Glow Plugs: Getting the best diesel start in Winter

As the peak season for replacing glow plugs approaches, be ready for winter demand by stocking up on the best performing cold weather glow plugs.

Glow plug failure is highest during colder weather when the temperature drops – in fact 80% of replacement glow plug demand occurs between September and March. Although there are several different types of glow plug on the market, to ensure optimum ignition performance after replacement it is vital to know which technologies perform particularly well in colder weather.

Fanis Kapetanakis, Product Manager, Glow Plugs at DENSO Europe After Market, confirms: “In winter there are two types of glow plug that can be particularly recommended for diesel cars: Ceramic and Instant Heating. These technologies provide an extremely reliable, rapid cold start, especially in winter.”

“Instant heating glow plugs in particular are likely to become more prevalent in the future, both as original equipment and in the aftermarket,” he continues. “DENSO’s Instant Heating Glow Plugs even offer a unique advantage – with a heat-up time of around 2 seconds they achieve the fastest start of any glow plugs in the world.”

Drawing on DENSO’s heritage as a world leader in OEM diesel systems, DENSO After Market’s OE quality Glow Plugs programme is widely regarded as one of the best for quality, choice and performance. Each of its ranges – Double Coil, Extended Post-Heating, Ceramic and Instant Heating - offers fast heat-up times, outstanding reliability and extended post-heat temperatures that help to signi­ficantly reduce vehicle exhaust emissions. The programme includes 128 part references providing 2,900 applications and 98% car parc coverage. Recently added applications include: Audi A3, Citroen C2, Fiat Panda, SEAT Leon and Renault Clio II.

“Diesel cars represented more than 50% of new cars registered in the European Union in 2010*, and the share continues to grow,” explains Fanis Kapetanakis. “Performance diesel cars are becoming more acceptable and there is every indication that we could see a trend towards more sporty applications for diesel cars.”

“Emission limits for diesel engines will continue to fall in line with European legislation. Euro 6, which comes into force in 2014, will impact on the size of engines as manufactures work towards meeting the target. By choosing the right Glow Plug technologies, distributors and garages can ensure they serve this important market well all year round.”