Parts supplier febi has highlighted the importance of ignition coil quality as well as some common reasons for premature failure and several fast moving coils from the febi range.

febi supplies almost 100 different OE matching quality ignition coils, with over 9,000 applications for a wide variety of vehicle makes and models, including Renault, BMW and Volkswagen. The company says the high quality coils ensure more efficient engine performance and reliability, along with lower fuel consumption.

Ignition coil actually consists of two coils; a primary winding which has relatively few turns of heavy wire, and a secondary winding which has thousands of turns of very thin wire. Both windings are wound around each other. The primary winding is connected to battery voltage and its earth can be switched on and off by the engine control unit (ECU). The secondary winding is connected to the spark plug. When the primary winding is switched on, the current flow creates a strong magnetic field around both windings. When it is switched off the magnetic field collapses, moving over both the primary and secondary windings. This induces a high voltage in the secondary winding which causes a spark at the plug. The voltage needed to jump from one electrode to the other depends on a variety of factors. These include; the width of the electrode gap, the electrical resistance in the spark plug or ignition leads, the air/fuel mixture, compression pressure / engine load and the temperature of the spark plug.

The level of voltage required can change and vary from 5,000 volts up to 25,000 or more, even reaching as high as 30,000 volts. Ignition coils have a relatively long service life, but they can fail for a variety of reasons. For example heat and vibration can damage the coil’s insulation. However, the biggest cause of ignition coil damage is voltage overload, which is caused by poor quality or faulty spark plugs and/or HT leads. This why febi recommends fitting new spark plugs (and HT leads where applicable) at the same time as replacing a faulty ignition coil.

febi has highlighted 5 popular ignition coils from its range as fast moving essential stock items:

• 17194 – To fit: Audi 80 (1986-96), Seat Alhambra (1996-10), Arosa (1997-04), Seat Cordoba (1992-03), Seat Ibiza (1993-99), Seat Inca (1995-03), Seat Toledo (1991-99), Skoda Favorit (1988-95), Skoda Felicia (1994-02), Skoda Octavia (1996-04), Volkswagen Golf 3 (1992-97), Volkswagen Lupo (1998-05), Volkswagen Passat (1989-96), Volkswagen Polo (1983-01),Volkswagen Scirocco (1974-92), Volkswagen Transporter (1992-0)
• 24500 – To fit: Seat Ibiza (2002-08), Skoda Fabia (1999-07), Volkswagen Fox (2003-),Volkswagen Polo (2002-09).
• 27470 – To fit: Audi A3 (1996-03), A4 (1994-08), A6 (1997-04), Audi TT (1998-06), Seat Cordoba (1992-03), Seat Exeo (2008-13), Seat Ibiza (1999-08), Seat Leon (1998-05), Seat Toledo (1999-05), Skoda Octavia (1996-04), Skoda Superb (2002-08), Volkswagen Bora (1998-05), Volkswagen Golf 4 (1997-04), Volkswagen New Beetle (1998-10), Volkswagen Passat (1996-05), Volkswagen Polo (2002-09)
• 39585 – To fit: Opel Corsa (2006-14)
• 37421 – To fit: Chevrolet Aveo (2011-), Volt (2011-), Opel Adam (2012-), Ampera (2011-), Astra (2010-2015), Corsa (2006-14), Insignia (2008-), Meriva (2010-), Mokka (2012-), Zafira (2012-).

You can see the full range of febi ignition coils on the febi Live! online catalogue at www.febilive.com.