Safety while working with spark plug wires

[David M Parrish]

> From:          m_mcdonald at marx.enet.dec.com

> Carter is absolutely right.  High voltage in modern ignition systems
> (and even in my 1940 Ford with its 6-volt coil and breaker points)
> is something to treat with a great deal of respect and planning.  It
> is dangerous, especially when passing from one hand through the heart
> to the other and grounded hand.
> 
> Other comments about high-voltage safety are always welcome.

Yourself isn't the only one at risk. I have a '84 Chrysler Laser turbo 
with a totally electronic dash. I was doing a compression check and 
had disconnected the coil lead from the dist. cap, without grounding 
the HV lead. What I got was a high voltage kickback into my 
electrical system. I didn't seem to do any major damage, (I've put 
about 140,000 miles on it since then.) but I was 
surprised that - according to my trip odometer - I'd traveled more 
than fifteen thousand miles while parked in my garage.  The main 
odometer had gained more than nine thousand miles. It could of 
easily fried just about everything electronic in the car.


---
David Parrish
220,000 miles...  Corrected.