Spark Of Life: Project Honey Badger’s LS Ignition Upgrade

Our 2000 C5 Corvette, Project Honey Badger, has been fighting us with a persistent issue of dying during deceleration. The culprit? The twelve-year-old LS ignition system with about 40,000 miles on it sure isn’t helping. The miles might be low, but the plug wires are showing their age. While diagnosing electrical issues isn’t always straightforward, this one pointed clearly to degraded spark delivery.

Standard LS1 plug wires typically run between 350 and 1,000 ohms of resistance per foot. After a decade of heat cycles and engine vibration, our aging wires were well past their prime. The ECU struggled to maintain proper control during critical moments, specifically when transitioning from high RPM back to idle.

LS Ignition

We turned to Scott Performance Wire for their LS-specific wire set, hand-built right here in America. These aren’t standard replacement wires; they’re engineered with just 30 ohms of resistance per foot, dramatically improving conductivity compared to stock specifications. The construction is equally impressive: 10mm diameter wires featuring a fiberglass jacket protecting helically wound alloy cores. This design provides excellent noise suppression while delivering an optimal spark.

When ordering, we gave Scott Performance free rein on color choice. They sent us their wires in fluorescent green – a bold choice that makes a statement in the engine bay. The fact that they can double as glow sticks will help draw attention away from a dirty engine bay. The wire set comes equipped with application-specific boots: 90-degree boots for the coil side and 45-degree boots for the plugs, ensuring proper fitment in the tight confines of the LS engine bay.

Even with headers, the C5 engine pay is packed tight. The boot angle is a perfect fit that keeps the wires a safe distance from the headers heat.

While we had everything apart, we opted to replace the spark plugs with NGK TR5s. These plugs might be budget-friendly, but they’ve earned a solid reputation for LS ignition systems for reliable performance. The combination of new plugs and wires gave us a fresh start for the ignition system.

 

The transformation was immediate and noticeable. The first starts were stronger, with the engine responding more crisply to throttle inputs. More importantly, the ECU finally had clean signals to work with. The car now maintains steady operation during deceleration instead of falling on its face after aggressive acceleration. The improved conductivity of the Scott wires provides the consistent spark delivery needed for proper engine management.

LS Ignition

The 10mm diameter provides durability without sacrificing flexibility, while the fiberglass jacket ensures longevity under harsh engine bay conditions.

This upgrade is a crucial step in the Project Honey Badger resurrection. With reliable spark delivery now sorted, we can focus on tracking down the remaining fueling gremlins. The Scott Performance wires provide the consistent signal quality our ECU needs to maintain proper engine management, especially during critical transitions from high load to idle.

While bright green spark plug wires might seem like an unconventional choice, they serve as a visible reminder that sometimes fixing complex issues starts with getting the basics. Now that Project Honey Badger stays running consistently, we can move forward with confidence in our ignition system’s performance. There’s still diagnostic work ahead, but at least we know we’re working from a solid foundation.

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About the author

Caecey Killian

I’d rather spend a night in the garage than a night out on the town. With over 10 years of experience building cars and going fast, I am still just as excited to keep learning and keep going faster.
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