DiscoStudd Posted October 21, 2004 Report Share Posted October 21, 2004 Then I remember smelling something burning. The mechanic told me that I melted my cat and almost started a fire since some of the gas wasnt be properly burned due to the faulty coil pack. About 12 years ago, my parents had an 87 Calais (2.5) that dropped a coilpack when they were out in the middle of Bumblefuck. Their car's exhaust actually started on fire due to all the raw gas that passed into the Catalytic Converter. Luckily, my stepdad had a case of bottled water in the back seat that they proceded to pour on and around the muffler to put out the flames. Turns out the bottom of the ICM wasn't greased properly, and that lead to its failure. This is where I learned that you have to use plenty of that silicone electrical grease on both sides of the ICM!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dannymik Posted October 21, 2004 Report Share Posted October 21, 2004 Then I remember smelling something burning. The mechanic told me that I melted my cat and almost started a fire since some of the gas wasnt be properly burned due to the faulty coil pack. About 12 years ago, my parents had an 87 Calais (2.5) that dropped a coilpack when they were out in the middle of Bumblefuck. Their car's exhaust actually started on fire due to all the raw gas that passed into the Catalytic Converter. Luckily, my stepdad had a case of bottled water in the back seat that they proceded to pour on and around the muffler to put out the flames. Turns out the bottom of the ICM wasn't greased properly, and that lead to its failure. This is where I learned that you have to use plenty of that silicone electrical grease on both sides of the ICM!!! i told you so, dont mess with it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckethead Posted October 21, 2004 Author Report Share Posted October 21, 2004 If you're opting for new equipment and there's an autozone near you, they have the coil pack for $20.99 apiece and the ICM is $80.99. Thanks, I saw that yesterday but I'm a little worried. $20.99 seems awefully cheap especially since they also carry a more expensive one as well, I don't want these new coils to burn out in 6 months, but I'll check into them. About 12 years ago, my parents had an 87 Calais (2.5) that dropped a coilpack when they were out in the middle of Bumblefuck. Their car's exhaust actually started on fire due to all the raw gas that passed into the Catalytic Converter. Luckily, my stepdad had a case of bottled water in the back seat that they proceded to pour on and around the muffler to put out the flames. Turns out the bottom of the ICM wasn't greased properly, and that lead to its failure. This is where I learned that you have to use plenty of that silicone electrical grease on both sides of the ICM!!! Grease!? I don't understand, the Hayne's manual mentions absolutely nothing about using electrical grease... I'm not even sure where the hell it would go. It seems to me that all of the plugs leading into the ICM are pretty well sealed, and the 3 coil packs just plug right on top of it. Am I supposed to put grease on the contacts where the coil packs attach? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bartonmd Posted October 21, 2004 Report Share Posted October 21, 2004 The grease he is referring to is Dielectric Grease or "bulb grease" as it sometimes says on the packets... I just bought a big tube of it, because I use it on everything electrical that I take apart... It is just a grease that does NOT conduct electricity, and at the same time, stops air from getting to connections and corroding the connection... you know sometimes when something's not working and you just wiggle the connector and it works? Well, in between the 2 metal pieces at that connection, on a microscopic level, anywhere electricity is being conducted, there are very tiny sparks. These sparks cause oxygen to corrode the terminals (Oxygen is what is needed to corrode something... no oxygen getting in, no corrosion). Corrosion is not conductive, so what you are doing when you jiggle the connection is scraping off, at a microscopic level, the corrosion between the 2 parts. I put a $80 ICM in my '92 euro about a year ago and I'm starting to have problems again... hell with it, I'm just getting the $140 AC Delco one this time. By the way, your coils are probably fine... I've never seen an actual coil go out on a distributorless ignition system, but the ICM seems like it's a fairly high failure-rate item, because every parts place I called had them IN STOCK... they don't do that if they don't use them on a fairly regular basis. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckethead Posted October 21, 2004 Author Report Share Posted October 21, 2004 well, everyplace i called also had coils in stock. The garage I had my car into tested all the coils and the ICM.. They said one of the coils was bad and that caused my ICM to short out. I'm going to replace all of them because they are all the original coils (15 years old) as well as the ICM. So if i do use some of this grease do i put it on the terminals coming out of the top of the icm that the coil packs attach to? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bartonmd Posted October 21, 2004 Report Share Posted October 21, 2004 Yes, put it at every electrical connection... I usually even put it between what ever I am mounting (ICM) and the engine block, because that's probably where it gets it's ground from (?). Also, probably not a bad idea to replace them I guess... and they aren't all that expensive... I didn't read carefully to see whether he told you that one or all of them were bad, but you can rest assured that if he was trying to charge you that kind of money, he'll also try and sell you 3 coils too. But if he said one's specifically bad, then I'd do them all. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckethead Posted October 21, 2004 Author Report Share Posted October 21, 2004 yeah, he told me that one was bad and that i should probably replace the other two seeing as they were just as old Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bartonmd Posted October 21, 2004 Report Share Posted October 21, 2004 That's probably OK, I was just saying beware if he hadn't told you that one was bad, but just tried to charge you for the coils along with the ICM for more profit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiscoStudd Posted October 21, 2004 Report Share Posted October 21, 2004 There's the "dielectric grease" you put on the terminals (basically inside each end of the spark plug boots) and then there's "electronic ignition module grease" that you put on the flat surfaces of the ICM to act as an isolator to keep the heat from the ICM from conducting to the mounting bracket. This excessive heat being transferred to the mounting bracket is what kills the module. Every time you remove the ICM from the mounting bracket, you're supposed to wipe away the old grease and re-grease the bottom of the ICM. The same holds true when replacing the module on an electronic HEI distributor... