5.0 Tech Inspection: Brisk Spark Plugs

The Brisk Premium LGS spark plug is shown here next to a stockMotorcraft spark plug for comparison.

Every once in a while, a new miracle pill comes out that will re-growyour hair, take inches off your waist, or allow you to be the man yourwife always wanted for up to 36 hours. Usually these claims are too goodto be true. Often, they only partially work, or if they do work, theydon't work to the extent of the claims. The same thing occurs whenevernew parts are released for the performance aftermarket. Claims uponclaims are made as to the parts' performance potential. These claims arefrequently best-case scenarios or their dyno has the special correctionfactor setting checked.

A close-up of the Brisk electrode and tip shows the deep groundelectrode design that promotes spark discharge at the very tip of theplug. You can also see in this photo that the flame front wouldpropagate in all directions. This means there is no need to index thesespark plugs in the combustion chamber.

So whom do you believe? Occasionally, it's our job to shed light onthese new parts or new horsepower tricks and tell the truth. Ifsomething works, great, we're all for it. If it doesn't, well, maybe itwill prove its worth on someone else's project. If there's one thingwe've seen through the years, it's that a certain combination will allowa part to make more power than another. So just because our testing onlymade "X" horsepower, it doesn't mean you'll get the same results. Wejust want you to use our testing as a barometer of sorts as to thevalidity of the product.

Which brings us to Brisk's Premium spark plug line. Brisk sells a uniquespark plug that promotes an unrestricted flame front and powerimprovements, better throttle response, and acceleration. The design ofthe plug is what's most interesting. Using a ground electrode designthat is retracted for maximum spark exposure, the massive groundelectrode is an integrated part of the shell, transferring heat moreeasily, improving the resistance to pre-ignition. Brisk's Premium plugsare available in three configurations, though we're using the popularLGS models in our testing. Companies such as Strictly Performance andLightning Force Performance are swearing by them (and selling them), sowe decided to give them a shot on the old dyno truth-o-meter with amildly tweaked '03 Cobra. We tested the original 14,000-mile sparkplugs, then threw in a set of direct replacement Motorcraft plugs, andfinally followed up with a set of Brisk LGS14s. Check out the results inthe sidebar above.

On the Dyno

The base pull on our '03 Cobra (with pulley, tune, and exhaust) was442.98 hp and 466.75 lb-ft of torque. The new Motorcraft plugs gave usan increase of 1.92 hp and 4.28 lb-ft of torque, while the Brisk Premiumplugs gave us an additional increase of 5.18 hp and another 0.5 lb-ft.That's a total of 7.10 hp and 4.78 lb-ft for a new best of 450.08 hp and471.53 lb-ft of torque. Not bad for a simple plug change.

Swapping plugs on a Cobra is rather easy with the plug location in thecenter of the cam cover. For the passenger side, the inlet tube willrequire removal first, then it's just a few bolts to remove thecoil-pack beauty cover.

The coil packs are situated over the spark plugs and are easily removedwith a twist and pull of the coil pack. You can leave the wiringharnesses connected and just lay the coil packs aside during removal ofthe plugs.

A standard 14mm plug socket and extension are all that's required toaccess the plugs. Make sure your plug socket has a strong rubber insert(a section of 3/8-inch hose will work in a pinch) to help pull the plugout of the depths of the cylinder heads.