Defective ignition cables / ignition lines? Symptoms, changes, costs!

What are the symptoms of defective ignition cables/ignition lines? How is the change going? What are the costs? A brief overview of the most important: The ignition coils, distributors and spark plugs on older cars are replaced by the ignition cables powered. They only exist in petrol engines with the so-called Otto engines. The causes for defective ignition cables are often to be found broken cable, corrosion, maggot bites, age-related wear or one loose contact. These are all reasons why the ignition cables no longer work!

symptoms or signs

• The engine does not run smoothly.
• The engine is not running on all cylinders.
• The MIL (Check Engine Light) stays on or flashes.
• The fault memory says: "Cylinder x misfire" or "Cylinder x misfiring".
• The car has bad gas.
• The engine loses power.
• More fuel is required than usual.
• Misfires occur.

Can you continue driving with defective ignition cables?

The vehicle usually continues to drive with defective spark plugs. However, this can lead to further damage, for example to the spark plugs or the ignition coils. Due to the additional damage that occurs, these components must then also be replaced, which incurs additional costs. Can a faulty ignition cable be mistaken for something else? If you see bite marks left by a marten on the ignition cables, the mechanic quickly knows where the cause is to be found. However, if there are no such conspicuous indications, the cause must be sought. Various points are excluded, such as a defective ignition distributor (if the vehicle has one) or a defect in the ignition coil or spark plugs. It can also be of great help Fault memory .

How does the repair or replacement of the ignition cable work?

First, the diagnosis must be secured. In the event of a defect, ignition cables should always be RENEWED will. You should refrain from attempting a repair. If the reason for the defect is age and not a marten bite, the entire Ignition Wires to be renewed. This prevents another ignition cable from failing due to wear in the near future. It is gratifying that the change mostly not is associated with great effort. In most vehicles, the ignition cables are already accessible when the Engine cover was removed. After that all ignition cables renewed. Then it is ensured that the engine runs perfectly again. The mechanic finds this out when he starts it and hears the engine running, perhaps takes a test drive and reads the error memory again. If the repair was successful, the fault memory should be empty. By the way, the change should be discord be carried out by a specialist workshop, solely for safety reasons. There could be breaks in the insulation that are not visible at first glance, which is not without risk.

What are the costs of changing the ignition cables?

First, new ignition cables are required. A new ignition cable costs about 20 to 75 euros. Bosch is a well-known manufacturer of spare parts, which even have OEM quality. Was the damage due to a marten bite? Then you should consider protecting the new ignition cables from another marten visit. There are some special ones for this purpose tubing or plastic sheathing. Changing the ignition cables is quick. It takes about ten minutes for one cable. With four cables, the entire change would take about 40 minutes. How many cables a vehicle has depends on how many cylinders the engine has and what construction. If the workshop calculates an hourly wage of EUR 100, the labor cost portion of the invoice is approximately 50 to 100 Euro. In addition, there is the new price of mostly four cables, these are then between 80 and 300 euros. The overall calculation is somewhere between 70 and 400 euros. If the problem was due to a marten bite, it is interesting to know that many car insurance take the damage. Whether partial or fully comprehensive insurance is required depends on the policy.

How does an ignition cable work and what is its significance?

Only a vehicle with a petrol engine has ignition cables. A vehicle with a diesel engine does not need spark plugs and therefore no ignition cables. Diesel self-ignites. However, the fuel-air mixture in a petrol engine does not self-ignite and must spark ignition will. The does this job spark plug. In the area of ​​the ignition cables there is High and low voltage cables, which of course must be distinguished. The high-voltage cables are electrical conductors. They are flexible, media and heat resistant. They are also characterized by good insulation. They have a low electrical resistance and conduct the high voltage from the ignition coil to the spark plug.

Owns a vehicle high voltage cable, then there is a high-voltage cable for each cylinder that goes from the ignition distributor to the respective cylinder and a cable that runs from the ignition coil to the ignition distributor. If the engine has 4 cylinders, then you will find in it a total five ignition cables. This is the case with many older vehicles. Unlike modern cars. These often already have single-spark ignition coils, which are located directly on the spark plug. With this construction no high voltage cables needed. The coils only need thin low-voltage lines that drive them to become active.

The following note is essential: For safety reasons, tuningblog recommends all repair, inspection and maintenance work exclusively to be carried out in a specialist workshop! Although our information is summarized to the best of our knowledge and belief, we cannot assume any liability for the content. All information is therefore "without guarantee".

Of course, that wasn't the end of it!

In this tuningblog category there are guides and instructions for common defects/repairs on the vehicle and for installing accessories/tuning parts. Our articles explain in a simple way common defects and the corresponding repairs, as well as explaining how the first signs of a defect become noticeable. In most cases, we also have initial clues to the repair instructions in our repair instructions approximate The costs of the pending repair are listed. The goal of our subcategory “Auto Repair Guide“ is to create a head start in knowledge for the next visit to the workshop with initial tips. This may save you from tedious troubleshooting and small things can perhaps be done directly on your own. The same applies, of course, to the installation of accessories/tuning parts. Here, too, we would like to help with the implementation with instructions and tips. There are many other posts on this as well. Below is an excerpt of the last and HERE there are all previous instructions:

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