FIAT Chooses NGK Spark Plug Europe as Exclusive Supplier of Spark Plugs and Lambda Sensors for the New Panda

NGK designed the LKR7DI-12 spark plug to meet the demands of FIAT’s new TwinAir Naturally Aspirated engine, which debuts under the hood of the new Panda and will form the Group’s new standard for compact cars. As the downsized two-cylinder engine is exceptionally small and requires large cooling ducts, there is limited space available for a spark plug. The LKR7DI-12 spark plug was therefore designed with a slim and long-reaching, 26.5 mm M12 thread.

As the TwinAir Naturally Aspirated engine features a variable valve control to adapt the charging state to the current driving situation, the LKR7DI-12 faces challenging combustion conditions, such as high charge motion and quickly changing air-fuel ratios. To meet these requirements, the spark plug features a centre electrode with laser-welded Iridium tip. Due to its high melting point (2466 °C) and hardness, this precious metal is extremely resistant against spark erosion, allowing for a centre electrode with a diameter of only 0.6 mm. Due to its slim design, more ignitable air-fuel mixture comes close to the spark, safeguarding ignition reliability and engine efficiency, even under high cylinder pressures and along the entire service life.

Additionally, NGK is the sole supplier of Lambda sensors for the new Panda or the TwinAir Naturally Aspirated engine respectively. NGK supplies FIAT with the UAA0001-FA003 from the NTK brand as regulating Lambda sensor. It was selected due to its fast light-off time, its responsiveness and precision, as well as its resistance to water splash. The second-generation wideband Lambda sensor is capable not only of detecting the airflow and the air-fuel ratio at the stoichiometric operating point, but over a wide range of operating points. In doing so, it is a vital part of the variable TwinAir system, which requires a very high accuracy of the air-fuel ratio within a number of different charging states. As diagnostic sensor controlling the overall performance of the regulating sensor downstream of the catalytic converter, Fiat chose NTK’s binary OZA629-A3 zirconium oxide Lambda sensor.

Acting in concert, the LKR7DI-12 spark plug with the UAA0001-FA003 wideband sensor and the OZA629-A3 binary sensor contribute significantly to making the FIAT Panda with its TwinAir Naturally Aspirated engine one of the cleanest cars of our times.

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Tel.: (+49)2102/974-102
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