Both teams failed to shine during a dismal first half which saw few clear-cut chances.
Coventry's first real chance fell to Clinton Morrison when he latched onto Jordan Henderson's pass just inside the box but the shot sailed wide of the right-hand post.
The Reading strikeforce of Shane Long and Dave Kitson were given little in the way of service and the strong presence of City skipper Scott Dann at the back ensured that any threat of an attack was quickly snuffed out.
Then came Dann's chance to inject some excitement into the game but he could only head Dan Fox's 23rd minute free-kick into the hands of Reading keeper Marcus Hahnemann.
The best chance of the half fell to Leon Best in stoppage time.
He found himself one-on-one with Hahnemann after some clever footwork from Henderson, but the big American keeper made the most of his considerable frame to gather the ball from Best's feet.
The second half got off to a fiery start with five bookings in the first nine minutes as the referee threatened to lose control of the match.
Again there was little in the way of chances but Freddy Eastwood could have given the home side the lead on 65 minutes.
However, after latching onto Aron Gunnarsson's cross inside the box, he sent his right-footed volley high and wide of the target.
Former Sky Blues star Jay Tabb had Reading's best effort after unleashing a powerful 25-yard drive just wide of the top left-hand corner from the corner of the area.
Frenchman Guillaume Beuzelin should have scored for Coventry on 80 minutes after Morrison pulled the ball back to him on the penalty spot, but the midfielder dragged his effort horribly wide.
A late flurry of Reading pressure yielded nothing in the way of goals and both teams were forced to be satisfied with a point a piece.