Aftermarket coil pack on my GTI Turbo

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Bilkob
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Aftermarket coil pack on my GTI Turbo

Post by Bilkob »

My recently acquired GTI T1 S2 has been fitted (bodged) with an aftermarket coil pack. I have NO idea where it's from
Couple of questions..
Would these cause the slightly 'woofly' starting and jerky throttle response
Should I endeavour to fit some standard coils if at all possible?
I should point out that the car runs like a train, so I don't want to bugger it up! :shock:
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Re: Aftermarket coil pack on my GTI Turbo

Post by ekjdm14 »

I suppose it *could* cause those symptoms, but if you're getting a good strong spark hot & cold plus the timing is right then I would look towards other areas.

That said, without knowing the specs/origin/quality of said coil packs & the conversion (the word bodge suggests random coils that were handy and a few iffy crimps) it would be preferable to have a standard setup in good health as a starting point for any other diagnostic work since it would be a known quantity....

Could you possibly upload a couple of photos of the current set up, maybe somebody will recognise the coils at least & we can get a better clue as to the quality of the bodge. Ford EDIS coil packs are a common one, and a bloody good (known to physically explode dirty/worn out plug leads in fact!) & reliable coil given proper installation so it may not be all bad...
'95 Xantia LX 1.9D-auto, Black, 109k
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Re: Aftermarket coil pack on my GTI Turbo

Post by wurlycorner »

Yep, pics please.
The oem coils went NFP about 20 years ago and there was an alternative set up available. It may be that you have them, in which case... They would be fine.
Can probably tell from pics.

For dodgy starting and jerky throttle response though, I would start by checking that the inlet pipe is firmly attached to the turbo (jubilee clip nice and tight). Mine were forever coming loose (I think because the rubber intake pipe had gone hard over the years) and causing that sort of issue.

Aside from that, the usual things... Check all electrical connections to sensors etc around the engine are nice and tight.

If it were any other car, I'd recommend checking vac lines, but since every single one of those is split/loose/falling off on the T2 I bought a couple of years ago and it still starts and runs absolutely perfectly... I'm wondering if they are all pretty superfluous :lol:
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Bilkob
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Re: Aftermarket coil pack on my GTI Turbo

Post by Bilkob »

Pics of coil pack and ah, hmm, wiring!! :shock:
I tried to tidy the wiring up last week, and I bolted the coils to a mount, they were previously cable tied to the inlet tube!!
The two 3 pin multi plugs are still there, so i could I guess go back to original coils, but if these are identified as ok I'll leave well alone
As I mentioned, the car does pull cleanly and like a bloody train!
Out of interest, are there any 'base' settings for the knurled idle screw and the 5mm grub screw on the air flow meter?
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Bilkob
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Re: Aftermarket coil pack on my GTI Turbo

Post by Bilkob »

Any thoughts on these coils??
ekjdm14
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'03 206 1.9TD - home-built veg-fuelled B-road bruiser
'99 306 SE 2.0i cabriolet - 92k awaiting service work ready for next summer
'97 306 XS 1.6i 3 door, Bianca White, from dead 12 years & seized solid to road legal in 7 days
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Re: Aftermarket coil pack on my GTI Turbo

Post by ekjdm14 »

Sorry I missed this, they don't look like a Ford DIS unit but not a huge amount of difference. They *might* be Vauxhall though from my limited experience of those (I also experienced a failed one in a Daewoo with the XE engine that caused missing/cutting out when hot) To that end, if they turn out to not be the "approved" upgrade I would probably either locate an original setup or (perhaps more likely) get hold of a Ford item and wire that in properly.

