Ignition Coil Question

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zero18

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I have a slight miss.. about every 30 seconds to a minute only at idle

can the coils go bad intermittently?? or do they just go all together?

if they can be intermitten.. how do I get them tested? dont want to buy 6 of them
 
Intermittently, almost always.
There is a stress testing procedure using a scope. (Testing with an ohm meter won't catch it.) The stress testing costs more than just replacing all the coils with new ones.

All that said, if this is only at idle and never while cruising or accelerating, you may have some other problem.
 
Be sure to replace all six spark plugs at the same time.
 
Yup ... at least each or every second day on this LVC forum, the new threads are started by new concerned members about a misfiring LS.

These LS'es are reaching 10+ years old, the Coil Over Plug, AKA COPS are firing at immense heat cycles, the Lincoln LS is notorious for burning through COPS.

Between the Coils and Plugs, the excessive heat cycling is bound to thermally break down internally over time and requires refreshing of such parts in order to return to a fresh strong cylinder combustion. The insides of the COPS can only handle so much before they are worn out/done and need replacement. Part of owning a car is that some parts get thrown at it from time to time. Like fluids, Filters, Coil & Plugs are some of the essentials that will need refreshing. Your basic TLC tune up stuff.

No sense bitching ... all part of owning a car that's aging and getting up there in the mileage.
 
I still prefer replacing coils and plugs every 50K-100K miles vs. points and plugs every 8K-12K miles; and having to gap them every 3K or so. Then there is replacing the plug wires, distributor cap and rotor at about the same interval.
 
LS4me said:
I still prefer replacing coils and plugs every 50K-100K miles vs. points and plugs every 8K-12K miles; and having to gap them every 3K or so. Then there is replacing the plug wires, distributor cap and rotor at about the same interval.
Click to expand...
Don't forget carburetor adjustments and rebuilds. One of my favorites was automatic chokes that almost never quite worked right.
 
joegr said:
Don't forget carburetor adjustments and rebuilds. One of my favorites was automatic chokes that almost never quite worked right.
Click to expand...

And failed diaphragms in the mechanical fuel pumps.
 
LS4me said:
I still prefer replacing coils and plugs every 50K-100K miles vs. points and plugs every 8K-12K miles; and having to gap them every 3K or so. Then there is replacing the plug wires, distributor cap and rotor at about the same interval.
Click to expand...


< dreams back to the days when we used to advance timing by slightly turning the distributor cap and locking it in,
then turning the breather element cover upside down on the old 4 barrels >
 
BigRigLS said:
< dreams back to the days when we used to advance timing by slightly turning the distributor cap and locking it in,
then turning the breather element upside down on the old 4 barrels >
Click to expand...

Ahhhh..... The memories..... No need for a timing light anymore....
 
Those ignition coils don't normally go out. What does happen though, the valve cover gaskets leak, the little round ones around each spark plug port, 4 on each bank. When they leak, oil builds up within the spark plug galley an then it pools when enough seeps in there. Next, the spark plug wire/spring that fits onto the spark plug on one end and the coil on the other finds the pool of oil and then the spark shorts out which in turn yields a misfire. As these gaskets fail, it continues.

The V8's are more prone to this issue than V6's are however, before buying coils on a whim, inspect the port or galley where the spark plug is and confirm there is no oil seepage in there. If so, it's likely not the coil but a short between the coil and spark plug spring/extension wire. It finds the liquid sometimes and gives the impression there's a miss due to something else.

I have a 2001 V8 (1st generation) and had the same symtoms only as if there were two or three plugs missing fire etc when accelerating. Did some research on the matter and had a few recommendations to choose from. Finally decided to go with the valve cover gaskets as there was oil in one of the spark plug ports. Never had to buy one coil as problem went away due to no moisture inside the spark plug galley/port. It was the round doughnut gaskets at each spark plug location.
 
AutumnRed said:
Those ignition coils don't normally go out. What does happen though, the valve cover gaskets leak, the little round ones around each spark plug port, 4 on each bank. When they leak, oil builds up within the spark plug galley an then it pools when enough seeps in there. Next, the spark plug wire/spring that fits onto the spark plug on one end and the coil on the other finds the pool of oil and then the spark shorts out which in turn yields a misfire. As these gaskets fail, it continues.

