1st Gen R53 Cooper S Ignition ...

Go OEM, nothing to gained except you will spend more.

 

10 years on the stock original one is pretty good. It doesn't sound like there's anything wrong with using a stock one. Unless it gets really really cold in Montreal (I've been there :smilewinkgrin: ) .

Personally, I've found upgrading one piece of the drivetrain usually involves upgrading other things too. It will depends on the balance you want or need as well as your overall budget for mods.

From the Outmotoring website on the Screamin Demon coil pack:

Unless you are racing your car on a track, the differences in performance provided by a coil pack are very subtle if not marginal.

I can see a discussion somewhere come up on the effects of a hotter spark, or a higher voltage spark. I have issues with the part about "ignite faster in the combustion chamber". The reason we use higher octane gasolines is to slow down the ignition of fuels to prevent detonation.

However, a difference between a 36KV spark and a 40KV spark shouldn't matter in the ignition of fuel. Electricity still travels through a wire at the same speed. Fuel ignites at a specific temperature and the flame expansion (burn rate) happens at a specific rate. A higher voltage spark is not going to change that.

Anybody who has a different opinion should chime up and we can have a discussion. I can still be educated if I am wrong.

 

My advice would be to use the oem coilpack until it actually needs replacement & then put another oem back in its place.

If your wires are old they yes replacing them can help. They are a wear item. Oem or oem equivalents will work fine. I had fancy wires & & felt no gains imagined or real.

 

OEM Coil, when it "needs" it, wires yes good idea to change them after a certain amount of miles, as far as OEM-vs-Aftermarket, I only saw a difference in above 6800 rpm situations, (with my datalogger) when I did a side by side. (both sets had approx. 50,000 miles on them at the time.)

 

Save your money and just buy OEM coil and wires. Many modded cars up to 400whp run OEM coil and wires without any problems.

OEM is the way to go one this one.

 

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OEM Coil and Wires, however, if you want to add some color then use Kingsbourne wires. They have proven to be almost as good as the OEM wire set.

 

Well I'll be a monkey's uncle! Unanimously good advice from from an internet forum. Let it be known that on this day, Motoring Alliance was the first forum site ever where all participants told the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth!

 

Now just hold on a sec.....I haven't posted yet!

Oh, wait.......I agree with everything already posted.

DAMN.

Go back to your regularly scheduled program.

 

On the other hand, MSD ignition coils are red and they contain brass contacts which do not corrode.

Everybody knows red is faster.

The brass contacts won't corrode like the #3 sparkplug connector on the OEM pack so you won't have to spend 1 minute every year or two to pull the plug wire and inspect the contacts and clean them (though you should do that anyways).

 

I thought the same thing beken, until I started doing some research on these MSD coilpacks....they have a nasty tendency to actually expand like a balloon blowing up and then failing. Went back to OEM and just make it a habit of checking the connectors for corrosion at my oil changes. It doesn't get to bad (if at all) when you use some dielectric grease on them.

 

Please dear God do not bring up the silly red MSD coil. That thing should just have an ALTA sticker on it.