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How long do ignition coils last?

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Old Jul 19, 2007 | 11:00 PM
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How long do ignition coils last?

The 6th cyl ignition coil decided to go poop. Local dealership wanted $107.99 with .org discount. Autozone and Kragen had Borg-Warner for $79.99. I went to Kragen and was able to get them to drop it to $65.99. All 3 vendors include 1yr warranty.

Anyways, I didn't check the resistance of the other 5 cyls. I'll do that when I install the new coil. I'm wondering how long do coils last? I have 202k miles right now. Should I expect the other 5 to retire soon?

Jae
Old Jul 20, 2007 | 12:28 AM
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Most coils dont last much over 120xxx...2 of mine went out at about 95xxxish....The other 4 are going strong right now but I am only at 117xxx
Old Jul 20, 2007 | 08:19 AM
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220k on hanshins
Old Jul 20, 2007 | 01:36 PM
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I had to change one of the original Mitsus for a Hanshin coil way way back at around 125k. I'm at 248k now and have had no problems with any of the others.
Old Jul 20, 2007 | 03:00 PM
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Concur, coils last quite sometime before thowing codes? I replaced mine at 60K (since Nissan wouldn't issue a recall) and now have 2K1 coils on my 2K maxima. Now at 130K, no codes, very strong acceleration, no pinging/misfires etc.

In short they should last a long time.
Old Jul 20, 2007 | 07:24 PM
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both my maxi's still have their originals at 160k and 148k miles
Old Jul 21, 2007 | 12:15 PM
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I was wondering if 2k1 front coils work on the 4g?
Old Jul 21, 2007 | 01:56 PM
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I looked up the cross reference of 4th gen coils and they don't match w/5th gens.

Interesting to note that Borg-Warner makes Hanshin and Mitsu coils, all 3 having 1yr warranty, but the Hanshin's being $10-$20 more expensive than Mitsu.

But Niehoff also makes Hanshin and Mitsu coils, with the Hanshin right costs $30 more, and Hanshin left is $10 cheaper. I don't understand why the variance.

Well, I'm happy w/the Borg-Warner-Mitsu I bought, because of the affordable price and long warranty.

Jae
Old Jul 21, 2007 | 02:36 PM
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I've only replaced one, (cyl #1) in the 7 yrs, 145k

Sidenote, 5th gen coils will not fit. IBA32coils>A33coils
Old Jul 21, 2007 | 05:14 PM
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Just picked up the new coil. Good gosh, that employee or ordered for me messed up. I went to Kragen's website and printed this out: http://www.partsamerica.com/ProductD...pe=190&PTSet=A

I told him to look it up by part number and not by vehicle. He then asked me what car it's for, I told him, and he proceeded to pull up the Hashin, not the Mitsubishi I requested. No wonder the price he originally quoted me was so high. I got him to bump it down to $65.99.

When I picked it up today, I asked to see it, and noticed it had "hashin" printed on the body. Then I looked at my receipt and sure enuf, they got me the hashin. Well, I need this badly so I'll just keep it. Plus they do not refund special order items. Grrrrr.

Ok, gonna go install it now, I'll report back tonight.

Jae
Old Jul 21, 2007 | 08:16 PM
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I checked out all the original coils and they're all Hashin's. So I guess 99's were a bad batch. I'm gonna stick with the new Hashin. 202k miles on Hashin's sound good to me!

Jae
Old Jul 21, 2007 | 10:17 PM
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yeah, 99 was the worst year for 4gens in terms of reliability.
Old Jul 21, 2007 | 10:22 PM
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Can old coils cause a weaker spark even if they have never thrown a code?
Old Jul 22, 2007 | 02:55 PM
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Originally Posted by Jesse729
Can old coils cause a weaker spark even if they have never thrown a code?
Yes, this is very dominant in 99-00-01 models. Weak spark/misfire, but no codes.
Old Jul 22, 2007 | 03:05 PM
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Originally Posted by BluFlame
yeah, 99 was the worst year for coils in terms of reliability.
Fixed.


99 EGR system >>> 95-98, for instance.
Old Jul 22, 2007 | 03:06 PM
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Originally Posted by NmexMAX
Yes, this is very dominant in 99-00-01 models. Weak spark/misfire, but no codes.
2001 models don't have the same coil issues that 99-00 have.
Old Jul 22, 2007 | 03:07 PM
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Originally Posted by nismology
Fixed.


99 EGR system >>> 95-98, for instance.
99 steering rack > *
Old Jul 22, 2007 | 03:07 PM
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Originally Posted by nismology
2001 models don't have the same coil issues that 99-00 have.
No build date reference no care.
Old Jul 22, 2007 | 03:18 PM
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Originally Posted by NmexMAX
99 steering rack > *
97-99 SE's got the good rack. GXE/GLE 99's got the same rack as all the other years.

