97 vtec coil arcing
 

Lookin for a little insight
My boss bought a 97 ex coupe 4 cyl VTEC from auction for a friends foster daughter to have as a first car. Upon inspection i discovered the car had, among other things, a blown head gasket, and repaired it. After reassembly, i was surprised to discover that with key on, engine NOT running, the coil is discharging, arcing to the distributor body to the tune of about once a second. Unplug the distributor, it ceases, unplug the vtec solenoid, it ceases, unplug crank/TDC sensor, it ceases. When cranking, it doesn't discharge at all. The head was stripped and shaved so the distributor was removed, but was never dropped/kicked etc. The car ran well before being torn down, despite having a blown head gasket. What could cause a coil to discharge without a crank trigger to open and close it's primary circuit? Any help appreciated.

Sounds like something in the ignition system is causing a ground out.Try
Removeing the distributor cap , Check the cap for worn or carbon-arced terminals inside the cap. Check the rotor also for wear. Check the cap for cracks. Good luck,Bobby