hi all i have a standard ignition coil in the garage (been laying around for years) that should be ok for the 1.3 x-flow i have in the car do i have to have a ballast resistor with it or should it be ok without it fitted. if so what should i fit as finding it hard to find one for the mk1 escort

thanks all

I *think* I fitted a 12v MGB coil to my xflow without issues.

If you want to not use a ballast resistor, you need to use a 12v coil. If you use a coil designed for use with a ballast resistor without you will end up burning one side of your points very quickly.

I bought a bosch high energy coil with a ballast resistor (i removed the one from the loom) from ebay for £5.

David

Using a ballast resistor coil without the resistor will cause the condensor to fail very quickly which causes the points to burn out. Guess how I found out about 30 years ago!

measure resistonace of primary coil

3 ohm = 12 V coil
1.5 ohm = 9 V coil (ballast).

If you are using 12 V coil, then you don;t waqnt ballast resistor - I've never seen one but believe it looks like a thick wire hidden mysteriousl in the loom.

There were two types of resistor used, a thick grey wire under the wing mount or a ceramic block which looked like a fuse was used on early Transits. 12v is better if you have a choice, less to go wrong.