# installing aftermarket ignition coil



## copperlite (Oct 12, 2004)

So i just bought an accel super stock ignition coil. Can someone tell me how to figure out which wire is positive and negative coming from the power transistor on my car? I have an e16i but i think it should be the same or very similar to a ga16

thanks!


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## mille-16i (Jun 16, 2004)

One should be solid hot and one should be pulsing with dis. also the factory one may be marked. I think the pulsing one is -


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## Gsolo (Sep 11, 2003)

mille-16i said:


> One should be solid hot and one should be pulsing with dis. also the factory one may be marked. I think the pulsing one is -


on most ignition systems you will have a hot wire that goes to positive and the - side is what controls the coil. So whenever you go to aftermarket coil try to follow the wires if the factory coil is not marked. And whenever you put in an aftermarket tach, if there is no provision for the connector just connect it to the - side of the coil.


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## copperlite (Oct 12, 2004)

so i thing i have everything hooked up now. My car isn;t running much better then before though, actually it still doesn't have the power it did before the weather changed and got colder. I still can't figure this out. I think i'm going to change out the AFM back to my original one? I've already gone through the diagnostics in the book and it came out to be fine.

So what would happen if you reversed the polarity on the coil???


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## velardejose (Sep 9, 2004)

Nissan stock ignition is enough for 150 hp (and more?)
Maybe you should discuss this with your mechanic and see where can you free more ponies
Peace


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## copperlite (Oct 12, 2004)

I'm not really going for performance here...and i'm proud of the fact that i've never taken my car to a mechanic other then to have it inspected :cheers: . Ultimatly i'm trying to figure out why my car refuses to NOT RUN RICH. Basically i saw that for the same price i could go with a stock coil or upgrade to a big pretty yellow one. anyway, i've realized that this problem is intermitant...a few hours later when i was driving to school my car started running normal for a few minutes. It ran very very well and i had more power then i ever had before, and then it started running like crap again. It went through this cycle a couple more times on my trip. I havent checked my engine codes but i'll be sure to do that this afternoon...does anyone have any suggestions of what else it may be??? I step on the gas and my car feels like it gains 1000 pounds.


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## velardejose (Sep 9, 2004)

First step
Check all your connectors, clean them
With that mechanics' opinion thing I am not saying you cant keep your e engine running
There is something called experience thats gained over the years
Just trying to help


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## copperlite (Oct 12, 2004)

yeah, I see that a couple of the grounds on my engine have actually come/broken off. So I think i'm going to start there. Then I'm going to get some contact cleaner and clean up my old AFM.

Thanks for the help!


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## mille-16i (Jun 16, 2004)

grounds are more important than power wires(however those are vital to) so regound your car the battery to the block and chasis and I would give a smaller one to the fender by the batt, also make sure your hots are good and that your batt cables are not corroding on the indise. ensure that your cooling system is up to snuff when was the last time you flushed the rad? Make sure there is no air in the system. Have you installed a new CTS also how old is the O2 sensor?


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## copperlite (Oct 12, 2004)

about grounding....Should i run new wires directly from the negative terminal, or should i just run grounds from the chasis to the block. I think thats how my car is set-up. There's one large cable that goes to the chasis, then a few ground wires which lead from the chasis to the block.

I flushed out my coolant system about 6 months ago, and made sure that my CTS is functioning properly (actually have 2 that I know are working). My O2 sensor is about 8 months old.

I'll start with re-grounding my engine...any suggestions with which gauge wires to use....I know bigger is better right?


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## Gsolo (Sep 11, 2003)

copperlite said:


> about grounding....Should i run new wires directly from the negative terminal, or should i just run grounds from the chasis to the block. I think thats how my car is set-up. There's one large cable that goes to the chasis, then a few ground wires which lead from the chasis to the block.
> 
> I flushed out my coolant system about 6 months ago, and made sure that my CTS is functioning properly (actually have 2 that I know are working). My O2 sensor is about 8 months old.
> 
> I'll start with re-grounding my engine...any suggestions with which gauge wires to use....I know bigger is better right?



It's always been my feeling that factory wiring on a car is usually adequate enough considering how much they spend in Research and Developement....but cars get old and dirty and people like us just can't leave well enough alone what already works good. 

Here's what i've always felt comfortable with for grounding....a big wire from block to chassis and one from transmission to chassis, usually try to have them seperate sides of the engine bay. If there are any stock little wires already there...then leave them also or replace them with same size wire (I always assume theres a good reason for where nissan put them, maybe it is just random but it doesn't hurt )

Now this is where everyone argues with me...do a large battery cable from the block to the battery, and from the chassis to the battery. This requires a two cable battery terminal connector. 

If you wnt to go an extra step, ground your exhaust. This doesn't have to be fancy...it could be as simple as bailing wire, just use it on the hangers and if anyone asks just tell them it's safety wire incase the hanger breaks (usually sounds less dumb than grounding the exhaust ). 

