Some very interesting info which exposes somewhat unlikely killers of ignition coils

[BMW540san]

After my recent saga with aftermarket Bremi coils dying relatively premature death, I educated myself little better on the subject.
This guy here is the real deal and while this was not my case, it does explain some very interesting things.
I can only imagine how many "professional" mechanic don't know this.
If you're interested, read the whole article and you'll probably learn something you didn't know (I sure did)
http://www.autoserviceprofessional.c...fire-diagnosis

[StRaNgEdAyS]

Great article!

Absinthe makes the tart grow fonder

[cnn]

The number 1 killer is HEAT.

Coil on plug became the industry standard in 1998 or so, eliminating the cap/rotor system. The initial thinking is "better ignition" b/c one eliminates the wear and tear of the cap/rotor and spark plug cables.

The cap/rotor system has its own beauty: the only ignition coil is usually mounted near the suspension tower and not exposed to engine heat.

The coil on plug: the coil is exposed to engine heat.

[philly98540]

Guy is a good tech writer. Good article.

I just bought some new Bosch OEM coil$ and boot$.

[BMW540san]

Guy is a good tech writer. Good article.

I just bought some new Bosch OEM coil$ and boot$.

Old girl will thank you.

[f355spider]

The number 1 killer is HEAT.

Coil on plug became the industry standard in 1998 or so, eliminating the cap/rotor system. The initial thinking is "better ignition" b/c one eliminates the wear and tear of the cap/rotor and spark plug cables.

The cap/rotor system has its own beauty: the only ignition coil is usually mounted near the suspension tower and not exposed to engine heat.

The coil on plug: the coil is exposed to engine heat.

Regardless of the heat concerns with coil on plug, in my experience, they sure last a long time. I have only replaced two (out of eight) of my oem Bremi. One failed at around 245k miles and another at around 255k miles. Both replaced with new Bremis. I replaced all the spark plug extensions at around 115k miles, and now I am replacing them with each replacement coil.

Have others experienced significantly shorter life on the coils? I have heard of spark plug extensions failing pretty regularly after 150k miles from some other forum posters before. But I have not experienced it, thus my extending the interval to replacement with a failed coil.

The problem with cap and rotor is you have all these components that need regular replacement. Caps and rotors typically were every 30k to 50k. Wire sets at 50k to 100k. Experienced techs I have spoken with claim coil on plug is infinitely more reliable and easier to diagnose when there is an ignition problem. None of them miss the old ignition systems...one older, well respected Ferrari tech I know even stated in a online forum: God bless coil on plug!

[edjack]

COP systems ensure much more precise ignition timing, too.

[Ed CT]

Good article - printed & archived for future reference. Thanks for posting BMW540san.

And, your Yugo sig reminds me of a colleague of 20 years ago who told me that he had bought a Yugo. I responded with "Wow. You're the only person I know who has ever bought one of these. Why? Why would you buy one?" He told me that the price was right for him, and the dealer gave him a money-back guarantee. The story continued with my friend driving the car for only 2 weeks after the purchase, and the car had to go back to the shop for repair. He never saw the car again, and actually did get a full refund.

[BMW540san]

Good article - printed & archived for future reference. Thanks for posting BMW540san.

And, your Yugo sig reminds me of a colleague of 20 years ago who told me that he had bought a Yugo. I responded with "Wow. You're the only person I know who has ever bought one of these. Why? Why would you buy one?" He told me that the price was right for him, and the dealer gave him a money-back guarantee. The story continued with my friend driving the car for only 2 weeks after the purchase, and the car had to go back to the shop for repair. He never saw the car again, and actually did get a full refund.

Funny story indeed.
Actually, there are plenty of Yugos on the roads of former Yugoslavia. Basically, considerable part of population is poor and they get very resourceful when it comes to fixing them up.
I could tell number of stories that probably wouldn't be believed by average American. There are some extremely good mechanics there that keep these cars running and performing small daily miracles.

[geargrinder]

Reminds me of another Yugo colleague story 20yrs ago... Buddy coworker of mine that was great guy but quirky kinda 'contrarian' type 'always want to do everything the different way just because' type actually had like 3 of them or something. He started buying them when Yugo US went under. He might even have gotten some of them for near free. Apparently parts were dirt cheap at that time too. He loved the things and went on and on about how he had no problems with them and if he did he had 3 spares for everything. Of course didn't seem like it to us since he'd periodically be driving some other car because something was up w/ the 'good Yugo'... but didn't stop him from loving them.

[Ed CT]

Reminds me of another Yugo colleague story 20yrs ago... Buddy coworker of mine that was great guy but quirky kinda 'contrarian' type 'always want to do everything the different way just because' type actually had like 3 of them or something. He started buying them when Yugo US went under. He might even have gotten some of them for near free. Apparently parts were dirt cheap at that time too. He loved the things and went on and on about how he had no problems with them and if he did he had 3 spares for everything. Of course didn't seem like it to us since he'd periodically be driving some other car because something was up w/ the 'good Yugo'... but didn't stop him from loving them.

Your colleague prolly thought that the Yugo was gonna turn out to be the next cultish, inexpensive-but-somewhat-reliable no-frills car that got millions from A to B for an initial cost of under $2000 Volkswagen Beetle. cip, a 1968 was about $1800. My father bought one so us kids wouldn't wreck his car when we were learning to drive. It was basically an appliance that you would dispose at 80,000 miles.

[Ed CT]

Funny story indeed.
Actually, there are plenty of Yugos on the roads of former Yugoslavia. Basically, considerable part of population is poor and they get very resourceful when it comes to fixing them up.
I could tell number of stories that probably wouldn't be believed by average American. There are some extremely good mechanics there that keep these cars running and performing small daily miracles.

Sounds like the current Yugos in the former Yugoslavia are analogous to all the American cars in Cuba, where they can't get replacement parts, but keep them running with mechanical innovation and bastardized parts from make/model cross-breeding.

[geargrinder]

Your colleague prolly thought that the Yugo was gonna turn out to be the next cultish, inexpensive-but-somewhat-reliable no-frills car that got millions from A to B for an initial cost of under $2000 Volkswagen Beetle.

Naww, not this guy so much. I mean if it happened he'd have loved that too but mainly he just always liked to be a contrarian and prove people wrong. "What!? Everybody says these cheap Yugos are terrible, but I can pick up a handful for next to nothing? How bad can they be? Theyre dead simple! What can break that I can't fix easily!? Good gas mileage! Ima gonna prove everybody wrong!"