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I'm totally unfamiliar with the specifics of an '82 ignition, but I can give you some thoughts to ponder until someone better informed weighs in.
Coils rarely fail on Volvos, but you could probably ruin one if you let it fire with no place for the spark to go (coil wire dangling in air or missing while someone tries to start the car.
It is unrelated to your current no-spark problem, but any fuel injection system should have a relay that will only allow the fuel pump to run if there is a spark signal on the primary circuit of the coil. That keeps the fuel pump from pumping the contents of the gas tank out onto the ground after a collision.
COIL THEORY
If the coil can shock you, you are pretty safe in assuming that it is OK. The problem is that it is not getting a signal pulse. The coil builds an electromagnetic field while current flows through it to ground. That current is flowing from one of the small connectors on your coil to the other. When one of those connectors 'see's voltage and the other 'see's ground, current is flowing. When the current flow is interrupted, the field collapses and the secondary circuit of the coil fires a spark.
There are two ways to interrupt the current: either shut off the source of current, or disconnect the ground. Before the 1970s, cars had mechanical contact points that would open and break the ground connection to fire the coil. Since then, cars have used an array of different magnetic sensors to detect engine position, and semiconductor switches and amplifiers to turn that weak signal into a signal strong enough to power the primary side of your coil.
WHAT TO CHECK
Start with the small wire connections at your distributor. Whatever senses engine position and initiates the signal that controls your distributor is likly located inside the distributor. Trace that wire as far as you can, checking for bad insulation and corrosion in connectors. If you don't find the problem, you'll need a manual or advice from someone who knows your system.
Hope this helps.
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