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckethead Posted October 21, 2004 Author Report Share Posted October 21, 2004 dielectric grease... electronic ignition module grease.... Too many damn greases! anyways, can i pick that stuff up at any auto parts store? (both kinds?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiscoStudd Posted October 21, 2004 Report Share Posted October 21, 2004 I think I had to get the "ICM" grease at NAPA because Checker didn't stock it. You can get dielectric grease anywhere, though (I think Walmart even has it...) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bartonmd Posted October 21, 2004 Report Share Posted October 21, 2004 wal-mart I think is where I got mine (dielectric grease) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bartonmd Posted October 21, 2004 Report Share Posted October 21, 2004 Looking at your post discostudd, I think what you're talking about is actually Heat Sink grease that's sold as "ICM Grease" like dielectric grease is sold in little packets as "bulb grease"... Some of it is white isn't it, and some of it is clear? That stuff actually promotes the transfer of heat from the heat producer to a heat sink (bracket to water cooled engine). It does this by filling the microscopic (or larger) voids making a solid contact area instead of contacting 'peaks' and air-filled voids. It makes sense now, thinking about it, because the ICM must create a bunch of heat, but it doesn't have a heat sink... except the engine is it's heat sink... cool... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhiteOut Posted October 21, 2004 Report Share Posted October 21, 2004 I forgot to mention this earlier, but NAPA can test an ICM to see whether its good or not, and Autozone stores have the ability to test the coils. You may want to check that out as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiscoStudd Posted October 21, 2004 Report Share Posted October 21, 2004 Looking at your post discostudd, I think what you're talking about is actually Heat Sink grease that's sold as "ICM Grease" like dielectric grease is sold in little packets as "bulb grease"... Some of it is white isn't it, and some of it is clear? That stuff actually promotes the transfer of heat from the heat producer to a heat sink (bracket to water cooled engine). It does this by filling the microscopic (or larger) voids making a solid contact area instead of contacting 'peaks' and air-filled voids. It makes sense now, thinking about it, because the ICM must create a bunch of heat, but it doesn't have a heat sink... except the engine is it's heat sink... cool...You're probably right, I bought the stuff in a gigantic (toothpaste sized) tube, and it is clear in color. "Heat Sink Grease" would seem to make more sense as a moniker, seeing as that's what it promotes, but to the average shadetree "ICM Grease" would sound best... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bartonmd Posted October 21, 2004 Report Share Posted October 21, 2004 true dat, true dat... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckethead Posted October 22, 2004 Author Report Share Posted October 22, 2004 Well I picked up all the parts i needed last night at AAP. I talked to the guy there and he told me that i should put the dielectric grease on all the terminals and on the back of the ICM where it mounts to the bracket. I told him what you guys said about the specific ICM grease... he had never heard of it and just said most people just use the dielectric grease for that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bartonmd Posted October 22, 2004 Report Share Posted October 22, 2004 get thermal grease from Rad-shack or something... it's called heat sink grease... I bought the same ICM you just did... $84 from AAP a year and 2 months ago and I'm having problems again... I used Dielectric grease on the back of it by the way. I personally think it's worth a $3 tube of heat sink grease. Also, I don't usually take much stock in what those guys say... some of them know what they are doing, but some of them... well... when we took the A/C compressor off of the Impulse that we Rally'd, we were buying a new belt for it, we measured with string how long it needed to be, went in there, and the guy behind the counter wouldn't sell us the right belt. He was like "I have to know what car it's from" and wouldn't understand that we had taken the AC compressor off, so it wasn't going to be the factory length... so we finally told him what it was from, and he proceeded to try and give us the factory belt, even though he knew it didn't have the compressor. We finally walked back in the back and showed him that in the product #, is the length in inches. This guy wasn't new either, he had worked there at least the 2 years that I had been going there. Even as we were being rung up, he kept telling us that it was the wrong belt... Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bartonmd Posted October 22, 2004 Report Share Posted October 22, 2004 Also, use dielectric grease on the terminals and stuff, just heat sink grease on the back where it mounts... The other thing... most people don't know this... carbon core spark plug wires turn to $hit when you move them around and flex them after they have been heat cycled a few times, so be VERY careful to disturb the spark plug wires as little as possible when taking them off of the coils. If, after you get done, it's missing erratically when you're just cruising down the road, and cleans right up when you floor it, the spark plug wires are bad and you need new ones because the carbon core has broken down in the wires. Mike Edit: if you have AC Delco wires, alot of people don't know this, but they're lifetime warranty. Some parts stores don't even know it, but it's true. All you need is your last reciept. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckethead Posted October 25, 2004 Author Report Share Posted October 25, 2004 Well I replaced the ICM and all 3 coils this weekend... Ended up costing me about $160 for parts from AAP. It ended up being a pain in the ass to replace... The Haynes manual makes it look so easy, just unscrew the 3 bolts holding on the mounting bracket, disconnect the wires and put the new parts back on the bracket and screw it back in... YEAH RIGHT! I was able to get 2 of the bolts for the bracket off, but the 3rd on the bottom was impossible to reach, there was crap in the way and it was at a horrible angle, there was no way to get a socket or wrench in there (maybe if i had one of those U-joint sockets that would have helped). I ended up having to unscrew each of the coils seperetly. That was also a pain because the ac compressor hardlines were in the way of the bottom bolts. Finally after 4 hours of work and some badly scraped knuckles I was finished. It seems to run really good now and I'm glad I saved $700 by not getting the work done with those ass-rape mechanics, but I'll surely look for a cheaper mechanic to do it next time rather than tackling it myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bartonmd Posted October 25, 2004 Report Share Posted October 25, 2004 Glad to see it got fixed... HOLLA!!!!!!!!!!!!! Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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