But damn right the steering on my 99 SE-L is way better than on my 96.
Old Jul 22, 2007 | 03:19 PM
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Originally Posted by NmexMAX
No build date reference no care.
Is that a double dare?
Old Jul 22, 2007 | 03:20 PM
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But 95's have the lightest front beam (re: bumper)
Old Jul 22, 2007 | 03:24 PM
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I weighed my 99 at the track with 1/4 tank of gas and full interior and it was roughly 3050 lbs ... and it's an auto. Surprising, eh?
Old Jul 22, 2007 | 03:47 PM
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Very..
Old Jul 22, 2007 | 04:21 PM
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Originally Posted by nismology
I weighed my 99 at the track with 1/4 tank of gas and full interior and it was roughly 3050 lbs ... and it's an auto. Surprising, eh?
and you were in it?
Old Jul 25, 2007 | 06:05 PM
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295,000 miles, replaced two, four others original
Old Jul 25, 2007 | 07:03 PM
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Originally Posted by Stevenjc
295,000 miles, replaced two, four others original
wow, that's unbelievable
Old Jul 26, 2007 | 12:05 AM
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I filled up gas after installing the new coil. I got 22mpg while 1 was dead. Can't wait to fill up in another couple days to see if the new coil helped anything. I do notice more kick in acceleration on partial and full throttle, throughout the rpm range.

Jae
Old Jul 26, 2007 | 12:14 PM
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how do you know when they are going bad or they stop working? whats the effects?
Old Jul 26, 2007 | 12:46 PM
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Originally Posted by maxiquin
how do you know when they are going bad or they stop working? whats the effects?
I had a misfire, but no codes. Idles rough, Accelleration's rough and 1/2 as fast as before. Exhaust "putters".

After a day of this, I reset the computer, and got a code for cyl 6 misfire the next time I drove.

I forgot the specific diagnostic, it goes something like this:
1) reset computer
2) run engine till normal operating temp
3) hold rpms around 3k for a minute

A code should pop up.

Then, listen to each injector for clicking, to be sure it's not dead injector. Another way to do this is to remove 1 injector harness at a time and note if there's no change in idle rpm. If no change, you found dead injector.

After that, you can test each coil for spark by removing coil and spark, put spark into coil and ground the spark tip, then crank engine. Or swap coils with another cyl and do the injector test again.

Final verification would be to check for resistance in the 2 right-most prongs of the coil terminal. If no resistance, it's dead. There's a whole writeup in the fsm. Good luck!

Jae
Old Jul 26, 2007 | 05:03 PM
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Originally Posted by maxiquin
how do you know when they are going bad or they stop working? whats the effects?
When mine went check engine light came on and constantly blinked.
Old Jul 26, 2007 | 05:09 PM
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Makes sense. Blinking CEL/SES = multiple cylinder misfire.
Old Jul 26, 2007 | 05:32 PM
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Originally Posted by ThurzNite
I looked up the cross reference of 4th gen coils and they don't match w/5th gens.

Interesting to note that Borg-Warner makes Hanshin and Mitsu coils, all 3 having 1yr warranty, but the Hanshin's being $10-$20 more expensive than Mitsu.

But Niehoff also makes Hanshin and Mitsu coils, with the Hanshin right costs $30 more, and Hanshin left is $10 cheaper. I don't understand why the variance.

Well, I'm happy w/the Borg-Warner-Mitsu I bought, because of the affordable price and long warranty.

Jae
The other way around, Niehoff and Borg-Warner are sourcing coil packs from Hanshin.

http://www.hitachi.co.jp/Div/apd/en/...sion_004b.html

It is a Hitachi affiliate company. Tokico is also in the Hitachi Group. When I replaced the front pads on my I30. The original pads were Akebono and the new ones were Hitachi (Nissan box). The rears are marked NKG or something like that.

GM now use mostly Mitsubishi Electric coil packs, alternators and starters. So does Honda.

Looks like Hanshin has a JV with Denso (Toyota) in China to make coil packs.
Old Jul 26, 2007 | 06:50 PM
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Wonder if the rest of my car is made by Hitachi too? LOL. Good find, thanx for the correction!

Jae
Old Jul 26, 2007 | 07:05 PM
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Hitachi is a $60B company but not profitable. The hard disk drive business is a big drag.

Yes, many car companies don't own technologies they use. Exceptions are Toyota and Honda. Who still have extensive R&D.
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