The older style of ignition had one main coil that ran power to a distributor and the distributor in turn determined to which cylinder the spark went. This system worked well, but the resistance was high due to the number of wires the spark had to go through before it reached the plug. This was solved by the invention of coil-on-plug ignition. This put individual coils on top of each spark plug, meaning the plug would receive the full amount of spark it should. Your Ford Escape is equipped with this new coil-on-plug design.
Locate the ignition coils. These are directly above the spark plugs, circular in shape and have electrical connectors that plug into their tops.
Press the locking button on the wiring harness that connects to the coil. Pull the harness from the coil with your hands while holding the locking button.
Loosen and remove the two bolts around the coil using a ratchet and socket.
Pull the coil from the engine with your hands.
Place the new coil over the spark plug and push it until it clicks on the plug.
Tighten the coil pack bolts to 89 inch-pounds of torque using the micro-torque wrench and a socket.
Plug the wiring harness into the new coil until it clicks into place.
Repeat steps 2 through 7 for any additional coils that need replacing.