For a stock little sentra all of it isn't needed...but if youwant to do it it can't hurt, but just remember that nissan made the electrical system work in the first place so don't get gung ho about redesigning it, just improve what's already there.


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## dreamteam (Jul 29, 2005)

COPPERLITE, I still think you have issues with spark plug wires and dist. cap.

Have you replaced them?


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## copperlite (Oct 12, 2004)

dreamteam said:


> COPPERLITE, I still think you have issues with spark plug wires and dist. cap.
> 
> Have you replaced them?


here;s what i have done to the IGNITION system...

replaced plugs
replaced cap
replaced rotor
replaced ignition coil

I have NOT replaced the wires...3 of them are brand new...but soon after i installed them i ripped a boot off so i replaced that wire with my old one...and i ripped that boot as well :loser: so now i re-crimped the connector and taped the boot up.

I guess i should replace those...i'm in school right nopw and i dont have a lot of green to spend...i'll get them thursday with my paycheck!

Here's an update...
So i was sitting at a light and i started smelling somehting like burning oil, but really really strong. I looked at my hood and i saw smoke..not steam coming from it. Later I poped it when my car was running ruf and every once in a while i could hear some kind of click of pop and smike eminating from AROUND the alternator...i could not see exactly where, nor did i see a visable spark. This problem is getting very mysterious...Also After the roads have dried up around here my car has been runninbetter more consistantly.


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## dreamteam (Jul 29, 2005)

copperlite said:


> here;s what i have done to the IGNITION system...
> 
> replaced plugs
> replaced cap
> ...


You have just described one of the problems that I recently fixed on my daughters car.
It seems the hot wire (white one) connected to the alternator had become frayed and cracked.
I removed the nut and took off the broken lug connector.
Then I 
cleaned up the wire and re-crimped the connector.
Re-installed to alt. and it runs like new.


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## astreamk1 (Apr 16, 2004)

Gsolo, agree with you 100% on the grounding. an 89 B12 does come with a factory ground on the exhaust manifold that runs from there to the frame by the bottom of the radiator (these almost always rust off of the manifold) and there is another ground strap going from the catalytic convertor to the heat shield bolt above it. 

I replaced both on my car with new braided ones, and I added a third going from the Pass side of the intake manifold to the fender well. ( this is already a main grounding point for the engine wiring harness) so I figured adding another strap couldn't hurt. 

I am debating relocating my battery to the trunk this winter in order to get more room so I can extend my intake into the fenderwell so I can vent the fender to create a CAI.  I am sure that will create a whole new set of issues providing a good ground in the trunk.


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## copperlite (Oct 12, 2004)

> You have just described one of the problems that I recently fixed on my daughters car.


I cant believe it...but I think you are dead on acurate.

I took my car out yesterday morning to drive to work. It was raining pretty hard and my car was running really rough.(it's been raining for about 2 weeks straight here) While I was stopped at a light I smelled a really strong oil/rubber burning scent inside my car. I look at the hood and there's a little bit of smoke...not steam coming from enigne. So later I drove it home and popped the hood when it was idling rough. I could hear some clicking like arching coming from down behind the engine, around the alternator. A couple times there was a POP and some smoke blew out from around there!  Unfortunatly i had class in a few minutes to i hopped in my car and left. By this time the rain let up and half way to school my car started running smooth again. :thumbup: So I park my car and while i'm in class it starts pouring again. When i walk out to my car i make a hypothesis: It will run smooth for about 15 seconds untill I go through a big puddle and get the underside of my car wet. Sure enough thats exactly what it did. Later it dried up, i started my car and it ran fine.

That was kinda long...anyway, my point is that I need to look at the wiring around there because I obvously something is arching when it's wet out. Kinda worried about my battery, i've probably killed it. But whatever at least i've figures out another gremlin.

I'm going to do a spray bottle test hopefully tonight and i'll report back. Thanks all :cheers:


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## velardejose (Sep 9, 2004)

About that batt relocating thing, I did it some months ago (when going turbo) and had no noise problems
I installed a 200 amp anl fuse from the 'phantom' batt post to the 4awg wire going to the trunk
No problems till now
Now I run my amps via fuses directly from the batt
Sorry for the off topic


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## SuperSentra4203 (Dec 17, 2002)

copperlite said:


> So i just bought an accel super stock ignition coil. Can someone tell me how to figure out which wire is positive and negative coming from the power transistor on my car? I have an e16i but i think it should be the same or very similar to a ga16
> 
> thanks!


A little advice.... GET RID OF THAT CRAPPY COIL!!! No offense to you, but that Accel SuperStock Coils are just more expensive OE rip-offs. I have actually used one. They are inferior coils that cost extra cash. If you want a good aftermarket universal coil, look into MSD's line up. Accel's KVa rating isn't much better than an OE GM coil. If i'm not mistaken, the OE Nissan's coil rating is almost identical to the Accel's.


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