What happened to caps with copper conductors?🤦‍♂️

As a side note, ever since I've had the car - which is going on a decade - it has chewed up/melted the port on the cap where the wire that comes from the coil plugs in. I have a Jacobs Electrics coil on there, could that be why? Pics below:

That might be because the wire is not seated fully in the cap.

Never seen one that bad. Looks like it’s not seated as @Zed Head mentioned. It’s definitely been subject to extreme heat.

Looks like some other stuff going on in the bottom of that picture.

What is the toggle switch and wire nut all about?

@Patcon I did mean spark erosion, in that I think it eats through the aluminum faster that brass/copper. It happened to mine. I have an older CDI unit on my set up as well.

The wire is as seated as it can be and it's always done that since I've had the car regardless of new wires, new cap, new rotor, new plugs, etc. The Jacob Electronic unit is the only thing that is the constant. I believe the toggle switch was a kill switch but I don't recall - I never touched it.

On 10/10/2026 at 11:26 PM, chaseincats said:

I have a Jacobs Electrics coil

Just the coil or the complete unit? That looks like a pretty standard coil for electronic ignition. A little low on primary resistance for a 280Z ignition system but not terrible.

https://www.summitracing.com/parts/JAC-380672T

Edited October 12Oct 12 by Zed Head

4 minutes ago, Zed Head said:

Just the coil or the complete unit? That looks a pretty standard coil for electronic ignition. A little low on primary resistance for a 280Z ignition system but not terrible.

https://www.summitracing.com/parts/JAC-380672T

The coil is connected this this box:

That must be one of the very earliest. There's nothing on the internet about that specific part number.

Wouldn't be a surprise if it was starting to fail, like most old electronics systems do.

Here's some general Jacobs stuff. I don't think the company lasted long. Looks like some of the kits came with a toggle switch to control a solenoid. Some sort of "high current" control.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/168526052023?_skw=Jacobs+Energy+Pak

https://static.summitracing.com/global/images/instructions/jac-forddis.pdf

https://itstillruns.com/instructions-jacobs-electronics-energy-pak-7946376.html

https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/sanity-check-on-jacobs-ignition.1338701/

Be careful -

Edited October 12Oct 12 by Zed Head

40 minutes ago, Zed Head said:

That must be one of the very earliest. There's nothing on the internet about that specific part number.

Wouldn't be a surprise if it was starting to fail, like most old electronics systems do.

Here's some general Jacobs stuff. I don't think the company lasted long. Looks like some of the kits came with a toggle switch to control a solenoid. Some sort of "high current" control.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/168526052023?_skw=Jacobs+Energy+Pak

https://static.summitracing.com/global/images/instructions/jac-forddis.pdf

https://itstillruns.com/instructions-jacobs-electronics-energy-pak-7946376.html

https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/sanity-check-on-jacobs-ignition.1338701/

Interesting - thanks for this. When using this, does that mean the 'transistor ignition unit' in the passenger foot well is disabled and that box I took a picture of is running instead? I have no idea what the point of this thing is but I've never messed with it since the car runs.

37 minutes ago, Zed Head said:

Be careful -

Funny story about this - the pully tensioner bearing squeaks regardless of if I change it or not - so I just stopped changing it and live with the squeak. My friend was over and we noticed if you spray it with silicon lubricant it quiets down. That is not important to the story.

What is important to the story is after spraying the tensioner bearing with the spray can, he tapped it accidentally on the metal ignition coil and did indeed receive a 'violent shock'.