I am wondering if ignition coils are a regular maintence item. Do people change the coils as you would a cap or rotor? Mine seems to be fine but curious that it has gotten week since it was new in 2003. I've replaced all other ignition items just not this.

i have a pair of 454s in my 1990 sea ray cruiser,still has the original coil,s.

Just change the oil in them regularly . Make sure to use 0W20 and an old Fram Racing filter . No maintenance required other than making sure the terminals are not corroded .

Deep, you serious on fram filter and oil weight?

Just joshing you bud .

I have replaced alot of the small GM coils over the years because the start arcing through the side of the coil to the bracket they are mounted to. I believe that this is mostly caused by high resistance due to lack of regular tune ups. That being said, I would still rather have the 10 year old GM coil than an AZ/O'riley's jip joint auto parts store coil. If you are going to replace it as a maintenance item, at least buy a AC Delco coil.

Remove the high tension lead (plug wire) from the coil and look inside for any sign of liquid. If you see any of the gel leaking into the tower, the coil is on it's way out. It may still work fine for years to come, but once leaking, it's on its way downhill.
Eddie

i am rebuilding both engines in my cruiser and new coils are in the works.after 1600 hrs i guess they owe me nothing.

Thanks everyone, this is why this page continues to be a great source of information.