley Davidson (2021 Review)

You all know the importance of a spark plug for engine performance, but many of you don’t realize that the effectiveness of a spark plug largely depends on the wire that passes electricity to the electrodes. Hence choosing the best spark plug wires for your Harley Davidson is crucial.

This article will help you in selecting the best spark plug wires for Harley Davidson from a range of wires available in the market. The article includes

• The features defining the best kind of spark plug wires
• Classification of spark plug wires
• Replacement of spark plug wires
• A brief introduction of different spark plug wire brands

For your convenience, we have shortlisted some highly ranked spark plug wires compatible with Harley Davidson and reviewed them for you. Let’s take a look.

Spark Plug Wires for Harley Davidson – Buying Guide

The electricity passing through the spark plug wire creates an extreme amount of heat and electromagnetic pressure. That’s why it is important that the leads are made from materials that are resistant to heat, wear, tear, and conductive to electricity.

The core components should be made from multiple layers of high-grade materials – usually stainless steel or any other conductive and elastic metal components. The cover must provide insulation for heat, electricity, and elasticity. Last but not the least, the boots must protect from high heat and vibration.

These are the main features you need to look for while choosing spark plug wires for your Harley Davidson. Now let’s check out different types of spark plug wires.

Types of Spark Plug Wires

The type of spark plug wires varies according to the material used in the core, cover, boot, etc. Some of the common types are explained below.

Distributed Resistance Wires

These are the most commonly used wires in today’s vehicles. These are carbon core wires with fiberglass infusion. The carbon core provides high resistance to noise.

Magnetic Resistance Wires (inductance wires)

These wires are mostly popular with the Japanese models. They use spiral cores with copper or nickel alloy wires. The high conductivity of these materials means that less current is needed to produce a spark.

Fixed Resistor Wires

This kind of lead is widely used in European vehicles. These steel and copper wires use resistors in the spark plug boots.

Main Characteristics of Spark Plug Wires

The features below must be considered before you buy a replacement for your spark plug wires.

Compatibility

The choice of spark plug wire depends on the type of vehicle you use. If you use your vehicle for regular use, distributed resistance wires are the best because they come with a reduced RFI system. Moreover, you should use distributed resistance wires for American – made vehicles, magnetic resistance wires for Japanese vehicles, and fixed resistor wires for European vehicles.

Number of Spark Plugs

To choose a suitable wire set you need to know how many spark plugs do your engine has. Some wires break into multiple wires to connect with multiple spark plug. If your vehicle has multiple spark plugs, it will require multiple wires as well.

Length

The length of the spark plug wire has to be equal to the distance from the ignition point to the spark plug. If the length is not sufficient enough it won’t be able to carry the spark to the spark plug.

Order

You must connect the spark plugs in the order prescribed in the wires. The wires are normally color-coded to help you connect easily.

How to Check If Your Spark Plug Wires are Damaged

Spark plug wires are more prone to external damage than spark plugs and so they need to be checked from time to time. There are several ways to examine if the wires are damaged.

Visual Damage

At first you need to look for any visual damage in the form of discoloration, cracking, melting abrasion, etc.

Vibration Damage

Now check the connection. The wire connection loosens up due to constant engine vibration which results in a greater amount of voltage required for ignition. This causes damage to the ignition coil as well.

Heat Damage

This kind of damage can be identified by discolored and burnt cover or boots. This damage is caused by engine heat.

Abrasion Damage

Abrasive damage can be identified by tears, cracks, holes, etc. on the sheath. Due to this, the core can be exposed to the external environment hampering the flow of electricity.

Test with a Multimeter

In the absence of any visual damage, the spark plug wires can also be tested with the help of a multimeter. Connect the probe to the ends of the wire and read the multimeter result. If it is higher than 12,000Ω/ft, you should replace the wire.

How to Replace Spark Plug Wires

If your wires are damaged by any of the processes mentioned above, you must replace them immediately. Installing spark plug wires for Harley Davidson can be done as follows:

1. Firstly, check whether your spark plugs are numbered or not, if not arrange them according to their length in descending order.
2. Remove the old wires one at a time. Disconnect the wire from the distributor cap or spark plug by simply twisting the boot.
3. Look for a wire in the new set that matches the length of the removed old wire. Install the new wire by pushing one end of the spark plug wire boot to the module and the other end to the spark plug.
4. While pushing the boot to the spark plug end, do not force the wire. Gently push and twist, it will easily go on when perfectly aligned and you will hear a noticeable ‘click’.
5. Test by pilling back the wires tightly. The installation is improper if they come off easily.

Best Spark Plug Wires for Harley Davidson

Now that you are equipped with all the basic information about spark plug wires, let’s go through the reviews of some of the highly ranked products to choose the best performance spark plug wires for Harley Davidson.

Major Brands

Here are some trusted brand spark plug wires for Harley Davidson.

NGK

For over 80 years NGK Spark Plug has been producing high-quality spark plug, spark plug wires, sensors, and other products, etc. They ensure innovation, performance, and quality through extreme dedication.

Official site: ngksparkplugs.com

ACDelco

ACDelco has been creating parts for spacecraft, planes, vehicles, etc. since 1906 and worked with General Motors to design shocks. spark plugs, etc.

Official site: acdelco.com

DENSO

DENSO has been manufacturing a wide range of automobile parts since 1949. They make almost all the vehicle parts for example- spark plugs, alternators, air filters, etc.

Official site: denso.com

Verdict

Finally, you should frequently check for any kind of wear tear, and burn on the spark plug wire. Carefully go through our review- the product features, pros and cons and choose the best wire for your Harley Davidson. You must check the fitment of the product to ensure that the wire fits your spark plug.

Remember that, a better-quality wire ensures a better spark resulting in better combustion. And better combustion boosts the engine power.