Since the coil is involved in both the primary and secondary side of the ignition system, it’s easy to see why it can very easily be misunderstood, “The coil is an incredible part of the ignition system, if there is any part that resembles a magical black box – it’s the coil.” Ryden explained. From here the voltage will be delivered to each individual spark plug with a high enough voltage to jump the spark plug gap at the perfect time and cause combustion. The secondary side occurs when the voltage is converted to sometimes as high as 20,000 volts within the coil and then delivered to the distributor. The spark plug wire that connects the coil to the center terminal is where the ignition system starts to perform the secondary side of the ignition system.

MSD explained to help better understand an ignition system it is easier to break it down in two sides – a primary and a secondary side.Īs you can see from the above diagram the coil is the only component that performs functions in both the primary and secondary side of the ignition. These parts include the battery, the ignition switch, a switching device and the wiring that connects to the coil’s negative and positive terminals. The primary side is the parts or components that deal with converting low voltage from the battery to the high voltage. That’s a lot of information at once, but to help break down the entire system, MSD recommends examining the ignition system process as having a primary side and a secondary side. From there, the high-voltage spark is transferred to the distributor and on to a spark plug wire which must deliver the spark to the cylinder that is coming up on the compression stroke.

This process of changing low voltage to high voltage, called induction, takes place in the coil. MSD summed up for us on their educational site what is exactly happening within the ignition process: A typical (meaning stock) 12-volt automotive ignition system operates by taking in a low voltage with high current from the car’s battery and changing it into a higher voltage with lower current to jump the spark plug gap to propagate combustion in the cylinder. “The fact the ignition system makes this all happen at the right moment with a high output spark, thousands of times in a minute, is something most of us take for granted,” said Ryden. The fact the ignition system operates with a high-output spark thousands of times in a minute is something most of us take for granted – Todd Ryden “The spark that the ignition produces must arrive in the cylinder at the perfect moment in the combustion stroke and have enough voltage to jump the spark plug gap.” “The basic function of the automotive ignition system is to produce a spark that promotes the combustion of the air and fuel mixture,” explained MSD’s Todd Ryden. We went to the experts at MSD who offer a ton of ignition educational materials on to take a close look at the basics of ignition systems.

Instead of constantly fighting this battle or paying someone to work on your ignition, many misfires can be solved by looking back at the basics of an ignition system. Many have fallen victim to fighting ignition issues because they don’t properly understand ignition systems and how they work. The circuits are updated with efficient components that help the ignition produce more power while drawing less current! In fact, the Digital 6AL delivers over 530 volts to the coil with up to 135mJ of spark energy for every firing! Inside the Digital 6AL, you’ll find a microprocessor that monitors and controls every firing and rev limit.

Timing light for msd ignition