How To Test Your Ignition System

Testing your ignition system can be tricky even for an experienced mechanic. With just a few simple tools our Moss Motors tech department will show you how to get to started.

Part 1.
Testing your car’s primary ignition system is easy. Today we’re going to test the first half of the system. All you need is a simple test lamp.

I’ve built a representation of your primary ignition system here. Yours will be very similar and you can test it right in your car. We are testing today to see if the ignition switch and the relay are getting power to your coil.

1. Connect one side of your test lamp to ground.
2. Connect the other side of your test lamp to the side of your coil that gets power from the key.
3. Turn the key on.

If the light glows, you are getting power to your coil. This one tests just fine.

Part 2.
Today we’re going to test the second half of the system. All you need is a simple test lamp.

We are testing today to see if the points and the wire that feeds them are working as they should.

1. Connect one side of your test lamp to one side of your coil.
2. Connect the other side of your test lamp to the other side of your coil.
3. Turn the key on and crank the engine.

As the engine cranks the points will open and close. The lamp will alternate between having ground and no ground. It should blink. If the light blinks as the motor cranks, the second half of your Primary Ignition System is fine. This one tests just fine.