Jack,

FAIR DINKUM, that fault is just plain SCARY. Modern electronics are obviously NOT forgiving in any way.

I reckon with all the other work you have now solved the illumination issue will be a snap.

Just went out in the dark (not normal for me) and fired up "her highness" and looked for spark display at the coils, NOTHING, but these newer coils obviously do have a life limit like any other coil.

All the same, glad it is back in the land of the living.

 

Bob Gauff found a solution by replacing coils that were somehow sending a charge back to the engine computer and causing it to shut down. I am wondering if placing a diode, a one way bridge, in the circuit for each plug would stop this from happening.

 

It may perhaps stop the fault, but would it force the spark to go forward into the plug? In my coils the spark was not making it to the plug consistently and the engine was missing. It only became OBVIOUS obvious when I could see the spark at the top of the coil as I listened to the rhythm of the engine.

 

Gentlemen, thank you all for the considerable help!!! I took her down off of the jack stands and reassembled the steering column and all of the fascia. I even installed a live wire to the cigar lighter so that my cellular can charge when the car is off. I pulled it from the always live line that comes into the radio. I drove her for a couple of hours this evening. With all working coils she got 24.5mpg and never once did the binnacle flash.

Here is a thought. Three of the coils were obviously backfiring. The reason it was related to the temperature of the car was because semiconductor resistivity lowers at higher temperatures. As the components of the ignition system would reach a higher temperature, resistivity would decrease and the spark would discharge back into the ignition system causing it to flash off. Cold semiconductors have a high resistivity.

That comes as close to making sense for why this fault was connected to the temp of the system.

Again, thank you everyone for your help and input. I never would have figured all this out without everyone's help.