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MG MGB Technical - Coil runs hot

I am coxing a 73 B back to life and now that it runs a bit I find the coil to be hot when the car is running. Is this normal?

Norm
N. A. Peacey

N.A.
Yes, it's normal for a coil to become very warm to the touch when running. I'm not sure what a ballasted coil should read, but a 12 volt, non-ballasted coil should show about 2.5-3 amps with the car running. If you have a multimeter you might want to check it.
David
David

Thank you David. I did measure the coil and it is reading 2.6 amps so I am OK. It has been so long since I worked on a point and coil system I have forgottenwhat stuff does as it works. I was concerned the external ballast resistor had been eliminated.

Norm
N. A. Peacey

Your '73 didn't have a ballast resistor, or the resistive wire in the loom, so don't worry about that! It used a straight 12V coil.
Ken Lessig

Norm, the coil on my 73 MGB also runs hot, and after checking it and having the local MG shop check it, everyone agrees that it is normal. My car runs great, so I assume that it is fine.
Robert Browning

FWIW, I measured around 170 degrees on the sport coil in my 68 GT with a non contact thermometer during a hot summer day. Clifton
Clifton Gordon

This thread was discussed between 27/10/2003 and 28/10/2003

MG MGB Technical index

This thread is from the archive. The Live MG MGB Technical BBS is active now.