DIY S13 240sx Ignition Coil Mod Hotwire Tutorial

DIY tutorial for your S13 240sx

How to hotwire or boost the voltage on the ignition coil to provide for smoother operation, especially noticeable on boosted applications, and an overall snappier feel.

[ TECHINICAL NOTES ]
The ignition coil is engineered for 12 volts in order to produce the maximum spark. Increasing the input voltage does NOT increase the output voltage. BUT... The ECU voltage output can sometimes drop below 12 volts (11.6v etc.) and this drop BELOW 12 volts will actually decrease the output voltage.

Providing a constant higher-than-needed voltage on the input will guarantee that the voltage will not drop below the voltage the coil was designed for (unless your charging system goes bad). The benefit is that throughout the entire RPM range and under almost any load conditions, you will be sure that you are getting the amount of spark you need.

Category:

Autos & Vehicles

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• nismo
• s13
• ignition
• coil
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• tutorial
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• hotwire
• hot
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• voltage
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• relay
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• ka24de

[shinjitsu2]

would this drain the car battery when the ignition is off

[jdstankosky]

@shinjitsu2 Not at all! When the car is turned off this uses no electricity.

[upstreammiami]

you do know this wastes gas like a mtf!!!

[jdstankosky]

@upstreammiami You do know that you're making stuff up? I consistently drive 800-1200 miles a week and I average 28 mpg under aggressive driving and high speed highway driving.

As a side note, I use 89 octane as suggested in the owner's manual.

[poochey1]

I'm a bit sus on the actual benefits of this mod. because its not the voltage that really makes the difference in the coil. is the rate of change of cutting power to the coil. and I'm thinking that the delay caused by the relay and the fact that the relay might switch slower then the ecu will degrade performance. also you should have some load (a resistor) between the coil and the voltage and also a cap over the relay to stop it arcing and damaging the points inside the relay. your call tho.

[jdstankosky]

@poochey1 The voltage from ECU can drop below 12 volts which WILL harm performance. This mod ensures that all input voltages are, at a minimum, always sufficient for maximum output. A resister would be the exact opposite of what we want.

The relay switches so fast, it's irrelevant. 1 millisecond is never going to break anything under 8,000 rpm.

All points on my relay were insulated and water-proofed as soon as I had shut off the camera. That's just common sense.

[itzmattvause]

why all the doubt, in theory this should work a coil works on a ratio lets say 1v in 100v out, so with 12v input the output should be 1.2kv but due to voltage drop from the ecu, wire lag, interferance etc... so in theory wiring a relay with a direct 12v should be better then 11.6v after all 0.4v doesnt sound a lot but when multiplied by a ratio equals a 400v drop. ps my theory may be wrong but i think its right, correct me if im wrong.................

[89sekoo]

how did u relocate ur battery? a video would b great

[gatanuittimeykin]

I am a little confused. Initially you said the wire that give power to the coil goes to pin # 85 but, at the end and in conclusion, the same wire goes to pin #86 and the pin #85 becomes a ground wire instead. Overall, it is a very clear-cut tutorial except for the mix-up between pins # 85 and pin# 86.

[Streetracer189]

This might be a stupid question but can you do this mod on a S14?