Ignition Coils For 2003 Ford Thunderbird

 

The 2003 Thunderbird uses 8 Dg515 ignition coils. These coil packs are a pencil style that is referred to as coil on plug. These can fail over time, but what many owners don't know is that all 8 need to be replaced if they are old, and one fails. Our general guide is around 7 years old. Any newer, and you can get away with replacing one ignition coil. Going with the set of 8 over a single ignition coil however is always the best deal. The local stores will charge up to $90 for just one ignition coil, where we have all 8 at just a fraction of the price of 8 original coils. Our ignition coils carry a lifetime warranty, and we cover all shipping back and fourth. Replacing these ignition coils should not be as expensive as the prices you see at the local store.

 

Symptoms of a Bad Coil Pack in the 2003 Ford Thunderbird

 

A misfire feels like the engine is skipping a beat. It's very common to feel the misfire while accelerating, or around town driving, but when reaching a cruising speed, you won't feel anything. This is an occasional misfire that occurs under a load. You may also see a check engine light as well. If you use an OBDII scanner, you can find out which cylinder is misfiring. From there you will be able to swap the bad coil to another cylinder, rescan and see if it is actually the ignition coils causing your problems. If one coil is bad, you can still drive your vehicle, but we recommend keeping the driving to a minimum to prevent damage to the catalytic converter. Each of these coil packs are held down with just one bolt, making the replacement a very straight forward job. You will be reaching over to get to the coils, and some of them are in tight spaces, but this job is very simple and straight forward. 

 

Changing all 8 Coil Packs in Your 2003 Thunderbird

 

A commonly asked question is "do I have to replace all of my ignition coils?". The short answer is no, but it will be beneficial time and money wise to do so. Why? Mainly because when one coil fails, and the rest are around the 7 year old mark, it's likely the other coil will fail soon. Contrary to popular belief that the other coils try to "compensate" for the 1 bad coil, the truth is that they all really do wear at the same exact time, similar to headlight bulbs, or even tires. If you put 4 new tires on your car at the same time and drive until they blow out, they won't all blow out at the same time, but by the time one does blow out, the others are pretty close as well. This is the same thing as the ignition coils. They are all made together, packaged together, installed together, and operate in the same environment. It's obvious that they will also fail together also. Keep this in mind when replacing ignition coils. If your coils are a littler newer than 7 years, it may just be a one off failure (defect). 

 

Life Expectancy For Ignition Coil Packs

 

There is no life expectancy for these parts. Manufacturers do not include the ignition coils in the maintenance plan, however these coils do fail. Regional weather and vehicle use plays a large role in how long these will last. Humidity is the number one enemy of these electrical parts. The other enemy is cold weather. Extreme cold weather can cause these to crack and misfire. The third and final enemy is short trips. If your vehicle is constantly warming up and cooling down, that can also accelerate the development of cracks in the epoxy. 

 

If you are still unsure of which coils to get for your 2003 Ford Thunderbird, feel free to reach out to us by phone or email, and we will be happy to help you find the right parts!