Is the coil supposed to be loose in that metal bracket that surrounds it??

 

No. That would produce poor grounding of the coil.

 

Thanks Shoebox

 

Is the laminated outer core (I think thats what you call it) supposed to be loose or have slop around the center windings (the center part of the coil with the connectors)? My new coil has this movement and I wonder if were talking about the same thing?

 

I thought you were referring to the mounting of the coil to the coil bracket. I have noticed a little play in the epoxied part of the coil in relation to the square metal core surrounding it. That seems to be normal (if not in excess).

 

thanks shoebox, thats one less thing I need to worry about in solving my missfire problems!
btw- my old coil had 5800 ohms cold, was it ok or did it need replacing? The new coil has 8200 ohms and I still get missfire when warm?

 

Either is probably ok.