Modern cars may use one ignition coil for each cylinder or pair of cylinders, and do not require a distributor. If your car has individual coils for each cylinder or pair of cylinders, they may be all contained inside of one single molded block with multiple high-tension terminals, which is commonly called a coil pack.
Distributors started becoming less common in the late s. In modern ignition systems, ignition is electronically controlled. In most cars, a failing ignition coil or coil pack will also cause a check engine light.
However, keep in mind that a check engine light may be caused by a wide variety of other issues, so having the computer trouble codes read by a professional is highly recommended. Modern ignition coils are much smaller because they only need to power one or two spark plugs each. They can be mounted either remotely or directly on top of the spark plug — called coil-on-plug or Direct Ignition.
As the mechanical distributor was replaced with electronically controlled signals, spark was passed through a single coil. In most 4-cylinder engines today, a wasted spark ignition system sends a spark to opposing cylinders on intake and exhaust strokes simultaneously. One cylinder is at top dead center and fires on the power stroke while the cylinder on the exhaust stroke allows burned combustion gases to escape out the exhaust.
V6 and V8 engines firing on opposite banks generally use a coil pack with normal looking ignition wires. Generally speaking, coil packs produce better horsepower for today's high-performance engines. To learn more about replacement ignition parts for your car or truck, visit Ignition Wires and Coils page on the E3 Spark Plugs website.
Toggle navigation. As explained above, most modern engines have multiple ignition coils. If you have several bad ignition coils, you could have a faulty ignition and difficulty starting your engine.
If your engine misfires or stalls when you are idle or when you stop suddenly or accelerate, there could be a problem with your ignition coil. Misfires are more likely to occur when the engine is under strain, and they can generate emissions. This is why increased emissions and the smell of gas coming from the exhaust are symptoms of a bad ignition coil.
A faulty ignition coil can also cause the car to stall because of irregular sparks sent by the spark plug due to the faulty coil. If you notice that your car is getting less mileage from a full tank than usual, it could mean that you have a bad ignition coil.
This also means that fuel leaks can be a symptom of a bad ignition coil. Poor fuel economy can also be caused by a failing MAF sensor or a dirty engine filter, so these potential issues need to be ruled out as well.
The easiest way to understand why an engine light is on is with an OBD-II on-board diagnostics check. Codes P to P indicate misfires, while codes P to P are for ignition coil issues. There are many different types of ignition coils that you should be aware of when trying to fix an ignition coil problem. For example, here are three different ignition coil types:. There is one ignition coil per cylinder, with each coil connected to the spark plug.
In this case, the coils would be attached to the plug by short plug wires.
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