Hi guys! Okay, my car is intermittently running poorly. My friend did a test and the the trailing coil is working fine, but the leading one isn't putting anything out. I'm trying to locate a new leading coil, but until I find one, is it safe for the car to be running with just the trailing? The acceleration is unpredictable, and it sometimes comes close to stalling, but is there any risk of detonation or any of that sort of engine-killing badness?

 

With these motors, its not a good idea to run it like that. Rotaries are prone to sudden catostrophic failure.

You might get away with it, sure but then again you might cause another problem that you'll be fixing after you get a new coil pack in.

 

I find it hard to believe that a car could run on trailing only....But I guess stranger things have happened.

 

The car runs fine on just the trailings. It's like running with a retarded ignition timing. The engine will also "feel" rich, as you don't have complete combustion. On a turbo, you'll see more boost more often with very little power coming from the boost; the retard and fuel burning in the exhaust loads the turbo, but due to the retard, it makes very little power. The car will actually crank and start almost like stock - it takes a split second longer to catch, if you can feel the difference. If you run an EGT, it runs slightly hotter due to the unburn fuel combusting in the exhaust system.

It's okay to run it that way, but I would try and fix it ASAP.

My FC ran a 13.9 @ 101 with just the trailings. The car has run a fastest 13.4 @ 105, so that gives you an indication of how capable the ignition system is minus the leadings.


-Ted

 

Thanks so much for the help, Ted! I'll take it nice and easy today, and hopefully get her fixed tomorrow!