Tech help on a coil pack

BlckOnBlckBrd

Registered User
Ok here's the deal, I turned a corner today, lose power, check engine light comes on, and tach drops about 300 RPM. I drive about a half a block trying to figure out whats going on and it just all of a sudden runs like normal again (Does this off and on thing for a little while). I get it home and run the codes on it. I get a code 124 (TPS voltage higher than expected) and a 217 (Ignition system problem Coil #3 primary circuit failure).
The 124 I don't think is the problem and was just stored in the memory, but I think the coil is the problem. I think it is, I just wanted to verify from the experts if thats what you think it is too before I spend $80 on a new coil pack tomorrow.
Also, could anyone tell me what codes 32, 36, and 76 on the ABS system mean?
TIA
 
Sounds like either the wiring on that coil circuit is bad or the coil is bad.
Check and make sure your wiring harness connections on the coil are clean and tight first, if thats not your problem then the coil is probably bad.

I would'nt dismiss the code #124 entirely. You could have 2 problems at the same time. Check out and fix the coil problem first then after fixing it pursue the code 124 and see if its bogus or not.:)
 
Not the coil

Well I replaced the coil pack today and it still does it. I checked the wiring and connections, connections seem clean and tight and I don't see any problems with the wires. Could this problem be caused by the DIS?
 
Yes - I believe it's the DIS. I had the same problem and code on my '93 a year or two ago. Eventually I had to have it towed home because it was "bucking" so bad it wouldn't hold idle. I checked out the coil pack using my Haynes manual and everything was ok. So after some help on this forum I concluded it was the DIS and that took care of the problem. You need to shop around for one, about $210 +/-. Try the discount Ford dealers on our links. Don't buy an aftermarked unit.
Good luck ,Jim.
 
Thanks

Thanks for the info, mine is also a '93. I'll try to find a new DIS to try ASAP. I'm sure if that doesn't fix it, you'll be hearing more from me.
Thanks again.
 
you also may see similar symptoms from a bad crank or cam sensor--If thye have not been replaced they r likely due to be
good luck
 
one time my battery wasnt tight i would make a left turn and battery terminal would touch the hood and car would cut out

otherwise i would check crank sensor first
 
If you can find someone locally with a '92 or '93, you could swap in there DIS as a double check ('94 + won't fit). Also don't forget to get a small tube of 'heat sink' grease from Radio Shack for putting under the DIS. Clean off the alum. plate that the DIS sits on & place small dots of the grease in a 1/4" pattern. When you install the DIS the grease will then spread evenly underneath.
Good Luck,
Jim.
 
I had the same error code on my 93 last spring except for coil pack #1. Since the error says "primary circuit failure" I suspected the DIS first since it provides the primary to the coil.

It was the DIS - fixed it in 10 minutes at a cost of $248 from one of our discount links. Very expensive but it worked. Yes, be sure to use the heatsink grease under it.

Jon
 
Re: Thanks

BlckOnBlckBrd said:
Thanks for the info, mine is also a '93. I'll try to find a new DIS to try ASAP. I'm sure if that doesn't fix it, you'll be hearing more from me.
Thanks again.
Just find a KNOWN working DIS to try out before you go out and spend over 200 hundred on one.

Calvin
 
this makes 2 of us

this is kinda funny. The smae thing happened to me a couple days ago. The coil pack went bad and gave me the engine light. After replacing that, I found out that the coil pack shorted my DIS module and I'm looking for one to replace it. But I noticed that Autozone has em for $100 but I want a used one, cause I'm kinda cheap.
 
Frugal is OK - cheap is not.

Why would you buy a used module when you have no idea of its condition and life expectancy?

$100 is not pocket change but unless you can find a used DIS for under $30, why even take a chance? Using used parts like this just gets you chasing you tail after a while.

Aaron
 
I agree 100% with you pastera. There are area's on this car thats fine to be frugal on. However its been my experiance that electronics is not one of them. Like you said go used in this area and you dont know what you have. Most of the time it has led to me chasing my tail.
You dont save any money buying used electronics and then having to buy a new part because the used one does'nt work.
Just something to think about.;)
 
Thought that I would throw in note about how the system works to give the coil 3 primary circuit fail code. Every time one of the coils fires, the DIS module senses the primary coil current and sends a pulse to the tach and to the EEC. If a coil does not fire properly then no pulse is sent, tach goes screwy, and the computer detects that the coil did not fire. With signals from the crank and cam sensors the EEC knows which coil did not fire properly. From what I have read, coil failures are fairly rare. That leaves the DIS module or the wiring between the DIS and coil as the most likely suspects. Other possible causes are: the wiring between the DIS and the EEC/tach, an intermittant crank sensor, or any bad connections in the system. Did this problem occur when the engine was hot? Most temperature related problems would point to the DIS module. Is the DIS module properly installed with all screws tight and proper heat sink compound applied? Just some things to think about.
 
my 93 sc did the exact same thing. the problem was the coil pack and the igniton module. when it did it in my car, the rpms would drop to about 300-500 no matter how fast i was going, i'd have no power what so ever, and my check engine light would come on. it was almost like it was running out of gas or running on only five cylinders. then all the sudden it would just stop doing that and drive perfect and the check engine light would go off. if thats what your car is doing, then its probably both those things.
 
Was it really both the DIS and the coil pack? It seems more likely it was just the DIS. Coil pack failures are rare.

It is like running on fewer cylinders because in this case it's only running on 4 of 6.

Jon
 
Dis

For anyone interested, I've got a brand new DIS I bought for my car from Autozone that I ended up not needing. I had a clogged cat, but had all the sypmtoms of a bad DIS or coil pack. Anyway, the DIS is made by Wells part # F-147 and I paid $106 for it. I'll take $75 shipped if either of you wants it, if you determine that's what your problem is.

David
 
jonroe said:
Coil pack failures are rare.
Thats correct.. a coil is a long strand of wound up wire.. not much that can go wrong with it. There are no moving parts nor any circuitry (resistors, transistors, capacitors, circuit boards, nada) inside the coil pack.. just wire, iron, and plastic.
 
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