6 TELL-TALE SYMPTOMS OF BAD IGNITION COILS -

What you’ll see here are some of the most common bad ignition coil symptoms.

This is a pretty rare car problem since ignition coils are durable and last very long.

But when it happens, it affects the engine combustion as the ignition coils provide the high voltage for the spark plugs.

Then you get problems with how the engine runs and other symptoms that we’ll show you.

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BAD IGNITION COIL SYMPTOMS

For your information, very similar symptoms appear when the spark plugs are bad.

If you want to see a video about this and perhaps make the whole situation clearer click here.

If you prefer to read an article about spark plugs, then click here.

Besides this article about bad ignition coil symptoms, you have our other article, which explains this topic in much more detail. Click here to read it.

1. ENGINE RUNS ROUGH

The first bad ignition coil symptom is that the engine runs rough.

At one moment it will work normally and smoothly the next it will sound like one cylinder isn’t working.

Know that this symptom usually appears at the very beginning of the problem and may be hard to notice at first.

2. ENGINE MISFIRE AND BACKFIRE

A bad ignition coil means a weak spark or no spark at all. This affects the engine combustion causing a serious case of engine misfire and backfire.

You’ll easily notice it since it sounds, in most cases like a loud bang from the exhaust which can be occasional or present all the time.

Besides this, you may notice the engine sputtering.

3. THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT APPEARS

By this time, the check engine light will almost certainly appear. In some cases, it may appear at the very beginning of the problem while in others, it may appear when the misfiring begins.

In some cars, other warning lights or notifications may also appear since it’s an electrical fault.

For more information on reasons for a check engine light, click here.

4. LOSS OF ENGINE POWER

You will also notice a massive loss in engine power mainly through very weak acceleration.

This goes double if one cylinder isn’t working, not only will the acceleration be poor but the engine will sound like it’s going to jump out of the engine bay.

5. LONG CRANKING

One more bad ignition coil symptom is long cranking. Instead of the usual instant engine start, you may have to crank long or crank several times.

You’ll hear the engine wanting to start but then the cranking continues.

6. CRACKING SOUND FROM THE ENGINE BAY

The last bad ignition coil symptom we’ll mention is a slight cracking sound coming from the engine bay while the engine is running.

This happens when the insulation of the ignition coil gets damaged for some reason.

Simply put, the spark doesn’t go to the spark plug but jumps to the engine block, much like when there’s a cracked ignition cable for instance.

If you were to watch this happen when it’s dark, you could even see the spark.

CONCLUSION

Ignition coils mostly fail due to material fatigue. Heat and high voltage takes their toll over time.

In most cases, the coils are considered a part that should be replaced under a certain maintenance interval.

Be sure to also check the connections to the igntion coils. The wiring can become brittle over time and break which means less or no contact and this means a weak spark or no spark at all.

Of course, check that the spark plugs are in good condition.

The moment you notice any of these bad ignition coil symptoms, check out what’s wrong. If the engine runs rough and unevenly for a longer period of time, it can suffer damage.