Electronic Ignition (EI) System Description: Notes

The electronic ignition (EI) system is responsible for producing and controlling a high energy secondary spark. This spark is used to ignite the compressed air/fuel mixture at precisely the correct time. This provides optimal performance, fuel economy, and control of exhaust emissions. This ignition system uses one coil for each pair of cylinders. Each pair of cylinders that are at top dead center (TDC) at the same time are known as companion cylinders. The cylinder that is at TDC of its compression stroke is called the event cylinder. The cylinder that is at TDC of its exhaust stroke is called the waste cylinder. When the coil is triggered both companion cylinder spark plugs fire at the same time, completing a series circuit. Because the lower pressure inside the waste cylinder offers very little resistance, the event cylinder uses most of the available voltage to produce a very high energy spark. This is known as waste spark ignition. The ignition coil/ICM assembly is mounted in the center of the engine camshaft cover, with short boots connecting the coils to the spark plugs. The coil driver modules within the ignition control module (ICM) are commanded ON/OFF by the engine control module (ECM).