The V8's are more prone to this issue than V6's are however, before buying coils on a whim, inspect the port or galley where the spark plug is and confirm there is no oil seepage in there. If so, it's likely not the coil but a short between the coil and spark plug spring/extension wire. It finds the liquid sometimes and gives the impression there's a miss due to something else.

I have a 2001 V8 (1st generation) and had the same symtoms only as if there were two or three plugs missing fire etc when accelerating. Did some research on the matter and had a few recommendations to choose from. Finally decided to go with the valve cover gaskets as there was oil in one of the spark plug ports. Never had to buy one coil as problem went away due to no moisture inside the spark plug galley/port. It was the round doughnut gaskets at each spark plug location.
Click to expand...

Sorry, but you are very much wrong. All of my coil failures have been without any oil. Ford themselves finally determined that the failures are due to "high voltage breakdown of the internal epoxy." This is in the letter extending the coverage for coil failure on the 2003-2005 V8s to 10 years/100K miles.
Yes, there are some failures due to the reasons you give, but it is a mistake to claim that all are due to that.
 
Had an OEM 2006 coil fail at 55K, then two more at 65K. I just gave up, replaced all the plugs and did the Stealth Accel COP conversion at 74K-mi. Been running great since and no more spark-knock sounding precursor to the next coil failure. :)

But at 74K miles the plug wells looked immaculate. I even re-used the stock lincoln boots on my conversion. So a testimonial that the COPs just fail like Joe said.
 
joegr said:
Intermittently, almost always.
There is a stress testing procedure using a scope. (Testing with an ohm meter won't catch it.)
Click to expand...

Can you explain the procedure for this? I have access to a dual channel o-scope.
 
I put in e3 spark plugs monday and noticed my cop's were different
6 had a yellow sticker on top and some square shaped bump
2 didn't have the sticker or the bump
Are the ones with the yellow sticker oem

20130624_105822.jpg
 
LS4me said:
I still prefer replacing coils and plugs every 50K-100K miles vs. points and plugs every 8K-12K miles; and having to gap them every 3K or so. Then there is replacing the plug wires, distributor cap and rotor at about the same interval.
Click to expand...
What? No Condenser???
 
Ok so where is the best place/deal to buy 8 coils for a 02 V8 at this time? Im trying not to pay $60 each for them. Anyone know ?
 
jgscott said:
Ok so where is the best place/deal to buy 8 coils for a 02 V8 at this time? Im trying not to pay $60 each for them. Anyone know ?
Click to expand...

Similar question...
Amazon has them for, 8 for $65. Anybody ever use them?

http://www.amazon.com/DG509-DG515-D...TF8&colid=2C5J5X43I4UAJ&coliid=I24GGMQAYSX5D1

I'm looking for something to last at least 6 months to a year.
I have no love for my LS anymore...After the tractor trailer accident.
65k and I'm done with it. It developed a miss in June and has just been sitting in the garage ever since, I just don't care anymore.
Best car I've ever had and I can't stand to look at it...
 
best place now since the Visteon coils are no longer available on ebay is to get the autozone or better yet the advanced autoparts (with discount code) since they offer a lifetime warranty and this item fails all the time on the LS just get all of them and when they die just go back and replace them for free. the ones now on ebay are crap and the motorcraft ones you need the latest version I think its DG526 but that's like 60 or 70 a pop and they will fail.
 
The progression in Motorcraft Part Number for the V8 ignition coils (oldest to newest) is:

DG-477
DG-490
DG-499
DG-509
DG-515
DG-529

While DG-529 is the latest Motorcraft revision, the DG-515 is still available and FordParts.COM lists it as the current replacement part if you do a part number search based on your vehicle. Not sure why. Rock Auto lists only the DG-529 as the Motorcraft replacement (plus a bunch of AM alternates). If you do an interchange search on DG-515 at the Ford Site they list DG-529 the replacement. The DG-529 is about $15 more expensive than the DG-515 from on-line dealers. I have no idea if the DG-529 is really better than DG-515, but if I as replacing a coil pack, it is what I would order despite the higher cost.

Ed
 
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