Bought this car second hand, they apparently put iridium spark plugs in, but i want to know if I should be concerned with the buildup and rusty appearance it's developed. For all I know this spark plug could be from 10 years ago.
Do I need to replace the plugs, and is that actually rust? Does this mean I have an issue with my head gasket?
Edit: Thanks guys! I'll be ordering some new plugs soon.
It looks pretty normal, just high mileage tbh. Some brown deposits naturally happen from minor amounts of engine oil being burned over time, fuel contaminants, and air contaminants. No white or thick black deposits which would indicate worse issues (white is coolant usually, thick black is high oil consumption).
Look up the OE gap for your engine and compare it. Iridium fine-wires generally don't wear until the iridium is all gone so they're probably fine... Be extremely careful, the fine wire is easy to destroy-use no force with feeler gauges.