Can Spark Plugs Cause Car Not to Start? (Explained)

Spark plugs are one of the most important parts of an engine. They are responsible for helping the engine when it comes to producing power through ignition. Today, we are going to discuss and find out whether spark plugs can cause car not to start.

Can spark plugs cause the car not to start?

Spark plugs can make starting the car difficult if they become bad due to some reason. Faulty spark plugs will not be able to create ignition inside the engine which will cause the car not to start. Faulty spark plugs should be repaired or replaced immediately for optimum engine performance.

Let’s look at different states of spark plugs and find out if they cause car not to start.

Wet spark plugs:

The spark plugs become wet as a result of car not being to start itself. When you try to start the engine and it keeps stalling, the engine becomes flooded as a consequence.

When the engine continues to flood, the spark plugs get wet in the process.

Wet spark plugs can not produce the spark or ignition that the engine requires. As a result, the car will not be able to start itself. So in short, the spark plugs can become wet as a result of engine failure and can cause the car not to start too.

Oil in spark plugs:

Oil can get into your spark plugs if there is a oil leakage inside the engine. Oil can potentially damage the wires and coils of your spark plugs. When oil gets into your spark plugs, they are not able to produce the ignition that the engine needs.

This series of events causes the car not to start. So oil in spark plugs should not be taken lightly and requires immediate replacement of the spark plugs.

Bad spark plugs:

Like other parts of the engine, spark plugs also do not last for a lifetime. They can become bad or faulty for several reasons. For example, your spark plugs can become clogged due to carbon build up and lose their effectiveness.

When the spark plugs become bad, they will not be able to supply the engine with the requited spark and ignition. As a result, the engine will fail to start the car.

Can one spark plug cause car not to start?

There are usually four spark plugs inside the engine of a car. But the number of spark plugs can change according to the number of engine cylinders.

Usually, the general thumb of rule is to have one spark plug for one cylinder. So a four cylinder car will have four spark plugs in it.

The four spark plugs is responsible for sending ignition and spark to their concerned cylinder.

If one of the spark plugs become bad and can not provide ignition and spark to its concerned cylinder, then the engine will fail collectively even if the other spark plugs remain good.

Each spark plug is crucial for the engine as it helps the car to start. All the spark plugs have to be replaced even if one of them becomes faulty to maintain the optimum performance.

3 reasons why spark plugs cause the car not to start

When the spark plugs become faulty or bad, it causes the car not to start. There are several reasons behind this failure. Let’s discuss in detail about them.

Failure to ignite:

Spark plugs are a crucial part of the car engine. Each engine cylinder has a spark plug attached to it. The main purpose of spark plugs is to create ignition inside the engine.

This ignition is mandatory for the engine in order to start the car. If your spark plugs wear out for some reason, it will fail to ignite the engine.

The failure of ignition due to bad spark plugs is one of the main reasons why your car might not be able to start itself.

Faulty air-fuel mixture:

The spark plugs work together with the ignition coil to help the car to start. When the spark plugs become faulty, it can not support the ignition coil whose primary purpose is to ignite the air and fuel mixture of the engine.

Faulty air-fuel mixture inside the engine will cause the car not to start.

Ineffective engine:

When the spark plugs go bad, they can not produce the ignition and spark the car engine desperately needs. As a result, the car engine become ineffective. An ineffective engine can not help the car to start itself.

What are the symptoms of bad spark plugs? How do you diagnose spark plug problems?

A bad spark plug will show several symptoms and signs. Let’s discuss in detail about them to find out how you can diagnose spark plug problems.

Acceleration problem:

Your car will have problem to accelerate if your spark plugs become bad or faulty. The main job of spark plugs is to create ignition or spark inside the engine cylinders. When they fail to do so, your car will have trouble to accelerate.

This is one of the major symptoms of bad spark plugs that can help you to diagnose the problem.

Increased fuel consumption:

Spark plugs are important for maintaining the air-fuel mixture of your car engine. If your spark plugs become bad, they will not be able to maintain the optimum air-fuel mixture.

This will increase the fuel consumption of your car significantly. If you notice your car consuming more fuel than earlier, it is better to check if the spark plugs have gone bad.

Poor engine performance:

The overall performance of your engine will become poor if the spark plugs become bad or faulty.

The engine cylinders will start to misfire if the spark plugs become bad and fail to create ignition and spark inside the cylinders. Strange noises will come out from the engine cylinders when they start to misfire due to bad spark plugs.

Bad spark plugs will also cause the engine to run rough. Faulty spark plugs should be replaced immediately to ensure the optimum performance of the engine.

Starting problem:

Your car will fail to start itself if the spark plugs become bad. The ignition coil and spark plugs are responsible for creating ignition and spark inside the ignition chamber.

If you have trouble to start your car, then the spark should be checked and replaced immediately.

What causes spark plugs to stop working?

Spark plugs can stop working due to several reasons. But the most common reason of faulty spark plugs is excessive dirt and carbon build up inside the plugs.

When the spark plugs become clogged due to these elements, they can not do their primary job of transmitting electrons. As a result, they fail to perform their operation and the car can not start itself.

Other reasons of faulty spark plugs include continuous overheating of the plugs and insufficient gap inside the plugs. When one of the spark plugs become bad, it is wise to replace all of them at once. Your car needs effective spark plugs to start.

How to start a car with bad spark plugs?

Bad spark plugs will make it difficult to start your car. When this happens, you can try the steps and methods below to start your successfully.

The preheat method:

Spark plugs go bad particularly in cold conditions due to low temperatures. That is why it is more difficult to start your car in cold conditions. You can attempt to preheat your spark plugs using an oven or a heating torch to get rid of this problem.

The gaping method:

The space that you notice between the center and ground electrode is known as the gap in spark plugs.

You can try to alter the gap inside your spark plugs to make the transmission of electrons smooth and easy. Spark plugs with too much or too less gap will make transmission of electrons difficult.

Inspect your spark plugs:

Sometimes the small parts of your spark plugs might be loose which causes the spark plugs to be ineffective.

Specially, wire ends of the spark plugs should be inspected carefully as they are responsible for transmission of electrons. The wire ends should be tightened for smooth transmission of electrons.

Wash your spark plugs:

One of the major reasons why your spark plugs might have gone bad is the build up of oil and carbon inside the plugs.

The unwanted oil and carbon build up inside your spark plugs make the transmission of electrons difficult. You can get rid of carbon and oil build up by washing your spark plugs thoroughly.

Final Thoughts

Spark plugs can certainly cause the car not to start due to ineffectiveness. When the spark plugs become bad, they are not capable of igniting the air-fuel mixture inside the engine which makes starting the car difficult. Spark plugs need to be cleaned regularly to prevent it from going bad.