A quick & dirty check of whether the coil pack you have is any good is, apart from the obvious primary/secondary resistance checks if you can find the spec, is to clean them up thoroughly and check for any cracks in the resin part that the terminals are set in.
'95 Xantia LX 1.9D-auto, Black, 109k
'03 206 GTi180 94k in surgery
'03 206 1.1S XUD9TE/veg project :mrgreen:
'99 306 2.0SE cabriolet 95k summer toy
'97 306 XS 1.6i 99k sat 12 years, fixed in 7 days, 150mile maiden voyage :rofl2:
Bilkob
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Re: Aftermarket coil pack on my GTI Turbo

Post by Bilkob »

Thanks for replies.
So, which Ford coil pack am I after?
Also, Forgive my potential ignorance but how does a coil pack work? How does it know when to fire?
Has anyone got an original working set up?
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Re: Aftermarket coil pack on my GTI Turbo

Post by myglaren »

Culled from our reliable source of information, Wikipedia.
In modern systems, the distributor is omitted and ignition is instead electronically controlled. Much smaller coils are used with one coil for each spark plug or one coil serving two spark plugs (for example two coils in a four-cylinder engine, or three coils in a six-cylinder engine). A large ignition coil puts out about 40 kV, and a small one such as from a lawn mower puts out about 15 kV. These coils may be remotely mounted or they may be placed on top of the spark plug (coil-on-plug or Direct Ignition). Where one coil serves two spark plugs (in two cylinders), it is through the "wasted spark" system. In this arrangement, the coil generates two sparks per cycle to both cylinders. The fuel in the cylinder that is nearing the end of its compression stroke is ignited, whereas the spark in its companion that is nearing the end of its exhaust stroke has no effect. The wasted spark system is more reliable than a single coil system with a distributor and less expensive than coil-on-plug.

Where coils are individually applied per cylinder, they may all be contained in a single molded block with multiple high-tension terminals. This is commonly called a coil-pack.

A bad coil pack may cause a misfire, bad fuel consumption or loss of power.
ekjdm14
(Donor 2020)
Posts: 1810
Joined: 19 Jan 2015, 17:42
Location: Congleton
Lexia Available: Yes
My Cars: '95 Xantia 1.9D automatic - 109k one of two remaining
'03 206 GTi180 - 97k in pieces being brought back up to snuff
'03 206 1.9TD - home-built veg-fuelled B-road bruiser
'99 306 SE 2.0i cabriolet - 92k awaiting service work ready for next summer
'97 306 XS 1.6i 3 door, Bianca White, from dead 12 years & seized solid to road legal in 7 days
x 212

Re: Aftermarket coil pack on my GTI Turbo

Post by ekjdm14 »

If you do stay with the coil packs and decide to use the Ford jobbie, a DIS coil pack from just about any '90s-early 2000s Zetec engined car should do the trick. I think the smaller engines in Fiestas and such may be different but just about any Mondeo/Focus/Escort Zetec item should be good. Much more reliable than most other coil packs in similar layouts for some reason so there will be a glut of them in scrapyards.

Still not 100% this would cause the issues you're having but I suppose if you know the ignition is tip-top you can at least eliminate it from your list of suspects.
'95 Xantia LX 1.9D-auto, Black, 109k
'03 206 GTi180 94k in surgery
'03 206 1.1S XUD9TE/veg project :mrgreen:
'99 306 2.0SE cabriolet 95k summer toy
'97 306 XS 1.6i 99k sat 12 years, fixed in 7 days, 150mile maiden voyage :rofl2:
Bilkob
Posts: 169
Joined: 23 Feb 2017, 19:16
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My Cars: Citroen CX
Citroen C15
x 47

Re: Aftermarket coil pack on my GTI Turbo

Post by Bilkob »

Again, Cheers for replies. The more I drive it, the more important learning about the issues. It's definitely slightly missing at low revs/ low load, but hardly noticeable.
The jerky throttle feels for all the World like a sticky linkage, but it's not
None of the above are huge issues, as it's just so bloody good to drive, and when the boost comes in its superb!
Forgotten how much I love these things. People gawp when they see it!
Got a 1000mile+ trip to the Ardennes planned for June, that should show up any issues, reliability probs! :shock:
Wish me luck!
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Re: Aftermarket coil pack on my GTI Turbo

Post by wurlycorner »

Sorry only just caught up with this.

Nope, that doesn't look like the replacement kit that was offered when the originals went obsolete - IIRC the alternative was still two separate coil packs (for pairs of cylinders) rather than one pack for all 4.
So, it's intriguing where these have come from...
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