Pinto Car Club of America

Welcome to FordPinto.com, The home of the PCCA => General Help- Ask the Experts... => Topic started by: Cookieboystoys on July 25, 2007, 12:09:32 AM

Title: coil question...
Post by: Cookieboystoys on July 25, 2007, 12:09:32 AM
Carb guy was looking at my car the other day and noticed the coil was quite hot, to hot to touch as a matter of fact. Wasn't ambient tempature of the engine compartment, nothing around it was that hot. Hood had also been up for quite awhile while we check things over. He suggested I get a new one. So I did and installed it and still gets really hot...

Is this normal? I don't think so...

Any ideas what could be causing this?
Title: Re: coil question...
Post by: oldkayaker on July 26, 2007, 10:12:14 PM
I do not have a running points car to check the coil temperature for you. 

If the coil is okay and the temperature is above normal, the only thing I can think of is that the resistor wire was replaced at some time with a standard wire.  Did you have to do any rewiring in the engine bay?  If it is not obvious, a functional check can be done. 
The coil's positive terminal voltage should be higher during starting than during normal running due to the resistor in the run circuit.  If your resistance wire has been removed, an after market add in resistor could be installed (one of those ceramic looking block types).  The resistor wire resistance is between 1.1 and 1.5 ohms per the manuals. 
Title: Re: coil question...
Post by: Cookieboystoys on July 26, 2007, 10:53:02 PM
Oopss... I forgot to mention it's the 77 wagon, 2.3, auto

not the 73

sorry
Title: Re: coil question...
Post by: oldkayaker on July 28, 2007, 08:20:05 AM
All my running cars are EFI, so I still can not help on your normal coil temperature.

The 77 Pinto also uses the resistance wire to the coil for normal running +12V supply to the coil.  The start +12V supply uses a standard wire.  The transistorized ignition module just switches the coil ground on and off like points do.  I do not have experience with the Pinto ignition module but believe the above the functional test could be done.  Instead of rotating the engine to where the points are closed, just disconnect the coil's negative wire coming from the ignition module and then ground the the coil's negative terminal.  The rest of the test should work to determine if the resistance wire is still there.