Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting Ignition wire leaks?

How much of a light show should one get watching the plug wires in pitch darkness?
I can see the current tracing through the wires along their length and around the connectors, but there are no "cracking arcs" taking place. I seem to have a slight misfire "putt putt" at idle but, the car will still accelerate hard when driven giving no indication of a problem other than at idle. Can this "leakage" cause EMI interference with the ECM??
The wires are new Motorcraft OEM. The coil is new also! Oh, and the injectors are new also. Oh yeah...the plugs are new too. $$$$$$$$
Anybody notice this too??

...Ed

i have had a lot of misfiring problems (wires, coils (had to change twice so far), plugs)

i have noticed current tracing through the wires in complete darkness as well, even when everything is running right.

can't say if it is normal though, because of the amount of problems i have had.

has anyone that hasn't had misfiring problems seen the current running through the wires? (has to be completely dark.)

what you speak of is a phenomenom known as aurora. The high voltage through the wires is exciting ions in the sourrounding air and causing them to emmit light.

Ignition wire insulation does eventually "wear out" and they do need to be changed. If you see sny arcing from the wires to ground then that is a definate indication that they need to be replaced.

Most likely the aurora is happening becasue the shielding within the plug wires is deteriorating, and might need to be replaced soon.

I had the same problem with my 350 Chev engine's wires.
I also was told that it was "normal" unless there was severe arcing to ground.
I replaced the wires with higher quality ones and doing that reduced the light show but it was still visable.
Get the engine hooked up to a engine analysis machine to see how bad it realy is effecting your engine.

Stephen

I read somewhere that you can test ignition wires for leaks by moving a "grounded" screwdriver over your wires in the dark. If there is a leak, then there will be an arc of electricity jumping from the wires to the screwdriver and down the grounded wire.

Has anyone ever tried this? And is a "grounded" screwdriver something that you can buy at an automotive/tool store, or is it something that you need to make from scratch?

the screwdriver thing might work, but it's easier just to run the engine in the dark and check for the arc, or to keep a known plug good wire around just for testing.

by "grounded" screwdriver i think they mean taking a regular screw driver, and grounding it to the chassis with a wire. someone might make something especially for this. i don?t know.

i try to keep tools and wires away from the engine when it?s running.