October 2001 -- My first introduction to
Nology HotWires came when I stopped by a local off-road shop to
talk to the owner about getting some work done. They had a Nology
display set up on their counter- with a HotWire on one side and a
"leading" wire on the other, both hooked up to a coil with a
button, which ignited a lightning bolt of a spark.
Here you can see the snug fit
of the HotWires.
The guy behind the counter said I had to check
them out: "You won't believe the results."
I pushed the button and was amazed. The HotWire spark was more
intense than any wire I've seen, especially the one sitting right
beside it. It was like night and day. He had told me he'd been
pretty skeptical about the results when he first saw it. But after
swapping them in, he was convinced of the wire's prowess.
I asked him about the company, Nology, and found
they were located only a few miles down the road. I called to talk
to the sales manager, and he invited me down to their production
facility to learn more about their products.
The main principle behind Hotwires is a short and very intense
spark, which is achieved through a capacitor in each wire that
stores the ignition charge until it is full, then releases it over
an ultra-short duration.
A normal spark
will last around 1-3 milliseconds, but the HotWires spark lasts
only 4 nanoseconds (billionths of a second). Anyone who had physics
in college knows the formula for power- (P=W/t). Thus, to get more
power, you need to do the same amount of work in less time.
Check out the uniformity the
slick wire seperators provide to the thick wires.
Most aftermarket ignition systems claim that they
have long spark duration. However, lengthening the spark duration
actually reduces spark power, P=W/t (Power=Energy/Time). If you
could slow time to watch a HotWires spark occur in a period of one
second, by comparison, a conventional spark would take 47 days. A
good analogy would be if you were to burn 1,000 gallons of gasoline
over a period of 47 days, or blow it up, all at once, in a gigantic
explosion lasting only 1 second, (P=W/t). The energy released is
the same, but the latter is much more powerful.
After talking with the sales manager and looking at results
from the extensive testing they have done, I was sold. I ordered a
set of red HotWires (they are also available in black, blue or
yellow), which they build to order for each individual engine. The
most noticeable difference in HotWires from normal plug wires is
the larger diameter due to the capacitor and the ground strap
attached to each wire. The quality of the wires is excellent. The
wire is insulated with a silicon-covered fiberglass that is rated
up to 1300F, and the boots are securely glued to the insulation so
they can't slide around during installation.
Installation of HotWires is very straightforward. The only
difference with HotWires from that of ordinary wires is that the
ground straps need to be connected to the engine. This is usually
done using the valve cover bolts. Everything else was simple.
HotWires are available with separators that fit the larger diameter
wires and keep the installation clean and organized.
Here's what Nology shows in
their comparison to a leading manufacturer. On the left, the
competition. On the right, Nology's spark.
After installation, I re-checked the ignition
timing as recommended from the directions. It was still set
correctly, and the engine was idling smoother than a Swiss
clock.
Finally, I attached the supplied
C.A.R.B. (California Air Resources Board) sticker to the firewall
to ensure I wouldn't have any problems the next time I had to get
my truck smogged. All HotWires manufactured for stock applications
are 50 state smog legal.
As I installed the
wires on a completely new engine, I do not have any "before" and
"after" comparisons of HotWires. However, I now have over 4000
miles of hard desert running on the engine, and I have had
absolutely no problems, even after the adventure we took the rig in
Baja.
Nology not only manufactures
HotWires, but a complete line of ignition components, including
coils, coil amplifiers, HEI ignition modules, and lubricants. They
are available for most engines out there, including motorcycles,
boats, and full-blown race engines. If they don't list something
for your particular application, they should be able to make it for
you. The best place to check out their complete line of products is
their website, www.nology.com. Or, you can reach them at the
following:
Nology Engineering, Inc.
1-800-NOLOGY1 (665-6491)
1945 S. Rancho Santa Fe Rd.
San Marcos, CA 92069 USA www.nology.com sales@nology.com
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