Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting spark from noise capacitor

well, the car runs now, but i think i still have a problem. when the noise capacitor is hooked to the coil pack, i'm still getting a spark from the #2 wire to the capacitor. right now, i have the capacitor zip-tied out of the way and everything is fine. how important is that thing and what would be making it spark like that? thanks.

Spark should not escape from a good wire and boot with dielectric grease.

Either the wire is not down all of the way, or something is damaged. Look for carbon tracking on that boot and coil tower. If there is carbon tracking the part is ruined, replace that part.

would you be able to see if there was an imperfection in the wire itself? the wire seems to be whole with no breaks or anything and it's not arcing on anything else. it is right close to the coil, but the arc isn't coming from there, so i think the boot is probably pushed down enough.

Measure the resistance of the wires to see if that one is comparable.

Carbon tracking is often a very thin line on the coil tower phenelic. You can feel it with your fingernail. The coil tower may also be cracked. If arcing continues, a narrow black line is cut into the rubber of the boot.

The point is, high voltage jumps at the closest point and the plug is usually that place. Either the spark is having trouble reaching the plug, or there is something conductive at the coil tower/boot area - ie. - carbon tracking.

What's a noise capacitor? Does that quell the alternator/electrical system noise that comes through the speakers like a whine??? After my coil was replaced I notice it more, wonder if that might be the problem (I have an aftermarket amp with power running from the battery)?????????